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How much could our wedding cost?

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Loverlover85

Rough_Rock
Joined
Oct 12, 2010
Messages
16
Not sure where to ask this!
Soon to be engaged and lately been talking more about what there is to plan. I realize I have absolutely NO clue how much a wedding could cost. No clue. Can anyone help me figure this out? Is this possible to have for maybe $5,000-$8,000? Or is that just way too low to achieve?

My boyfriend's sister's wedding was $40,000, a nice place, open bar, about 150 people.
I anticipate our wedding being 150 people also. But I couldn't imagine spending $40,000.
I know I want to have it at a nicer place than a local Italian American club. I just know that place from graduation parties, could hold a lot of people and not a ton of money. I would consider it if it looked modern though but I know ones here don't... How much are places to rent for the night? What is the lowest do you think?
I'd want -some- flowers (actually, I'd love a ton but would be too much money!) like bouquets. I'd be fine with no flowers on tables and something else there instead.
I'd want both a Photographer and videographer.. I would have to not do an open bar as that would be so much.. I would like a dj. Limo... Then I think of the food, would it have to be buffet for it to be a decent amount less expensive? I just have no clue what this stuff costs.
I am sure we could have $10,000 readily available, I suppose we could go over.

I think of my family and relatives and I honestly think of the wedding as a gift to them. Like a gift of a party and a nice place to get together. I feel like I don't want them to have to pay for their drinks and not have to get up to get their own food. I want them to have a great time in a nice place. I'm feeling a bit bummed out that I might not be able to have it be this way :-(

Let me know what you know of costs! I have only just begun my research. We have not thought of this at all yet! I can imagine this is possibly a loaded question.
 
To be honest I think what you're asking for can't be accomplished on a small budget. We were looking to have approximately 100 guests at a nice location with a meal and drinks and the estimate was way over 10k for everything. We didn't even want a DJ...

Cost does change from place to place so it could be a lot less where you are. I'm planning my wedding in the Niagara region in Ontario so these prices might not apply to you. I think the general policies for renting venues are similar from place to place.

There are lots of little costs that you don't even think of. Most venues I talked to did not include chair covers or fancy linens (ie colored table cloth, cloth napkins) in their rental fee. They were extra. A lot of them had tacky 80's chairs so chair covers were necessary. Places that include nice chairs and linens will probably be more expensive than those that charge extra so it evens out...

Most places will charge a cake cutting fee if you want to bring in your own cake. This fee seems to be around $2 per person in my area.

I couldn't find a buffet under $25 per person (room rental fee was on top of this cost)

Photographer and Videographer charges depend on your area. I found that photographers charged around 2k in my area and videographers were less depending on what you wanted them to do. Photography students are much cheaper, so it would help to advertise to them. Most of them have portfolio's so you can see their work before you commit.

There are a lot of options for open bar....

I noticed that most places I talked to charged a fee for every bottle opened. Basically you have to pay for every bottle that's open, plus a fee for the bartender, tax, and gratuity (the venue usually dictated percentage for the gratuity). Open bar is most expensive if you want to include fancy mixed drinks and premium alcohol. Its less if you want generic brands of a few alcohols (like vodka, rum, gin etc). Its also less if you just serve beer, wine, or a signature drink. We are only serving non-alcoholic drinks and wine since we're having an afternoon reception at a winery. I'm using the winery's own brand of wine and they're charging us 4$ per glass after bartending fee, tax, and gratuity.

We did end up planning a much much cheaper wedding. I think we're going to manage to come out around 3k after everything's finished. We decided to have a family only reception (around 30 people) at a local winery during the afternoon so we were charged lunch prices for the buffet (also lunch reception is great because most people don't drink as much at lunch!). We didn't upgrade linens (the venue has decent ones) and we're making our own centerpieces out of branches and dried flowers (actually looks pretty cool...its a fall wedding so it fits). We decided that we would celebrate with our friends (around 50 people) in the evening and we rented a private area in a lounge that we go to often. We are providing snacks, but guests are responsible for their own drinks. My old roommate is currently in photography school and does fantastic work. He offered his services as a wedding present so we're thrilled.

So I guess I'm trying to say that a cheaper wedding is possible, but you will need to figure out what you can leave out or compromise on.
 
