Give me a ballpark figure. What’s it going to cost me to rent a tux from Men’s Wearhouse in Chicago?
Well, 2 years ago for my wedding, the groomsmen rented their tuxes for just shy of a $100 with tax and everything.
This was the cheapest, one-button, tux with the 1/2 vest that just loops around the back and bowtie, no cummerbund.
The one they were trying to talk me into getting for the groomsmen was more in the $130-$140 range. Multiple button vest, higher quality fabric, etc.
If I’d had to pay full price rental for my fancy grooms tux, it would have been about $180
~$100 sounds about right.
The advice I’ll give is to read the contract. Last time I rented a tux, the gal at the rental place tried to charge extra for every little piece. Until I actually read the paperwork and saw that it should be all inclusive. I wonder how many people she suckered.
$125 when I rented on last year from MW in Minneapolis.
Wouldn’t it be simpler and more accurate to simply call Men’s Wearhouse in Chicago?
[Rainman voice]About a hunerd dollars[/RV]
Depending on how much you need to wear a tux and how stable your size is, it may be cost effective just to buy one. Barely used ones sell for not much more than the cost of a rental not including the shoes. Brand new ones are often available at large clothing discount stores. It isn’t like the style changes very much. Rented tux shoes tend to be pretty crappy and you can substitute really nice black dress shoes if you have them for a better look. It isn’t very hard to find a good quality new tux for less than $250 if you need to wear them on a regular basis.
Adding to Shagnasty’s post - in addition to being a stable size consistently through time, it also helps to be a relatively common size - if you’re an outlier in height, proportion, or circumference, then it’s a LOT harder to find a tux to purchase, and can be difficult to get one rented at normal price also.
Also depends on how often you’re going to be called on for tux wearing - if you’re one of the first people in your set to be married, then you might need one for upcoming friend/family weddings. Less so if everyone you know is happily hitched, and you don’t go to many swank evening events.
I’ll second the nice dress shoes - do your feet a favor and go to a nice shoe store and get yourself a pair of beautiful well-fitted nice black dress shoes. Politely decline to wear the crap tux shoes which are offered at the tux rental places. Your feet will thank you, and you’ll look much nicer.
Nope. I’ve been to the website and saw several that I might like to rent and nowhere is there any mention of the cost. Just a blurb on the home page “Tuxedo rentals from $59”. I know damn well if I called I’d wind up talking to Retterath’s gal who’ll try to give me the old bait n switch. That’s why I came here first. To get a little ammunition before I walk in the door.
I’ve never worn a tux before and I’ll probably never wear one again so rental is most likely my best option. And unless I can buff up my shoes to a high patent leather like gloss I’ll have to rent those too. Kinda skeeves me out but I can suffer through it for a few hours I guess.
Thanks all for the helpful advice.
Don’t let it skeeve you out. Have fun at the event.
Never say “I’ll never wear one again.” because there will always be another wedding or formal dinner a few years down the road. Even if you have to rent two tuxes in your life, it’s cheaper to buy one and since they’ll tailor it to you, you’ll look better in it. Also, keep in mind that you can still wear the actual tuxedo (i.e. the jacket) with other pants and shirts to get a less formal look when you go to low-caliber events.
Next time you take a date to the theater, you can laugh at all the unwashed in their khakis.
I just rented one for my brother’s wedding, at Men’s Wearhouse, in Chicago. It was 179.99 minus some 40 dollar discount for I forget what.
ETA: I should add, that’s for everything, including shoes (which are $20.) It looks like the jacket and pants itself are 129.99.
My husband just rented one two weeks ago for his brother’s wedding. $160. However, MW has a loyalty program card thing, which took $30 off the cost of the rental. He doesn’t ever buy dress shirts or suits or anything with that card. He just opened it when we got married and he’s used it this once for his brother’s wedding. I don’t think it cost anything for him to open, either. The card is a pretty good deal. (The free card saving us $30. Not the “rented tuxes cost more than a dress you can keep” deal.)
The problem with owning one is that it’s great for opera openings, New Year’s parties, & such. If you’re in the social class where dress-up dinners wow your woman, it’s a big hit. If she prefers Budwieser & fries at the Moose lodge or Jim-Bob’s Redneck Roundup, not so much.
For weddings, the groom generally wants the best man & all the other groomsmen to be dressed identically. The odds on the chosen style being exactly the one you bought 5 years ago are real close to zero. Likewise, patent leather shoes look real out of place anywhere except with a tux & a military uniform. Whereas a tux w/o patents just ain’t right.