Can’t afford wedding

You can have a nice ceremony, the perfect dress, and a party with a small guest list. The majority of your budget is going to go to food and alcohol, so the smaller your guest list, the more you save.

Micro wedding

Like others said, you can have a nice wedding that is on a small scale. If you really want a big wedding, you can start saving now for a date in 2024. If you put away $300 per month starting now, you'll have $3,600 in a year. That's enough to start putting deposits down. In an another year, you can have another $3600. Any extra money you get, like a tax refund, put it in your savings. You can put on a nice wedding for under 10k.

As the previous ladies have suggested, you could definitely have a much smaller wedding with all the bells and whistles. You could also maximize your money by planning a super romantic elopement. Or, if having a large guest list is most important, then you can cut back on the optional items and diy some things. There are soooooooo many ways to save lots of money on weddings!

Sit down with your fiancé and decide what your priorities are and what you are willing and able to spend without asking for financial assistance. Most people focus on the guest experience (good food, free drinks, great dj) and great photography. Some couples get married every day with less than $100. They pay the cost of the marriage license and get an officiant and cake and coffee for everyone at the local park/church/backyard.


You can easily find ways to cut costs as you need to. Get an inexpensive blank slate venue because an all inclusive will blow your budget. Instead of an expensive wedding caterer, go with drop off pans from your favorite Mexican or Chinese restaurant. Hire a bartender from thumbtack.com and get alcohol and sodas in bulk from Costco. Get a cake and flowers from your local grocery store. Only invite those you can’t imagine the day without.

Ways to cut back money;
- dry wedding
- brunch wedding - buy bulk flowers from Costco/TJs/Sam’s and put the bouquets together yourself (my sister did this and it was beautiful)- let your friends and family help you. if you have a baker friend, see if they can make a cake. - get food from a restaurant rather than an expensive caterer- choose a time of day where food is unexpected and instead serve light snacks- skip the wedding cake and do dessert trays from a local grocery store- look at wedding dresses online or in clearance. set a budget and don’t forget to also have money for alterations. using a seamstress will often be cheaper than having the alterations done through the dress shop.- have the reception in a large backyard or at a park (my friend had a lovely small wedding at a state park and it was dirt cheap) or a private room at a restaurant - cut your guest list back. only include the people who you imagine you will be friends with for a long time. cut out any guests that your FH hasn’t met or who you are only inviting out of obligation/to appease relatives.- get married at a church- if the reception isn’t at a venue, you can buy alcohol from the store instead of hiring a bar service and it will be a lot cheaper
Good luck! 😊 It can certainly be stressful but I think it will come together beautifully. If getting married soon is important to you, you can always have a small but still beautiful wedding now and then have a over the top 5 or 10 vow renewal ceremony when y’all have more money. Hope this helps!

Sorry about the format! It was in a list in the draft button but posting it messes it up 🤦🏻‍♀️

View Quoted Comment Most of these are great tips. However for most people, if you want a larger group than you normally host in your backyard on a regular basis, the cost of rentals for extra tables/chairs/bathrooms alone will be as much as a blank slate venue that has these included for free.

View Quoted Comment Blank slate venues typically do not include tables, chairs, etc. What makes them a “blank slate” is that the space is completely blank - no tables, chairs, plate/silverware, decor, etc.; only the space is provided. If additional items are included, the space would be a partially-inclusive venue (meaning some items are included in the price, but not as many items as an all-inclusive venue). This is why truly blank space venues are so cheap to rent- because the costs of renting everything adds up quickly. Once you factor in all the rentals, plus the hours of manpower, you rarely actually save money with true blank space venues.