Couples getting married on October 9, 2023

Since you have over two years, I’d start saving ASAP! Sit down and look at your current income and fixed expenses. Then see what “extra” expenses you can eliminate and have a certain $ amount each paycheck that you will set aside for the wedding. It may help to even open an account strictly for wedding saving & expenses. You can usually save by having your wedding on a non-weekend day. Public parks and churches seem to be the least expensive venues.

Agree- start with your budget, guest list & other must haves. Will parents be able to contribute? That’s a touchy subject as if they contribute, they will have a say so in your wedding.

October 7th 2023. We are saving as much as we can now and I'm already working OT/holidays just to pick up extra money. And I got a side job to increase my hours. Lol.
Weddings are stupid expensive.

Online "average cost of a wedding in _____ location" calculators are pretty helpful in giving you a reasonable estimate of costs you might expect in your location. Then, like pp suggested consider how much you and fiancé can reasonably save/afford and how much you actually desire spending on a one-day event. If there is a significant gap between those average costs and your agreed upon budget, then you can consider ways to lower your costs. The size of your guest list has a HUGE impact on your total costs, especially for the reception, so you might want to consider a smaller guest list. Other options that might help lower costs are time of year and/or day of week and/or time of day discounts. Daughter's venue was $5000 less in January than in any other month; given our So Cal location, weather in January was a gamble they were willing to take for that discount. Some venues are less expensive on Sundays or during the week, others are less expensive during the day than in the evening, so ask about all your potential options. Do LOTS of comparison shopping -- you might be very surprised at the range in costs for different vendors (and most expensive isn't always linked to better quality). Once you have a clear idea about what your options are, then you and fiancé can talk honestly about which choices best match your priorities. Good luck!

Since you have 2 years to do it, you can space out your payments so they're more affordable. We did this, so payments were a lot more spaced out and we had more time to come up with the money to pay for everything. Look at what you can put away to pay and how much time you have, then make your budget and stick to it!

Once you are set on how many people will be invited, start looking at venues. Don't let anyone tell you it's too early! We booked ours exactly 2 years early (May 2023 wedding) and they LOCKED IN THE PRICE! Great way to start saving on wedding costs 😁