a Dj-less wedding

Why not compromise? Make a playlist of songs you both enjoy and get someone to do the announcements and be the DJ. There are alot if college kids who would do it for cheaper then $600. Just remember that you get what you pay for. So interview a few prospects and get the one who is most confident.

I would definitely suggest a DJ. They will help keep you on schedule and will be able to read your crowd. Trust me even 75-100 people is a lot. you will be all over the place, you won't want to have to do the DJ work on top of everything else. you should enjoy yourselves. $600 is a very good price

I would get a dj. The $600 is worth it to not stress about getting the party going and making announcements on time.

Personally, I think a pro DJ is definitely worth the $600 investment, but I also am not the one in charge of your budget. Talk with your FH and see what is important to you - you mentioned you are having an open bar, so there is an example of setting priority in your budget. Maybe there's another element that you can pull some funds from (maybe you aren't crazy about flowers, or don't see the point in shelling out extra money for a guest book and programs) for the DJ.

Having someone there who can field song requests, read the crowd, make announcements, really does make the night flow seamlessly without the risk of 1. dying iphone/ipod/laptop battery (or worse, this personal device getting lost or taken) 2. having rogue guests change your playlist or enlisting in a guest to monitor the device 3. stressing about this on your wedding day instead of enjoying it!

We are not using a DJ, Similar size wedding we are renting sound equipment and using a Spotify playlist. We wanted to save money and use pueblo taste in music.

My sister did not have a DJ when they got married and no one even noticed. Everyone was just talking, eating and drinking the entire time. But I think she was lucky because her guests (she had over 100) just went there to eat. lol She tasked my brother to make sure that the music played continuously. The only time the music stopped was when the best man played live music for them (he brought his own acoustic guitar and mic), and during the welcome/blessing. I thought about doing the same thing for our wedding but my husband is a musician and it was on his must-list to have a band so we ended up having a band.

I definitely agree with you, I think a dj is so important. And like a previous poster said, the dj will read the crowd and know what type of music to play next, how to keep the crowd dancing and the night moving and fun. I would cut something else before I cut the Dj.
Have you and your fiancé been to weddings together in the past? Maybe he’s not realizing how much the dj does and how important they are to the overall flow of the night. If he was my fiancé, I’d talk to him about what he liked and didn’t like from weddings we’d been to and I think it would be pretty easy to convince him that the dj is so important for the party atmosphere. Good luck!

I would definitely get the DJ. I would not want to pass on the responsibility of making sure the wedding flows well and announcements are made at the right time to one if my friends. Also, I think it depends on what type of wedding you want to have. If you don't expect people to dance then I think it's easier to get away with a playlist. If you want someone who's reading the crowd and really getting people energized and in a dancing/party mood I think a DJ is a must have. Also I wish I could find a DJ for $600 in NYC. Everything I have found is at least 2K and up

The Dj at my wedding basically kept my timeline on check so I think it took that pressure off me and hubby actually having to worry about that so he would come to us and say something like okay speeches in 3 minutes and would announce something to the crowd as well so it was super helpful.

I went to a wedding where they didnt have a dj , just a playlist going, and it was incredibly boring. It felt more of a get together, than a formal event. I highly recommend a dj.

I think DJ really makes the day special. I’ve cut my budget for everything else but am keeping DJ for sure!

When you hire a DJ you not only get a playlist, you get an MC, you get a sound system, you get a people organizer, and you get a professional who can adapt on the fly to make everything fit your wedding as it needs to. You cannot do that with a playlist.

We struggled with this too and ended up finding a well reviewed DJ for about $900 (all the other DJs around here were closer to $2000, which just more than I felt comfortable with spending on a "button pusher"). Prior to that, we spent hours listening to music and trying to pick songs and put them in categories for different parts of the wedding. Now that we've booked a DJ, we are so much less stressed about music! It's one less detail we personally need to be involved in on our big day.

If you can avoid it, you definitely do not want to just make a playlist and hit play. If you don't want to hire a pro DJ, you should at least designate a friend to be the person in charge of changing songs if needed, troubleshooting your sound system, making announcements, etc.

Obviously controlling your budget is important, and if you need to cut expenses, I'd skip the DJ before I'd skip having a professional photographer or some other vendor priorities. I do think a professional DJ, if you can swing it, can make your night way more enjoyable for you and your guests.

I have been to this type of wedding. They did not have anyone to announce anything so it was hard to tell what was happening. They also didnt have a seating chart or water at the tables. So we would go to the bar to get water and our table would be taken when we got back (it was a bunch of 2-4 person tables). We didnt know when the buffet was open so we just got food when other people got food. We missed their first dance because the dance floor was in a different room than the food. Not my favorite wedding. Maybe it doesnt have to be a DJ but someone should be there to guide people through the events of the wedding. I did go to one wedding that was very low budget. They had delicious pizza. Yum. But they did have a dude to guide the guest through the events of the reception. And we had so much fun.


Sorry for writing so long. At least hire a master or mistress of ceremony if not a dj.

I am having this problem too. We decided to go ahead and hire a DJ but cut back on certain things to save more money.

I'm definitely all for a DJ. the music can def make or break a wedding, unfortunately. maybe you see if there are any local college students that are starting out and can either for it for free (w/ nice tip) or at a discounted rate.

Like you said, you want to enjoy the day and not have to worry about anything.

We’re having the exact same battle of DJ vs playlist with a friend mc-ing for the announcements. DJs average around $2000 where I live and I can’t really justify the cost. A wedding photographer is the same, but at least I’ll get keepsakes for the rest of my life. A DJ is one night and I can’t imagine spending the same for both

I believe that in order for a wedding to be fun three things need to be in place:

Good Food, Good Drinks and Good Music. If you find a way to cover those in your budget then you will have a great wedding. If you trust someone to just do the quick announcements and they offer take them up on it! Get a Spotify playlist going and enjoy! You know your crowd, they will either be on the dance floor or not with or without a DJ. Someone to announce though will be key to communicate with your guests.

$600 isn’t bad for a dj!! We splurged on our DJ because it was one of my Highest priorities. (I even cut flower costs to accommodate) They keep the event flowing, people engaged and music is so important to me. We both love to dance and want an awesome party. When is your wedding? Could you each put in an extra $50-100 here and there to save up enough??

As a former DJ we did soooooo much more than simply “play music”.
We were the Master of Ceremonies, who announced the wedding party, cake cutting, etc.
We were the crowd motivators who could make sure the dance floor stayed packed, and if it needed to slow down for some romance- it IS a wedding after all!- we did that too.
Then, YOU are right, what if something goes wrong? What if the list get deleted? Or it pauses? Why add that worry and stress to your special day??
DJ’s also can take song requests and change it up where a play list is kind of stuck/set. It’s worth $600!

First question, do you have to have an open bar? My hubby and I are doing a budget wedding and we’re only doing 2 hours of beer and wine . There should probably be a balance of priority on what is important to you. I do agree that it might be a little stressful having to worry about making announcements. Maybe you can cut costs in other areas that are not that high priority .