How to Save Money on a Wedding Top 10 Ways
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If you live in a smaller community, look at venues like the following: Country Club or Golf Course. You may be able to rent space in a banquet room at your local country club or golf course. In cities and affluent suburbs, this can be an expensive proposition, but in small towns and rural communities, golf courses and country clubs often struggle to stay afloat. Talk to the course or club manager to see if you can work out a favorable deal, such as a free or discounted rental if you use the onsite catering service. Expect to Spend: Free to $500, depending on location and termsPublic Event Space. Renting a public space like an American Legion hall can also be expensive in a more populated area, but affordable in a small town. The main rooms at American Legion posts typically hold between 200 and 300 people, depending on the size of the community they serve. If your wedding is smaller, your American Legion outpost – or a similar organization’s facility – may have a cheaper, cozier space. For instance, the one in my wife’s hometown had a main upstairs area that could seat about 250 guests for $300, and a downstairs bar area that could hold 80 for $120. Cost: $100 – $500, depending on the size of the spaceRec Center. If a suitable public event space isn’t available, try a municipal rec center’s gymnasium. These cavernous spaces can comfortably hold 200 or more guests. In a big city, they may be difficult to book, but in smaller towns they’re typically available. And, since they’re often drab, they can be rented on the cheap. For instance, the rec center gym closest to my wife’s hometown costs no more than $200 for an all-day rental. If you can source cheap decorations to enliven a venue like this, it could be a great option. Cost: $100 – $300Campgrounds. If you’re doing a warm-season wedding and you know your guests won’t mind roughing it, look for public or private campgrounds with group sites that can accommodate larger gatherings. Every campground is different, so talk to the supervisor or ranger to determine where you can hold your event, when, and what restrictions you might face. Depending on the size of your group, it may be possible to fit the entire reception in a single large site, or several adjacent sites. Unless you don’t need amplified music or lights, you should probably spring for a campsite with an electric hookup or find a place that allows diesel generators. On the bright side, though, your guests are likely to be very close to their private rooms. Cost: $15 and up, depending on your group’s size and requirementsA Friend or Family Member’s Land. Like a campground, a friend or family member’s property lets you spread out and enjoy the outdoors. If you’re granted use of the house and outbuildings, it may also give you valuable storage space. And, they probably won’t charge you to use the property. We considered using my wife’s parents’ rural spread for our ceremony and reception, though her dad ultimately vetoed the idea. A couple years later, I stood in a wedding held in the groom’s friend’s backyard, in Tucson. Aside from the oppressive heat, which we couldn’t do anything about, the setting performed perfectly – and cost nothing. Cost: Free (hopefully) Cities and Metropolitan Areas
If you’re in a bigger city, the following ideas may present affordable options for you: Local Restaurants. Destination restaurants often have spaces that can accommodate small to medium-sized wedding receptions. For instance, a popular German restaurant near our current home rents a banquet room at a per-person rate that includes the space itself and a dinner buffet, with a minimum of 50 guests. Prices, not including alcohol, start at $15 per person for the cheapest of four options and range up to $30, though bulk discounts can be negotiated. You may be able to find an even better deal at a restaurant near you. Cost: $10 per person and up, depending on the restaurant and your catering optionsA Museum or Gallery Space. If you’re a member of a local museum, you may be able to get favorable pricing on a gallery or hall rental. Just make sure you aren’t required to use a specific outside caterer – a popular museum in our city attaches its preferred catering company to every event it hosts. An all-inclusive reception there, including food, music, and drinks, carries a minimum cost of $10,000 before taxes and fees, or about $13,000 after those expenses. Cost: $500 and up Pro Tip: The amazing staff at my New York friend’s wedding venue made for a silky-smooth experience for guests and a predictable experience for the newlyweds and their families. I could tack a slew of additional superlatives, but cheap would not be one of them. If saving money on your wedding is a top concern, I would not recommend using a catered venue unless you’ve exhausted all other options. Anywhere
Some options work well just about anywhere: Your Home. No matter where you live, your backyard can be a cost-effective place to hold your reception and wedding – especially if your gathering is small. Like a friend or family member’s land, it’s free to use. Cost: FreePublic Park. If your group is very small, you may be able to gather in the park for free, though you should check with its superintendent first. If you need to reserve a gazebo or barbecue pit, you can expect to pay something. The exact cost depends on your town’s policies, what you’re renting, how long you’re staying, and possibly how many attendees you have. Cost: Free to $500 Pro Tip: Park ceremonies are especially enticing in outdoor adventure destinations and year-round vacation towns known for natural beauty. One of the most memorable weddings I’ve ever attended took place in a remarkably scenic city park in suburban Denver. The ceremony’s backdrop was a stunning amalgamation of red rock cliffs and scrubby foothills tinged with ochre and green. Despite living more than 500 miles away at the time, my wife and I eventually settled on two venues in my wife’s small, isolated hometown. The ceremony took place at her childhood church, and the reception followed at a nearby nature preserve with an event-friendly barn, a broad lawn for games and mingling, and plenty of camping space for guests. The preserve was less expensive and more distinctive than the options we looked at in the closest big city.
