If you are looking for ways to save money on your wedding, you are not alone. Many couples want to have a beautiful and memorable wedding without spending a fortune. Weddings can be expensive, but they don’t have to be. You can still have a wonderful day that suits your style and vision without breaking the bank. In this article, Viva Wedding Photography will show you some tips and tricks to plan a budget-friendly wedding that aligns with your vision.
Easy Ways to Plan a Wedding on a Budget
For those just starting to plan a wedding, there are ways to save on a wedding from the beginning. This reliable advice can help you begin saving money and avoid overspending.
1. Hire a wedding planner or a day-of coordinator
You may be considering not hiring a coordinator to save money, but believe us… hiring a planner is the top-notch option if you want to have a wedding on a budget. Time is money, and hiring an experienced coordinator will allow you to delegate all the minor details, relieving you of unnecessary stress. Additionally, they can leverage their extensive network and expertise in the wedding industry to secure the most advantageous deals and savings for you.
2. Limit the guest list
Considering celebrating without some friends and family members may be difficult, but reducing your wedding guest list is the simplest way to lower your budget. It will reduce all expenses, including catering and invitation costs, venue size, and rentals. With the typical couple spending $266 per guest, you may save more than $13,000 by inviting just 100 guests instead of 150!
3. Compare prices and wedding services
After deciding the services you need, asking around for rates and getting approximate estimates is one of the best ways to save money on your wedding. Seek advice from a wedding planner or talk to friends and family who have just married. Get offers from some service providers. Then, choose the ones that provide the best bang for your buck.
While comparing prices, be sure you know exactly what each offer covers. While some wedding venues provide tables, chairs, linens, and sometimes even sound systems at no extra expense, others may not provide these necessities without an additional fee or require that you rent them.
>>> Recommend reading: How Much Is The Accurate Average Price Of A Wedding In 2024?
4. Reconsider taking DIY wedding projects to save money
Chances are, you’ve heard from caring family and friends: “Doing it yourself helps you save money!” Sometimes, it certainly does! However, DIYing is not free, you’ll have to buy supplies, which can add up easily. Also, remember the time and stress that can come from taking on too many DIY projects. For those who are enthusiastic about crafting their own wedding decorations, we suggest tackling one project yourself and hiring professionals for the others.
5. Provide some wiggle space in your budget plan
According to the Real Wedding Study, over half of the couples said they went over their wedding budget. That’s why it’s smart to set aside five percent of your entire budget for things like unexpected (like taxes or additional decorations) or impulse buys (like shoes).
Ways to Save Money on Your Wedding Venue
One of the most expensive parts of a wedding is the venue, where the events will take place (the typical couple spends $10,700 on the destination alone). If you follow these suggestions, you will have no trouble choosing a wedding venue that fits your budget.
6. Seek an off-peak wedding season
Who says throwing weddings in June has more fun? The wedding off-season normally falls from November to March. If you’re on a budget, hosting your big day during this timeframe will give you the most value for your money. Consider holding your event in December, and you may be amazed at how much your venue will reduce the standard rental charge. Just make sure you have a backup plan in case of bad weather!
7. Say “no” to Saturdays
Saturday is widely regarded as the most popular day of the week for weddings, which consequently makes it the most expensive. So, one of the brilliant ways to save on a wedding is choosing Friday, Sunday, or any other non-Saturday. Plus, weekday weddings have become popular recently, so don’t overlook a Monday or Thursday!
8. Opt for an “All inclusive” venue
Venues that offer all-inclusive packages come with a wide range of amenities and services beyond just the event spaces. These can include on-site coordination, catering, beverages, staff, rentals, wedding cake, guest accommodations, and more. These packages offer great value by combining all these services in one place. This is truly a one-stop shop!
>> Read more: 30 Outdoor Wedding Ideas On A Budget To Realized Your Dream Day
9. Choose a non-traditional venue
Country clubs and fancy hotels are certainly fantastic, but they are not the sole options available to you! A restaurant, a brewery, or a vacation house, all of these places are potential locations for a wedding on a budget. Choosing a venue that is not typically associated with weddings can help you save money while also adding a distinctive touch to your special day.
