Wedding under $10k (for 150 -180 people)

This depends a lot in where you live. In my area, it wouldn't be possible. But if you're in a cheaper area, it may be doable with a cake & punch reception.

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I know it wouldn’t be either but idk how to ask for help. I mean we can definitely help out with money to have everyone come but shouldn’t our families try to ask us to help instead of me asking them for it?

I think it might be possible depending on your location. To help with the costs limit the optional things like favors and special toasting glasses. Also consider not having your wedding on a Saturday, you will be shocked at the price difference to do an "off" day for all of your vendors. Since COVID I have seen a lot more weddings on non-Saturdays.

Like previous poster said, depends where you live. In IL Chicago Suburbs if I have 100 people at my venue it’s 10k just for food/drinks for everyone. I wouldn’t be able to afford anything else. Nobody is obligated to help you pay for your wedding, my fiancé and I are paying for everything ourselves - my parents, nor his parents are contributing anything financially. It’s possible but you really need to break down your budget or forgo certain things, or cut down your guest list. Food/drinks is the bulk of my budget (like half). If you get married on a Friday or a Sunday it’s cheaper, stay away from holiday weekends - see what services you can skip (we aren’t hiring a DJ (not that that really saves a ton of money) if you do Sunday maybe there is a brunch option. My venue had a brunch option for 63$ a person and their other menus where anywhere from 100-140$ a person depending on what you wanted. Reach out to lots of vendors, I looked at so many hair/makeup artists and some were outrageous in price and there will be minimums. My hair and makeup has 10 service minimum (so at least 5 people need to get hair and makeup done (or 10 people getting hair only) my florist has a 3,500 minimum but she’s luckily not making me hit that. There is so much to consider, good luck!!

If you have in mind a semi-casual garden ceremony with a 'cake and punch' to follow (short reception with some nibbles, drinks and cake) then $10,000 can be doable but you will need to be very savvy to get the most out of it.

If on the other hand you are thinking of something more formal or that involves a sit down dinner or dinner and dancing, I don't think $10,000 will be a realistic amount for that amount of people.

Ultimately it all depends on what you want and what you're willing to prioritise. Just be mindful, feeding 180 people alone is quite a big task and will likely make up the biggest chunk of your budget. Good luck!

My sister’s wedding for about 90 people cost her over $15K in central Pennsylvania. Our Oregon coast elopement was $5K for just us two. So it really depends… you might need to cut the guest list to stay within budget for a formal wedding OR stick with cake and punch. But as mentioned previously, no one is obligated to help with your wedding costs. Asking for help may cause some unexpected drama because people will definitely want a say as to how their money will be spent. If someone wants to help, they will offer.


Remember: More than half of your $10K budget will just go to feeding everyone at $50 a person without alcohol and dessert. That’s also if you don’t have venue, waitstaff, ceremony, table/chair, rental, etc fees.

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Okay yes I thought so. Cus I don’t like asking for help lol I just didn’t know how that part went. Thank you! 😊

It mostly depends in where you live. But to be honest you could do it, however it is going to be a lot of work for you, your fiance and your guys immediately families.

Where I grew up, in the midwest, it would totally be doable, by cutting a few things, but all inclusive venues aren't a thing there. Where I live now, its definitely not possible, especially for all inclusive venues where it starts at like $85-150 per head

It's pretty unlikely. Catering is very expensive, and even if you bring your own food/get BBQ it would be ~$4000 (at $18 PP, including fees and service charges). That, plus a cheap venue (maybe $2000) is most of your budget.

Things cost much, much more than you think that they will. Heck, tax and fees are almost $2K of my $14K budget. I'd consider a nontraditional venue rather than an inclusive one (and not a backyard or VBRO rental). Do you have any beautiful parks nearby?

Depends on where you live, but also be aware that some all inclusive venues cost a lot more than just having individual vendors. They can also be really particular about what choices your limited to and what vendors you can use. I'd say it would be really tough to plan a wedding for that price point though.

Our guest list is at 203 and right now our total cost is a little over $11k. We haven't even added the cost for alcohol, caterer, and cocktail hour yet...

I would say you could DIY a lot of aspects of the wedding, but even then, DIYing can add up VERY quickly as well.

I do not think this is possible. I think the only way you might be able to pull it off is have your wedding and reception in yours, or a family member/friends backyard, where you don't have to pay. But catering alone for 150+ guests will cost you upwards of $8,000.

I would either up your budget or cut your guestlist.

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Yes there is but we haven’t looked at that. My dad actually found something and talked to someone last night with everything at a very good price. I was so stressed out cus everywhere was already booking for next year by august and we want our wedding in September. It might be an option 😁

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Yes we want to DIY but if it’s going to be the same as almost a professional then we might just go with that instead of wasting our time when we could be doing something else.

Thank you all for your responses.

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I completely agree with you that you shouldn't be asking anyone to contribute money for your wedding. Your dad presumably offered and you accepted, which is of course fine. But from this point on, you and your future spouse should be prepared to cover everything above that $10,000 gift from your dad. And it's possible someone else may offer, but no one is obligated. You'll be much better off if you just assume that your wedding is your responsibility.

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Yes thank you. I spoke to someone and heard that the brides family is supposed to be helping but I didn’t know if I was supposed to ask. I hate asking for help anyway and would much rather do it our way lol

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Traditionally the bride's family paid for the wedding and the groom's family paid for the rehearsal dinner. That's not usually the case anymore unless your families are very traditional (or possibly wealthy). We were aware that both of our parents wanted to help because they had mentioned it before, so I went to my parent and he went to his to have a discussion about what they were planning on contributing. Had neither of them mentioned to us before that they had planned on pitching in we would not have assumed they were going to help at all. Overall we will be paying for the majority of our wedding ourselves.

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What does that mean? Who would you be asking for help? The only people responsible for paying for your wedding are you and your fiancé.

I’m gonna say no. Catering is going to cost you about 8-10K for that size group unless you do an afternoon wedding with just cake and punch to follow and no reception. That’s not even including a venue. Any venue that includes catering will not be under $10k