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By Brian Martucci Date September 14, 2021FEATURED PROMOTION
In May 2014, after what seemed like an eternity of planning and worry, my wife and I got married in a small-town Iowa church, just steps from her old high school. Our reception was a few miles down the road in a beautiful river valley with a hundred-year-old barn. We were blessed to have a huge crowd of our friends and family, many of whom traveled from the coasts and the Deep South, to celebrate with us. The ceremony went off without a hitch, and aside from a brief, violent thunderstorm at the very beginning, the outdoor reception was an absolute blast. I don’t get emotional often, but I certainly did that day. Now that some time has passed, my practical side is ready to assess the financial lessons of our wedding day. I’ve come up with 10 decisions we made that definitely saved us some money throughout the process. I’ve also included my experience as a participant and collaborator in a handful of friends’ and family members’ weddings in the years since my own. If you’re in the midst of planning a wedding, use these tips as you get ready for your big day.Motley Fool Stock Advisor recommendations have an average return of 397%. For $79 (or just $1.52 per week), join more than 1 million members and don't miss their upcoming stock picks. 30 day money-back guarantee. Sign Up Now
Save Money on Your Wedding and Still Have a Blast
1 Start With a Well-Defined Budget
Saving money on your wedding begins with a strict, clearly defined budget. Use the following steps to create it. Set a Hard Maximum. First, look at your savings and determine how much you and your soon-to-be spouse can afford to put toward your wedding – every single aspect of it. If appropriate, talk to your respective parents about what, if anything, they’d be willing to pay for. The sum of these figures should be your absolute maximum.List All Known Expenses. Next, make a spreadsheet and tally up every expense you can think of. For fixed costs such as the DJ or band, venue, outdoor furniture, and officiant, source a range of price quotes in your area or directly ask the person or company you hope to use.Make Educated Estimates for Other Expenses. For things like food and drinks, estimate how many people you expect at your wedding and how much the average person is going to consume. In our case, we figured that each guest, on average, would need about a pound of food and six drinks. Of course, we knew some of our guests would just pick and sip, but others would go back for seconds and constantly have a drink in their hands. Based on what you know about your crowd, determine which end of the spectrum they’re likely to fall on. If you’re holding your wedding at a catered venue, the onsite wedding planner or catering manager should be able to provide exact figures for food (per person) and drink (per drink). A buddy of mine who got married at a swanky New York venue told me that precise foreknowledge of each person’s food expense dramatically reduced financial uncertainty around the expensive event.Build a Buffer. Finally, build in a buffer for last-minute or unknown expenses, such as extra decorations, additional tables, and staff tips. In a catered facility, exact drink costs will be a wildcard as well – according to my New York friend, they needed a substantial buffer solely for drinks, since they weren’t sure how much their guests would consume. Depending on the extent of these unknowns, your buffer could range from 5% to 30% of your budget. In our case, the initial buffer was 15%, and we ended up using about half of it.Arrive at Your Target Budget. The sum of the figures in steps two through four should be your budget goal. If that number is more than your maximum from step one, you may need to reevaluate your priorities and jettison any ideas that aren’t essential to your vision. You Might Also Like: Wedding planning doesn’t stop once the guests go home. Nor should it. If you’re planning a post-wedding honeymoon on a tight budget, check out our guide to saving money on your honeymoon. If you’re fortunate enough to have a healthier budget, or a generous benefactor willing to finance part or all of your getaway, read our rundown of the world’s most amazing honeymoon destinations.2 Don’ t Go for the Most Obvious or Convenient Venue
It might be tempting to hold your wedding at the closest or most convenient venue to your house. However, because opting for an outside-the-box choice could save you a significant amount on your ceremony and reception, you should explore as many options as possible. Broadly speaking, you can divide these options into three categories: those that work in small towns and rural areas, those that work in bigger cities, and those that work in both. Rural Areas and Small TownsIf you live in a smaller community, look at venues like the following: Country Club or Golf Course. You may be able to rent space in a banquet room at your local country club or golf course. In cities and affluent suburbs, this can be an expensive proposition, but in small towns and rural communities, golf courses and country clubs often struggle to stay afloat. Talk to the course or club manager to see if you can work out a favorable deal, such as a free or discounted rental if you use the onsite catering service. Expect to Spend: Free to $500, depending on location and termsPublic Event Space. Renting a public space like an American Legion hall can also be expensive in a more populated area, but affordable in a small town. The