10. Think twice before choosing a backyard wedding
While it may seem like hosting a backyard wedding is one of the best ways to save money on your wedding due to the absence of rental fees, it is often more expensive than booking a traditional venue. You will need to bring various items such as tents, generators, portable toilets, and even a portable food prep station. Keep in mind that the cost of all these items can accumulate rapidly. To ensure the best experience, it is recommended to reserve an all-inclusive venue that provides a wide range of services on-site.
How to Save Money on Wedding Foods & Beverages?
11. Limit your alcohol offerings
Alcohol is an unexpected expense, and a high-end full bar may be costly. It’s better to avoid a cash bar, but it is absolutely acceptable to limit your alcohol selections. Instead of a complete bar with a dozen high-end spirits, serve just beer, wine, and a signature cocktail.
12. Omit the Champagne
Skipping the Dom Perignon won’t make your love any less legitimate. When focusing on a toast, the key elements to consider are the bubbles in your chosen drink and how easy it is to drink. Let your guests raise a glass with their preferred cocktail or choose from a selection of budget-friendly alternatives to champagne, such as Prosecco, Cava, or other sparkling wines.
13. Take advantage of BYOB
Certain venues may permit you to bring your own alcohol for your event, potentially leading to significant cost savings. Just ensure that a licensed bartender does the serving.
14. Get on board with a bountiful buffet
Buffets are a great way to save on a wedding as they reduce the need for wait staff. You may save between $1,500 and $3,000 per 100 guests when you go for catering instead of a plated dinner, and you usually receive more food for the money.
15. Have a simple menu
While fancy preparations and premium ingredients/meat cuts like lobster and filet mignon are delectable, they can also come with a hefty price tag. So, one of the effective ways to save money on your wedding foods is to prioritize simplicity and emphasize the use of seasonal ingredients. Your caterer can provide valuable guidance to ensure that your choices align with this approach, ultimately helping you maintain affordability.
Viva Wedding Tip
To further cut costs, have guests bring a dish to share as part of a potluck.
16. Consider hosting a brunch wedding
Brunch food is typically more budget-friendly than dinner options but equally delicious. Consider hosting a morning or early afternoon wedding to save on food costs and impress your guests with omelet stations, fresh waffles, and more.
Ways to Save on Wedding Flowers and Decor
17. Take advantage of a naturally beautiful venue
Make sure that the venue of your wedding ceremony is one that has a great deal of natural beauty. Choose a public park, a flower garden, or a church that is already attractively decorated in order to reduce the amount of money you will need to spend on extra decorations.
18. Stick to in-season blooms
Choosing in-season flowers ensures the freshest blooms while also saving money on the stems. Your second-best option is to select from readily available, year-round blossoms such as roses, calla lilies, and orchids. You can also save money on transportation expenses if you buy locally.
19. Replace our costly blossoms
Choose more affordable flower kinds instead of pricey ones. Small changes can have a big impact. Replace black magic roses with more reasonably priced deeply colored dahlias in all of your bouquets and table decorations to save roughly $4 per stem. If you were counting on five roses per bouquet and ten per centerpiece, with a wedding party of five and a guest list of 150, you’ve just saved $520.
20. Use greenery
Prefer foliage over flowers? Greenery is not just beautiful, it’s also very trendy recently. Consider using garlands to decorate your tables and adorn your altar.
21. Consider decorations without flowers
There’s no need to spend a lot of money on buds if you choose the non-floral items. If flowers aren’t your thing, try incorporating books, seashells, extra candles, family photographs, and other non-traditional items into your celebration.
22. Select linens mindfully
There is a wide variety of beautiful table linens to choose from, making it tempting to go all out and buy the most expensive option. Instead, you might want to use inexpensive linens for the guest tables and save the fancy ones for the cake and escort card table. Or, you can upgrade the napkins and forgo the costly tablecloths.
23. Borrow from other newlyweds
To save money on your wedding, see if any of your friends who have just been married would be willing to let you borrow any of their leftover decorations. You can also buy and sell affordable wedding decorations on websites like Craigslist and online communities like Facebook.
