Planning a wedding isn’t easy—just ask anyone who has thrown one in the past year. Not only is one tasked with making hundreds of decisions leading up to the big day, there’s also the matter of having to stick to a strict budget. In an effort to keep costs reigned in, couples often choose to sacrifice one element over another, which sometimes leads to regrets later on. One of the smartest ways of avoiding this type of buyer’s remorse after your wedding is to talk to someone who has been through it before. Zola, the online wedding registry company, did just that and asked over 700 couples to share their biggest spending regrets and some of the biggest myths they encountered when it comes to wedding planning. Below, a few of their findings that just might surprise you . . . 

The wedding music is key.
A majority of couples admitted they prioritized wedding day attire over splurging on a good band or DJ. But post-wedding, most newlyweds recognized that the music was of far greater importance than what they were wearing. What good is looking gorgeous if nobody is having fun on the dance floor?

Choose your wedding officiants and planners carefully.
Most couples focused more on planning an after-party over paying attention to choosing the right officiant and wedding coordinator. Needless to say, these two people ended up having a much greater impact on the big day than the late-night festivities.

A party is always more fun than a dinner.
While having a rehearsal dinner is definitely one of the biggest wedding traditions out there, most couples said they considered their wedding’s after-party a much memorable event overall. This is a good piece of data to keep in mind if you can only do one or the other.

Don’t forget about the wedding cake!
While more and more couples are choosing to forgo a wedding cake altogether, a surprisingly high number of newlyweds said their wedding cake ended up ranking as one of the top 10 most memorable elements of their wedding day. After all, who doesn’t love cake?