Small sized, low budget wedding

You could have your ceremony outside and go to dinner afterwards with your guests. If you do it at a park or public area it wouldn't be that expensive. You could also have them meet you at the courthouse and do dinner afterwards

We’re having a small 30-40 person wedding and we booked a national park for the ceremony 250$, booked an event company for the chairs 95$, and we’re having dinner afterwards at a restaurant. The most expensive part of our wedding is the officiant at 350$, we have more things on top of this thats bringing our total to 2k but it’s by no means impossible to have a nice wedding for not a lot of money

We’re only having 36 for us it was easy only invite parents, grandparents, and siblings. Plus we allowed each other 4 friends. Keep in mind somethings cost the same whether you have 2 ppl or 200 like photographer, officiant, DJ or band, venue fees and so on. Good luck!!! We spent 26k but we paid for it over a year.

Cake and lemonade at the local parks dept venue.


Sit down with fiance and decide on your priorities. Throw away what you don't want and can't afford.
Only invite those nearest and dearest to you.

We just had a small wedding for my daughter- spent less than $500 & that included their dresses. We used my sister’s backyard. Most of decorations was picked up at 2nd hand stores- we also bought vines & twinkle lights from Amazon for $30. I picked up a cake from Nothing Bundt Cakes for $65. Veggie & cookies trays from Sam’s club- my daughter & her wife provided the meat (which we grilled) & rice, my sister made a pot of beans.

Courthouse will likely be the cheapest option-then maybe treat everyone to a nice dinner after? You could also do a BBQ reception.

Find a restaurant with a private dining room, and have dinner for the reception. They will usually let you bring your own cake.

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How are you feeding 40 people for under $350?

View Quoted Comment We’re going out to dinner and our family decided to go dutch. They know we’re saving for a house and suggested everyone pay for their own meal. Its not for everyone but they are all comfortable with it.

Courthouse would be the nost affordable option, then a reception at a restaurant or backyard

Congratulations on your engagement. Having a small number of people should be easy on budget. low budget can take on quite a variety of range however. It would help if you guys decided on expectations. Do you want an afternoon brunch? An evening with dancing? Private residence? Park pick IV? Destination wedding? Just how low is low budget to you? Food cost? Photos? Decor? Location? Attire? All add up.

Congratulations! Depending on where you're planning to get married, many wedding planners have developed elopement or micromony packages that include most things (including venue, chairs, photography, flowers and other decor, officiant, etc.) for a reasonable flat fee. I'd suggest looking at local wedding planners to see what small wedding packages they are currently offering. For the reception, like a previous poster mentioned, I'd look into local restaurants with private or semi-private dining options.

View Quoted Comment Thank you. We were both married some 30+ years ago. Things are a little different now lol Thank you for the tip on micro weddings 👍🏼

View Quoted Comment Thanks. That's why we're here lol Trying to see what's available and what ideas/input people have. We were both married 30+ years ago. Things are a bit different now. And pricier 😬

View Quoted Comment Thanks. We've thought about going the courthouse route.

View Quoted Comment Thank you. Going out afterwards is sounding more and more likely

View Quoted Comment I'm not sure where those numbers came from. The app asked for a budget. I plugged in 10k randomly. The other numbers 🤷🏽‍♂️ Maybe we can all get Happy Meals at McDonald's lol

View Quoted Comment Thank. Nice to know. Appreciate the input

View Quoted Comment Thanks Megan. We may need to do the courthouse. Not very romantic though. lol

View Quoted Comment Nice!! Thanks for the info. 👍🏼