main rooms at American Legion posts typically hold between 200 and 300 people, depending on the size of the community they serve. If your wedding is smaller, your American Legion outpost – or a similar organization’s facility – may have a cheaper, cozier space. For instance, the one in my wife’s hometown had a main upstairs area that could seat about 250 guests for $300, and a downstairs bar area that could hold 80 for $120. Cost: $100 – $500, depending on the size of the spaceRec Center. If a suitable public event space isn’t available, try a municipal rec center’s gymnasium. These cavernous spaces can comfortably hold 200 or more guests. In a big city, they may be difficult to book, but in smaller towns they’re typically available. And, since they’re often drab, they can be rented on the cheap. For instance, the rec center gym closest to my wife’s hometown costs no more than $200 for an all-day rental. If you can source cheap decorations to enliven a venue like this, it could be a great option. Cost: $100 – $300Campgrounds. If you’re doing a warm-season wedding and you know your guests won’t mind roughing it, look for public or private campgrounds with group sites that can accommodate larger gatherings. Every campground is different, so talk to the supervisor or ranger to determine where you can hold your event, when, and what restrictions you might face. Depending on the size of your group, it may be possible to fit the entire reception in a single large site, or several adjacent sites. Unless you don’t need amplified music or lights, you should probably spring for a campsite with an electric hookup or find a place that allows diesel generators. On the bright side, though, your guests are likely to be very close to their private rooms. Cost: $15 and up, depending on your group’s size and requirementsA Friend or Family Member’s Land. Like a campground, a friend or family member’s property lets you spread out and enjoy the outdoors. If you’re granted use of the house and outbuildings, it may also give you valuable storage space. And, they probably won’t charge you to use the property. We considered using my wife’s parents’ rural spread for our ceremony and reception, though her dad ultimately vetoed the idea. A couple years later, I stood in a wedding held in the groom’s friend’s backyard, in Tucson. Aside from the oppressive heat, which we couldn’t do anything about, the setting performed perfectly – and cost nothing. Cost: Free (hopefully) Cities and Metropolitan Areas
If you’re in a bigger city, the following ideas may present affordable options for you: Local Restaurants. Destination restaurants often have spaces that can accommodate small to medium-sized wedding receptions. For instance, a popular German restaurant near our current home rents a banquet room at a per-person rate that includes the space itself and a dinner buffet, with a minimum of 50 guests. Prices, not including alcohol, start at $15 per person for the cheapest of four options and range up to $30, though bulk discounts can be negotiated. You may be able to find an even better deal at a restaurant near you. Cost: $10 per person and up, depending on the restaurant and your catering optionsA Museum or Gallery Space. If you’re a member of a local museum, you may be able to get favorable pricing on a gallery or hall rental. Just make sure you aren’t required to use a specific outside caterer – a popular museum in our city attaches its preferred catering company to every event it hosts. An all-inclusive reception there, including food, music, and drinks, carries a minimum cost of $10,000 before taxes and fees, or about $13,000 after those expenses. Cost: $500 and up Pro Tip: The amazing staff at my New York friend’s wedding venue made for a silky-smooth experience for guests and a predictable experience for the newlyweds and their families. I could tack a slew of additional superlatives, but cheap would not be one of them. If saving money on your wedding is a top concern, I would not recommend using a catered venue unless you’ve exhausted all other options. Anywhere
Some options work well just about anywhere: Your Home. No matter where you live, your backyard can be a cost-effective place to hold your reception and wedding – especially if your gathering is small. Like a friend or family member’s land, it’s free to use. Cost: FreePublic Park. If your group is very small, you may be able to gather in the park for free, though you should check with its superintendent first. If you need to reserve a gazebo or barbecue pit, you can expect to pay something. The exact cost depends on your town’s policies, what you’re renting, how long you’re staying, and possibly how many attendees you have. Cost: Free to $500 Pro Tip: Park ceremonies are especially enticing in outdoor adventure destinations and year-round vacation towns known for natural beauty. One of the most memorable weddings I’ve ever attended took place in a remarkably scenic city park in suburban Denver. The ceremony’s backdrop was a stunning amalgamation of red rock cliffs and scrubby foothills tinged with ochre and green. Despite living more than 500 miles away at the time, my wife and I eventually settled on two venues in my wife’s small, isolated hometown. The ceremony took place at her childhood church, and the reception followed at a nearby nature preserve with an event-friendly barn, a broad lawn for games and mingling, and plenty of camping space for guests. The preserve was less expensive and more distinctive than the options we looked at in the closest big city.