Unfortunately I have to agree with the previous poster that, unless you can find a place where the food is very cheap, you will not be able to get all you're looking for at that price. Frankly, I think the biggest problem is wanting 150 guests; when food generaly starts at $20-30 a person anywhere, all those people add up fast. I am getting married in Feb. and have a budget of under $7k, including wedding rings, honeymoon, everything. However, we will only have around 60-65 guests, we are having a morning ceremony so we can do lunch instead of dinner for the reception (which at the restaurant we are using saves us over $10/person), and we will have no dj and no limo. Also, my aunt who is very into crafts and such is making our invitations, so we will have little to no costs for all our stationary. Beware of thinking buffets are always much cheaper- I found in some cases they are close to the same, and our restaurant even told us for the price they would rather do a seated meal than a buffet, because when they plate the food, they control portions. If you have a buffet, they have to provide a lot extra in case people serve themselves way more than a normal portion, or come back for seconds. And again, all the little extra fees like linens and cake cutting can add up quickly, and don't forget taxes and gratuities! I won't say a wedding for 150 people can't be done for under $10k, but I think you'll have to consider your priorities and shop around a lot. Good luck!
 
Hi. :) I don't have much advice because I haven't looked much into costs myself, only a wee bit, but I'd suggest you look in the Bride World Wide forum. They talk a lot about prices for different services so there are tons of threads and tons of replies. Good luck!
 
There are lots of factors that will determine how much your wedding will cost including time of day, number of guests, the location of your wedding, the popularity of the venue ect.

If your family wants you to do this on your own, than you need to set reasonable expectations for them. If they have trouble, explain to them that as you are stating your lives together, you are planning on making finically responsible decisions and that going to debt for a party is not responsible.

Here is a recent thread on BWW with this very issue. You will see budgets are all over the place.
https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/wedding-budget.148130/

Also, the knot has a "budget wedding" section. In that area, they describe a bunch of 10k weddings in different regions of the country.

Hope that helps. For our family, my side was not an issue, but we could see his side being one. He called them up before details were set, and explained there was a budget that needed to be respected, and that some tough decisions (like cutting the guest list) were going to have to be made to keep in the budget. That was an effective way to keep them from asking "why cant we have....?"
 
Theknot.com has a budget calculator , its pretty cool

Also don't worry about what someone else did .... its about you two!
 
I do not think it is possible to have a professional photographer, videographer, and DJ and host a dinner with alcohol for 150 people at a nice venue for 10,000 dollars or less, regardless of how DIY you go. I assume this figure includes everything, not just the reception. That being said, creativity goes a long way, and it all depends on where you live, time of year, and compromise.

GOOD LUCK!
 
Invites:
Dress:
Suit:
Rings:
Ceremony:
Reception:
Celebrant:
Decorations:
Cake:
Photography:
Hair and Make Up:
Car:
Flowers:

Put an estimate on each of the above and you will get your cost. My estimate after pricing what I would like for my 40 person wedding of the above comes to $8 - 11,000 depending on if I theoretically splurge on some items or DIY.

And thats not including a Videographer, and its in Brisbane, Australia.
 
Oh and music will be an IPOD!
 
Honestly, I think what you're planning would cost $20k bare minimum, and $30k would be more reasonable. Depending on where you live, it could very easily be more than that. Our venue plus food for 80 people was already around $10k+, before any photographer, dress, decorations, etc etc etc. For 150 people you could easily spend $20k on just the food, depending on the area you live in. Some parts of the country have buffets for $30 a person, but in some places you won't be able to feed people for less than $60 or $70 a person. One top of the food the venue will have its own fees for use of the space and waitstaff.

If you really want to save money, you'll have to find ways to really cut back - no limo; no videographer; very cheap dress; very cheap venue (don't think you can rent your own tables, chairs, and tent, as this is typically more expensive, not less). Each of these things can cost multiple thousands of dollars on their own.

Sorry to be so negative! Weddings are very expensive, and I think what you're asking for is going to easily break a $10k budget. What part of the country do you live in?
 
Check out this link: http://www.costofwedding.com/index.cfm?action=costest.index,, it may help you get a better idea for what an average wedding costs in your area. There really are so many factors that it is based on. I want a lost cost wedding too, as much DIY that will still look good. But depending on what we want to compromise on, the ideal price may not be possible. Start looking around and getting some quotes for venues, etc. Just to find out and that'll help you start thinking in terms of price. Maybe cut back the guest list, or look up some alternatives (brunch instead of dinner, sunday instead of saturday, off-season instead of summer, etc.)
 
