A Formal Dilemma: Should You Rent Or Buy A Tuxedo?
Author: Nick
Category: Money
Topics: frugality
If you’re a man like me, and undoubtedly you are unless you have boobies, you’ve probably had the occasion to wear a tuxedo at least once in your life so far. Maybe it was your high school prom or your wedding or that time you played James Bond’s stunt double. Buying a tuxedo when you’re still young and growing just doesn’t make financial sense, especially if you’re only going to need to wear one every few years or so.
But now that I’ve reached adulthood and have hopefully finished growing, it’s time for me to consider if I should buy a tuxedo. The reason this is coming up now is that, by some weird misalignment of the stars, I’ve been asked to host a very large formal ball next year. “Formal ball” means men wear tuxedos. Thus, I’ll need to either rent or buy one.
The decision to buy a tuxedo should not be made lightly. After all, a tuxedo is likely to be one of the most expensive items a man will ever add to his wardrobe. When deciding if the time is right for you to buy a tuxedo, consider the following:
- Will I need to use it at least three times in the next decade? Plan to make your tux last for a good 10-12 years, maybe more. If you know you’ll need one at least three times in that period, you might be able to save money buying instead of renting.
- Is it likely that I’ll grow significantly in the next 10 years? I would say that the mid-20s is a great time to buy a tuxedo. You’ve had your major growth spurts, you’re probably at a weight you can maintain easily, and the risk that you’ll outgrow the tuxedo is at a minimum.
- Do I take good care of my clothes? If you’re the type of guy who doesn’t like to wash his clothes, iron, or even put them on a freaking hanger, you might still be better off renting a tux instead of buying one that will just be abused before you wear it for a second time.
And if you know you’ll be using a tuxedo on a yearly basis or even more frequently, buying is definitely in your wallet’s best interest. But before you head down to the nearest penguin shop, here are some tips that’ll help you score a better deal on a tux you’ll actually enjoy wearing.
- It should be dark. Yes, you could get the neon purple one and be the pimp of every party, but black is a much more widely accepted tuxedo color. Or if not black, go with midnight blue. The Washington Post recommends that color because it’ll actually look blacker than black at night.
- Keep it light. Dancing and tuxedos go hand in hand. Don’t burden yourself with a heavy tux that’ll have you sweating by the second song.
- Don’t just walk into the first tuxedo shop you see and buy one. As with any major purchase, you’re going to want to shop around. Even if you fall in love with a tux at the first store, force yourself to try others. You might find an even nicer one at a better price.
- Consider buying a former rental tux. Rental shops usually take good care of their tuxes and sell them after a year or two of use at deep discounts. Just be sure to try it on first and closely examine it for wear and tear.
- Go for something simple. Tails and vests and other accessories just overcomplicate a tux. Go for the simple but stylish bow tie plus cummerbund combination and you’ll never look out of place.
- Buy the whole set together. The coat and trousers should come from the same designer and match each other perfectly. You’ll probably want to buy the shirt in the same place so you can make sure it goes well with the rest of the outfit.
- Don’t spend too much. You may be shown more expensive tuxes by high-pressure salesmen when all you really want is one priced between $200 and $500. Be ready to stand your pricing ground, and don’t let the fancy labels sway you into parting with more of your savings than necessary.
Oh, and men, I don’t want to hear any complaining about buying a tuxedo. After all, women need to buy their big fluffy dresses too, and they can’t get away with wearing the same one to every event as easily as you can with the same tux. So if you have lots of formal events in your future, take a day to do a bit of shopping and you’ll be ready for any fancy shindig on a moment’s notice and for a lot less money than your rental-only friends.
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96 Responses
1.
s. jennifer rose
June 30th, 2008 at 10:13 pm
After having been a bridesmaid in 20 bajillion weddings in a year and a half and attending another 30 bajillion I wasn’t in, I *wish* I could wear the same thing even twice to a formal event.
Spend $300 on a bridesmaid dress that is hideous and you only get to wear once (but don’t even want to wear once) and you’ll see that a tux is bound to be a better deal!
2.
rocketc
July 1st, 2008 at 1:44 pm
I used to own a tuxedo . . . until i got too fat for it.
3.
Kyle
July 1st, 2008 at 2:17 pm
I went the buy-a-gently-used-tux route and it worked well. I spent a bit under $200 but I couldn’t tell it was used. I did buy a new shirt, though. I already had acceptable shoes.
