Typical/reasonable price range for senior prom dress?

[Anonymous]

we went shopping at Macys and there were plenty 100-139. way more reasonable

[Anonymous]

PP may give her blessing, but does your WALLET give its blessing?

Unless the dress looks stunning and can be reused for one of my daughter's violin recitals or a wedding, I'm not going to beggar myself for a prom dress.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Obviously this will vary wildly.

I find the numbers on this thread to be really high though. If you look at all prom dresses at Macy's there are only 3 that are more than $300 and none over $400. Most are $200 or under.

https://www.macys.com/shop/junior-clothing/shop-all-juniors-apparel/Department_type,Special_occasions,Sortby/Dresses,Prom,PRICE_HIGH_TO_LOW?id=60983

Gratuitous spending for no reason seems a little gross to me. My daughter is a bit young for prom but if I were buying this year, I'd definitely say $300 or under, just on principle.

My mom (who was usually very frugal) spent $200 on my dress 25 years ago. I remember being stunned. But it felt so special and I looked so great in it. I still have the dress!

[Anonymous]

I feel like it's so much easier to find under $100 prom dresses that look good now compared to 25 years ago when I was 18. Fast fashion is everywhere so prices are down. And don't kid yourself, all the $200-300 prom dresses in macy's other stores are just as much fast fashion as lulu's or whatever. They aren't all that well made bc they don't need to be

The nicer ones from the women's department are often and too old/stuffy for the teen set. They are more for galas and events for the olds (like me) and that's generally where you can actually start correlating quality with price.

You can find so much online now discounted

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I feel like it's so much easier to find under $100 prom dresses that look good now compared to 25 years ago when I was 18. Fast fashion is everywhere so prices are down. And don't kid yourself, all the $200-300 prom dresses in macy's other stores are just as much fast fashion as lulu's or whatever. They aren't all that well made bc they don't need to be

The nicer ones from the women's department are often and too old/stuffy for the teen set. They are more for galas and events for the olds (like me) and that's generally where you can actually start correlating quality with price.

You can find so much online now discounted

Exactly. Just find something that FITS WELL. If you want to re-use it for multiple occasions, then you need to consider quality: fabric type, examine seams and closures, etc...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:In 3/2020, I’d have said $300, plus or minus $100. It’s special. But not couture special. You don’t want to peak in high school.

In 4/2021, I say, if your senior is able to have a prom and you can afford it, get her her dream dress. So many special senior experiences disappeared for my 2020 kid, but at least she got most of a normal year. This years class was shafted. Make what she has special within your individual budget and don’t worry about over indulging.

Amd I am not a parent to get hung up on indulging kids over status and labels. But you have my blessing to spoil her this year. Whatever that means on your budget.

I feel the same way. I actually set a budget of $500-I have a good job but make less than most here-I felt like, this is it, the last thing, they have been through so much! Dd actually found a dress for $229, and I let her have a lot of alterations that I probably would not have splurged on usually. So it came to near $500. Prom is tonight-she's so excited! Dress looks great.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Obviously this will vary wildly.

I find the numbers on this thread to be really high though. If you look at all prom dresses at Macy's there are only 3 that are more than $300 and none over $400. Most are $200 or under.

https://www.macys.com/shop/junior-clothing/shop-all-juniors-apparel/Department_type,Special_occasions,Sortby/Dresses,Prom,PRICE_HIGH_TO_LOW?id=60983

Gratuitous spending for no reason seems a little gross to me. My daughter is a bit young for prom but if I were buying this year, I'd definitely say $300 or under, just on principle.

I was surprised that my W school DD bought two on line that she’s happy with. Both were under $100.

[Anonymous]

My DD still has the dress that she bought last year for prom. She planned ahead to get the exact dress she really wanted and bought it online. She is excited to wear it this year.
It cost a bit less than $100.

My older DD, (graduated a few years ago) who is not into fashion/dressing up at all, found a dress in a thrift shop when we stopped in just to look. Cost $20.

If you want to drop a bundle, you can, but there are less expensive options out there

[Anonymous]

Thanks, everyone. This is very helpful.
-OP

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Obviously this will vary wildly.

I find the numbers on this thread to be really high though. If you look at all prom dresses at Macy's there are only 3 that are more than $300 and none over $400. Most are $200 or under.

https://www.macys.com/shop/junior-clothing/shop-all-juniors-apparel/Department_type,Special_occasions,Sortby/Dresses,Prom,PRICE_HIGH_TO_LOW?id=60983

Gratuitous spending for no reason seems a little gross to me. My daughter is a bit young for prom but if I were buying this year, I'd definitely say $300 or under, just on principle.

My mom (who was usually very frugal) spent $200 on my dress 25 years ago. I remember being stunned. But it felt so special and I looked so great in it. I still have the dress!

I spent $250 on my prom dress in ‘02, $350 on my homecoming dress in ‘03. Those were the “special” years for us, I spent my own money and my mother had contributed $25/year for each dance. It was worth it to me.

[Anonymous]

A budget of $200 is reasonable and provides lots of options. Most of the girls in my daughter's North Arlington public school were wearing Macy's-quality dresses.
Alterations--even just length-- can be pricey so factor that in your budget.
There's a 99 percent chance they will never wear it again.