Wedding on a budget

Doable! Might have to DIY stuff or be creative with things to not spend more or spend a lot but it’s definitely doable

I would look into park districts near your area I’m having my wedding in a banquet hall in a park very affordable!

Pretty much every wedding has a budget, whether or not it's doable depends on what your budget is, what you want out of your wedding, and where you're located.

I DIY'ed almost everything for my wedding and saved a ton!

Itll be very affordable! Utilize dollar tree, amazon, Walmart, local restaurants etc. My neighbor did my hair for $60, beer and wine for $100, etc. Pintrest has great ideas! And def post another discussion on WW, to see what other brides/grooms did for their budget friendly weddings.

Definitely Doable. Once you determine your budget think of your guest count and venue

Many people say it's impossible or very difficult if it can be done. Neither of which are true. You have to figure out your priorities from the start.


Pick 3-5 items to focus on that are important to you and eliminate the rest.
Guests will remember food/drink/entertainment. You will have pictures at the end because cake gets eaten, flowers die and memories fade.
Browse Peerspace.com and Eventective.com for venues and thebash.com and Thumbtack.com for vendors.
Have a local favorite restaurant cater. They will provide more and better food tha wedding caterer at half the price. Get a yummy grocery store cake. Skip the champagne.
Avoid the word 'wedding' whenever possible as it will make the price skyrocket.
Renting is cheaper in the long run more often than not. Unless you regularly host 100+ guestcount parties, you have to consider that the extra work involved in buying doesn't always pan out and costs extra. Time and sanity equal money. Add to that, the stress of rehoming items.
If you are naturally crafty, consider DIY. But be aware it's not aways cheaper and is time consuming. Take advantage of Etsy as well.
DIY florals can be done inexpensively via fiftyflowers.com

Definitely agree with the above! Our priorities were photos and guest experience (entertainment, food). Granted, our priorities have changed due to current events, and we're no longer having a DJ because of it.

Some other ideas:

- Friday or Sunday weddings are generally cheaper, as are dates in the offseason (but as a fellow October bride, I understand!)

- If you don't want to go the traditional dinner reception route, some people do earlier times with a cake and punch reception.

- Venues that allow you to bring in a third-party caterer and/or allow you to bring your own alcohol can generally save you money.

- It's easy to go overboard with details and little things that really add up. For example, favors and things like menu cards or programs are not necessary.

- I also agree with caution for DIY. If you know you are not a DIYer, then definitely limit those tasks. I made a lot of decisions about our wedding based on convenience and saving me time/stress and am very happy that I did because I am keeping plenty busy! Having to figure out the music/announcement portion of our day is a headache I did not want, lol. But I'm putting together simple decorations, putting labels/charms on our favors, etc.

Good luck!

"Budget" can radically change depending on where you live.

We had a "cheap" wedding for our area, but if we moved it even 60 miles away from where we live, it would have been a bit of a blow out.

That said, it's always possible.

Prioritize, simplify, and RESEARCH.

Think about all the things you remember from weddings you've been to. Great, now those are the things you care about at a wedding, and what you should prioritize. If you don't remember it, it wasn't important to you, and can be ignored/done cheaply/skipped.

Then, go digging. Compare, contrast, move dates if you have to.

Things that helped us keep the budget in check:

1. Sample sale for my dress. Got it for 90% off retail price. Had to alter it a bit, but still saved $$$.

2. Be flexible on the date. DH and I planned the wedding in less than 8 months, because we didn't want to wait. We also go deals, because we were filling in vendors' empty dates, that they wouldn't otherwise, as most people plan over a year out.

3. Fake flowers! We used Budget Bride, and got everything we needed for less than $500.

4. Find a venue that is its own decor. Either with the view or the character of the venue. Ours had a view of the Hudson River and the sunset. Not only did we get beautiful pro pictures because of this, but ... a lot of Insta happened that night!

5. Network! Ask your married friends for recs. Their favorite vendors might give discounts to referrals. We got a massive discount on our photography because of this (I'm still afraid to ask what it would have been), and our videographer was a coworker of mine who is an up-and-coming filmmaker. (Go ask your local film school if they have students who want to earn some money and try their hand at wedding videography.)