If you’re planning a Wedding, Corporate Event, Birthday Party or other Private Function, this is a valid question you might have! How much does a DJ cost? In this short article, we’ll aim to put together a rough guide on how much you should spend, depending on the requirements of your individual event:
This is the first question you need to ask yourself, and will depend heavily on the type of event you are planning. If you are planning an event where the ages of your guests do not vary greatly, then you can be more specific with your DJ choice. For instance, if you are arranging, a 16th, 18th, 21st Birthday (or a prom), you know that you will need a DJ that is young and specialises in the kind of music popular with this age group. You will most likely need a DJ that has club experience, or better yet one with a residency.
Depending on their popularity, these DJ’s can range from £40 – £60 an hour. Many of these performers will not own their own Sound & Lighting Equipment however, so you will need to confirm with them that they can either source some for the night, or contact a hire firm.
If it’s a Wedding Reception that you’re arranging, then you will undoubtedly need a DJ capable of performing to a wider range of ages. This is where Mobile DJ’s come in. Whilst they will not need quite the level of technical mixing skills required in the aforementioned example, they will need a far more developed ability to “read the room” and manage requests. This is a very difficult skill to mixing club records, and comes with years of experience. You will most likely need the DJ to make certain announcements for you (such as the First Dance, Cake Cutting, Last dance and Closing of the bar etc), so you’ll need to be sure they’re confident doing these.
Another important question – and again, the hours depend on your event. If your Wedding Ceremony and Reception are in the same room, you will need to find out with the venue whether it is plausible for the DJ to set up before the earlier takes place. When possible, this means they can be ready to play background music as soon as the nuptials have been completed. If not, they will have to set up whilst guests are in the room, unless you are temporarily moving guests to a different room. Price wise – you will need to presume an idle cost of £25-40 per hour if the Disc Jockey is setting up before the event. So if they are setting up at 12:00 and starting at 18:00, this could increase the cost by £150.00+.
Once you have decided on the set up time, consider what times the DJ will actually start and finish playing. Is there a band playing as well? If so, you will need to schedule the times with each performer so they don’t clash. Most brides book a DJ for 4-5 hours. You can go as long as 6, but you might find the dance floor starts to lose a bit of popularity over the 5 hour mark. We would usually suggest booking either 4 or 5 hours. Also be sure to check the curfew time with your venue so they don’t break any local licensing laws!
The final question is to decide how premier you want your service to look, and sound. The top DJ’s will invest in high quality Speakers & Microphone systems, which produce crystal clear sound. They will also most likely have a Starlit DJ Booth, with moving head lighting fixtures (either on podiums, or mounted from above). You may also find that your venue already has speakers and lights in place. Always ask the question as you may be surprised! But do be sure to check that they are of suitable quality before asking the DJ to leave his/her equipment at home.
As you can see, there are a number of factors involved in selecting the right DJ for your event. So how much does a DJ cost? If you are booking a simple DJ for a short 2 hour set, £250 may be a suitable price. If you are booking a Premier Wedding DJ for a 5 hour set, with early set up, the price may range as high as £600-700. So whilst the price can be in the range of £250-700.00, be sure not to cut any corners and select the right package for your event. We offer DJ hire only as part of our Photo Booth & DJ Package.
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