24. Scout out decorations at craft stores
Go to places like craft shops for wedding decorations, particularly anything that uses electricity. Wedding expert Sharon Naylor, author of “1,001 Ways to Save Money … and Still Have a Dazzling Wedding,” notes that these stores feature more than glue guns and glitter.
>>> Recommend reading: Stunning Wedding Flowers on a Budget: Tips and Ideas In 2024
Ways to Save on a Wedding Cake
On average, a wedding cake will set you back $500, making it the most costly dessert you’ll ever purchase. Save money on the show-stopping dessert by following these budget tips for the wedding cake.
25. Downsize your cake
Consider having a lovely one- or two-tier cake for the traditional cake-cutting moment, and complement it with cupcakes, cookies, pies, or a larger sheet cake for guests to enjoy.
26. Keep the decor simple
The fancier your cake decorations, the higher the price tag will be. So, when selecting add-ons, opt for simple and minimal details that won’t significantly increase the price. Instead of lavish decorations with sugar flowers, gold leaf, or hand-painted details, ask the baker to adorn just the outer edges of the layers.
27. Forgo sugar flowers
Sugar flowers may be small, but they come with a hefty price tag due to the time and effort required to create them. So, fresh flowers are a more affordable option for a floral-adorned dessert.
28. Get a naked cake
These days, naked wedding cakes are all the trend and make a stunning accent to an outdoor ceremony. They are also cheap, costing as little as $3 less per person than options like buttercream or fondant. As a result, you may save $300 on a wedding for a hundred guests.
Ways to Save Money on Your Wedding Stationery
There are numerous beautiful wedding invitations available, making it challenging to find affordable stationery. Here are some suggestions to help you save on your wedding paper!
29. Select E-vites
The fancy printing wedding planning processes like letterpress, engraving, or foil stamping may add visual appeal but come at a high cost. If you’re on a tight budget, opting for digital invitations is one of the efficient ways to save on a wedding.
30. Avoid oversized invitations
Postage is an often-overlooked but potentially significant expense for engaged couples when planning their wedding invitation budget. Simple invitations with minimal enclosures will usually cost less to mail than those with complicated shapes, hefty materials, or excessive size.
31. Skip the envelope liner
You may save as much as $1 on each wedding invitation by skipping the envelope liner and using an outer envelope instead. Your guests will love the surprising pop of color when they open the envelope.
32. Direct your guests to the wedding website
Using a wedding website is one of our favorite non-traditional wedding ideas to save money. Instead of sending multiple inserts with your invitations, you can have a single insert that directs your guests to your wedding website. There, you can provide all the information they need about your other events, such as the rehearsal dinner and welcome party. You can also share the logistics, such as transportation and the hotel room block you’ve reserved for your guests. This way, you can save money and paper and make your invitations more eco-friendly.
33. Use RSVP postcards/online RSVP
When it comes to wedding postage, it’s important to remember that RSVP cards and envelopes need to have separate postage. That’s why contemplate using RSVP postcards to save on costs or opting for online RSVP through your wedding website to eliminate the need for RSVP cards.
How to Save Money on Wedding Attire?
Choosing the perfect outfit for your wedding day is crucial. You want to feel comfortable, confident, and stylish without overspending. Here are some ways to save money on your wedding clothes.
34. Start shopping as soon as possible
We advise brides-to-be to start looking for their wedding dresses no less than eight months before the big day. If you delay it too late, you may have to pay up to $500 in rush costs or make additional last-minute changes in the range of $100-$300.
35. Keep an eye out for trunk shows and sample sales
One of the important ways to save on a wedding when shopping is to do some research beforehand. In order to take advantage of special offers like 10% off your gown, 20% off jewelry, or a free veil with gown purchase, it’s a good idea to follow your favorite local bridal salons on social media.
You may save as much as 90% off the retail price when you buy your garment during a sample sale. Even if a sale isn’t happening, don’t hesitate to ask if the boutique has any samples they’re trying to sell.