I agree with the others. For what you are wanting, there is just no way on that small of a budget. I eloped with NO guests, just me, DH, a photographer, and an officiant, and we barely made that budget! Our photographer alone was $1,800, and she wasn't even very good, just average, with a CD of 150 images, no prints. A good photographer would have been more around $3,000, or certainly at least $2,500, and that was just for the ceremony and about 45 minutes of photos afterward, not even a whole day and reception. If you want a nice meal, drinks, and a nice venue, then you will have to look seriously at dramatically cutting your guest list. If that's not an option for you, then you'll have to lower your expectations and make some sacrifices, or unfortunately raise your budget :(

Weddings can get to be very expensive. Money played a huge part in our decision to just elope.
 
don't want to burst your bubble but in the NYC-Northern NJ area....

150 people at a nice place- I would say middle of the road... 100 per head open bar with cocktail hour (15,000) before tax- tip
DJ- we went less expensive- 4 hours.... 1,500 before tip
Photographer- we went with a really great photographer- 4, 800 before tip
Videographer- a friend has a business and does AMAZING work but gave us a deal and was the least expensive we saw- 1,500
Florist- 10 bouquests, 13 bouteniers (sp?) 2 coursages, 15 centerpices- the cheapest I found was 1,700

oh yea and the ceremony fee is 500, officiant is 250... before tip.


so the math is- 30,000 without wedding bands.., wedding dress... tux.. hair/makeup....shoes...jewelry... gifts to parents- parents-in-law, bridal party....invitations.... save the dates....oh the list keeps going!

so you are looking at a total of 40,000 easily.

sorry! BUT living in "less expensive" areas of the country will definitely lower the costs.

Options for a "cheaper wedding"
1. IPOD mix for music
2. DIY centerpieces (candles, table mirror, vase filled with water and floating cnaldes maybe)
3. Single flower bouquest like orchid....
4. have someone tape the ceremony for you- or hire someone to give you the unedited dvd instead of the edited one
5. do a photograpy package where all you get is 1 photographer and a high-res DVD with pics no hard copies or albums and make your own through snapfish etc.
6. make your own invitations through michaels by buying kits and printing and assemblying yourself- make your own savethe dates...


GoodLuck!
 
Even at $8k, that's only $53/head.

I do have a friend who is getting married and she found catering for like $15/head. But it's in Minnesota. BBQ, no alcohol.
 
I'm in the early stages of planning my wedding and originally we were thinking a $15,000 budget for about 85-100 people, but that has creeped up to seeming like it might be hard to keep under $20,000.

Some of the ways we are trying to cut costs:
We are doing beer and wine only.
Having it at a government owned community building on the waterfront (much cheaper to rent than a hotel ballroom in the area) but that increases rental fees for things like tablecloths and chairs. Also its so popular because it is so much cheaper and beautiful that the only way to book it not a million years in advance was to have it on a Sunday afternoon (but this will save money in a lot of other areas, i.e, less alcohol, lunch is a lighter/cheaper meal, limos and other vendors may have a Sunday discount)
Making our own invites.
Not doing expensive favors (I'm talking like, hershey kisses bought in bulk at costco and thats it, certainly less than $1/person)
Keeping our guest list as short as possible! No guests for people if they aren't in a long term relationship. And we have no choice but to stick to this once we booked a place that has a 120 fire code max!
And I'm going to get a dress that is a bridesmaid style that comes in ivory rather than a bridal style. This may not work for you if you are dead set on a train and all the beading, embellishments, etc. But it saves a ton not only in the dress price itself but in the alterations (this is the dress I'm leaning to for example so you can see that it really is pretty fancy, just minus the train http://www.jlmcouture.com/Alvina-Valenta/Bridesmaid/Additional/Style-9739) Off the rack/sample sale might be an option too if you could get something in your size discounted.

Location will make a huge difference too. My family lives in NY and I didn't want to have a $40,000 wedding like my brother did there. So we are doing it in VA where my fiance's family lives. Unfortunately it's Williamsburg, VA, which is a tourist location, so some things actually are pretty pricey in that location as well
 
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