4.
Nicola
July 1st, 2008 at 4:08 pm
I would just like to point out that some people with boobies are actually men…
5.
Maria - Frugal Homesteading
July 2nd, 2008 at 8:48 am
Great comic. Hee hee. I think my husband has never worn or rented a tux as he wore his USMC dress blues at our wedding and other military events… wait, he may have rented one for a friend’s wedding .. but for him, buying a tux wouldn’t save money. I don’t think.
6.
Obbop
July 3rd, 2008 at 9:13 pm
Am I a mutant?
Never wore a tux and will do all I can to avoid any event requiring that garment-type.
Too dern intelligent and practical to get married. Tough it out ye aging Baby Boomer gals, go grab a cat or sumpthin’. Females are simply too dangerous in too many ways for any in-the-know male to allow a female to even come in close proximity let alone get hitched to.
Been to a couple wedding receptions but quickly left due to the dearth of intelligent conversation. Wore a dress short and slacks and that was good enough for the brainless tumors infesting those affairs.
The simple life is the better life in my incredibly humble opinion.
Having to don a tux is the antithethis of my persona, my psyche, my innermost essence that, if I was a Butterball Turkey, if I was required to wear that dreaded garb, that little red sensor would pop up indicating my inner whatever had reached that pre-set point, informing me to cease that activity and cancel whatever I was doing that demanded the draping of my lard-laden working-class husk with such frivilous attire.
As pappy proclaimed; it’s better to smell akin to a billy goat than get all fancied up like some pretentious city-slicker.
Besides, what if a fight breaks out? The chap wearing t-shirt and denim pants has the inherent advantage, barring the tux wearer is a professional boxer, gladiator or whatever but that’s why baseball were invented.
Ona different subject but one near and dear to my digestive and nutrient ingesting processes, I sure am tickled that Burger King has those one-buck double cheese burgers. Those yummy critters are large for a cheap burger and possess admirable saliva-producing properties due to their overall yumminess.
Good stuff, boys and girls.
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Obbop
July 3rd, 2008 at 9:18 pm
Shucks. Thoughts of burgers entering my gaping maw and sliding down the gullet led to forgetting to read the proof and find boo boos.
To hopefully assist in making the prior post semi-coherent pleeze note this addendum:
“…that’s why baseball were invented.”
Chane that to “…that’s why baseball bats were invented.”
There.
Now, live long and perspire.
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Mike at Gas Credit Cards
July 6th, 2008 at 4:05 am
A better solution – buy a tux, wear it with the tags, and return it before your credit card bill comes haha
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July 9th, 2008 at 8:15 pm
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July 17th, 2008 at 8:53 am
Well, my opinion is a man should buy a tuxedo. He will be proud to own one and it’ll be useful for him whenever the occasion calls for it.
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September 12th, 2008 at 9:32 am
Guys should buy tuxedos, unlike girls, they can wear the same thing over and over again!
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July 4th, 2009 at 10:30 pm
A man can use a tuxedo for many, many other occasions, so it’s probably smart for most men to just buy it. You have other weddings, anniversaries, black tie parties and things like that. For a woman, too bad you can’t rent wedding dresses! I mean, you can’t wear it again anywhere. The most you can hope for is that your daughter, if you have one, will want to use it for her wedding. However, that’s unlikely since wedding styles are always changing. A dress from the 70′s may not be something a girl wants to wear these days.
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July 5th, 2009 at 12:03 pm
i would say, mans should buy tuxedo and its good dress to have good personality so why guys are waiting to buy their own ones other thank renting.
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May 16th, 2010 at 6:12 am
Rent one every time
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May 19th, 2010 at 4:25 pm
I think you should take a look at your life style and social circle to see if this is something you will be needing often.
But for the average guy I would recommend renting.
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Unless you go to a lot of weddings, you are better off just renting a tuxedo
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I loved the comic, though I think I’ll keep it away from my fiancee’s eyes. Thank you for your tips (and the laughs!). My fiancee has been running most of the wedding prep stuff (yay!), so I don’t have much to worry about, but she has put me in charge of the tuxes (well, as “in charge” as she’ll let me be). We (She. It was all her.) decided that it would be much better to rent formal wear rather than buy. As they say, why buy the cow (I’m really keeping this away from my fiancee)? Thanks again.
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