If you buy your dress at a designer trunk show, you may save between $150 and $500 off the retail price. Further savings of $150-$800 may be available if the salon offers free customization, such as altering the neckline, making the dress smaller or larger, or adding a veil.
36. Choose a minimalist wedding gown
The more beading, embroidery, or other details a gown has, the more expensive it is likely to be. Hence, opt for a minimalist style to save money, and if you feel like it lacks a certain flair, enhance it with accessories such as a sash, headpiece, brooch, or jewelry.
37. Rent attire for pre-wedding events
New clothes for all the wedding-related festivities might be expensive and unnecessary. You might want to consider renting them for your events, such as your bridal party, engagement party, or rehearsal dinner.
38. Rent formalwear from the same store
Another way of planning a wedding on a budget is to encourage all the groomsmen to rent their suits or tuxedos from the same place. This often results in the groom’s tuxedo being provided free of charge.
Ways to Save Money on Wedding Photography and Videography
39. Book associates
Ask about booking an associate of the photographer. Even if the one you want is already booked, fantastic wedding vendors may be able to suggest someone else who works for them at a cheaper price. They can provide a comparable experience and product at a lower overall cost. This advice is useful not only for the wedding photographer but for other wedding vendors like DJs.
40. Set a limit time for filming
There is another cheap wedding idea when looking for someone to record your big day. You should hire a photographer and videographer for your wedding, but only for the ceremony and a predetermined period of time at the reception.
41. Get the services of a local photographer and videographer
Some photographers and videographers may require extra fees for traveling beyond a specific distance to your event. Hence, focus your search on photographers and videographers located near the wedding venue.
42. Choose packages carefully
Photographers and videographers often offer customizable packages, allowing you to tailor your services to fit your budget by removing any unnecessary extras like additional filming time or parents’ albums.
Ways to Save Money on Your Wedding Music
43. Recruit grad school musicians
Hire talented music students in their last year of college to perform at your reception. They might be hired at a far more affordable price than professionals.
44. Hire a small band
The smaller the band, the fewer people and the amount of equipment you will need to pay for. While it may not always be feasible, reducing the number of instruments and vocalists in your band from 12 to eight or even six can be a simple method to cut costs on live music.
45. Hire for more than one service
It would be a good idea to hire a band or a DJ to perform at both the ceremony and the reception. For instance, if you plan on having a band at your reception, you may hire one or two of its members to perform during the ceremony.
How to Save Money on Wedding Transportation?
To make sure you and your loved ones get where you need to be on your wedding day, it is recommended that you schedule transportation in advance, despite the fact that doing so will incur additional costs. Here’s how to keep costs down on transportation.
46. Choose a limo alternative
Consider choosing a six-person town car instead of renting an extravagant stretch limousine for your special day. While the bells and whistles can certainly add excitement, your primary focus should be on safely and punctually reaching your ceremony.
47. Cut transportation costs
The cost of a wedding may easily exceed $4,000. Still, if the ceremony and reception can be held in the same place, or at least in close proximity to one another, you can save a lot of money on transportation for your guests and wedding party.
Fun Ways to Save Money on Your Wedding Favors
Wedding favors are not obligatory, but they are a thoughtful touch and can be budget-friendly! Here are a few tips for cutting costs on giveaways.
48. Use escort cards that also serve as wedding favors
We appreciate getting two things for the price of one! You can use things like honey jars, cookie boxes, dreamcatchers, potted plants, or baggage tags as both favors and escort cards.
49. One favor per couple
Select a small gift, such as candles or a potted plant, that requires only one per couple.
>>> Read more:
- The Ultimate Last-minute Wedding Checklist For Perfect Planning
- Explore The Answer To Who Traditionally Pays For The Wedding
- Who Pays For The Honeymoon? A Guide To Navigate The Expenses
As you can see, there are many ways to save money on your wedding without compromising quality or style. You can choose a budget-friendly venue, hire a local photographer, or opt for a simple cake and menu. By following these tips from Viva Wedding Photography, you can have a memorable and beautiful wedding that won’t break the bank. Remember, the most important thing is to celebrate your love and happiness with your partner and guests, not to impress them with expensive details.
