Best budget tips

We try to take out 250 each a pay cheque !
“Try” is my keyword there ! It has helped us plenty with a lot of other expenses we’ve had to save up for , we also stopped takeout and fast food (we only get one thing a week as it was sometimes 2-3 times) we also bring coffee from home instead of buying. We normally get gas when we know it will be low in cost . I should be on extreme cheapskates 😂. I’m
Also super diligent with our electricity too. And we’ve been recycling bottles/cans and we saved up over 400 only last year from recycling !

Some tips suggested were done on my end by:

Rental: centerpieces, décor, and flowers are ways to save less than retail shopping and space saving at home for reselling purposes. Check out companies that do have everything you need and the cost to average out for your whole layout needed.

Online shopping: The Covid has most retail stores closed for certain times during the year and online sites seem to be handier than ever to get the same things you want in person. The online concept allowed me to get everything needed and saving less than half of the cost of retail.

Help: Family and friends are always there to help you out in any way possible by borrowing or giving things they don't use anymore for your day. The effort to have them part of your celebration is great to show their appreciation shown .

Like a few others have said, cutting out anything that isn't necessary and isn't important to you and your partner can help. Favours, florals, open bar, professional music, videography, etc are all common things people cut in an effort to save money. I personally opted for no florals and just went with greenery. Although I think flowers are beautiful, they were just far too expensive to justify and I also had no interest in having a bouquet. Had we gone through with our full reception this year I think I would have easily saved $1,000 on florals alone. We also planned to skip favours, a professional DJ, and videography.

I also think doing a lot of research and calling/emailing vendors is key. For example, it's really easy to find good photographers in the $3500+ range, but you need to do a lot of research and contact people for rates if you can't afford that price (or whatever the going rate is in your area). Same goes for pretty much every vendor. I think as long as you're willing to put in the legwork and are willing to make compromises in certain areas you can find the vendors you need at a price that works for you.

I found the biggest areas to save on were the major vendors - venue, catering, photography. You can definitely save money in other areas like with DIYing decor, but at the end of the day saving a few hundred dollars on a backdrop is not going to have the same impact as finding a caterer that charges $50/person rather than $70/person or finding a venue or photographer that charges several thousand less than the average.

Cut out anything that you don't want or need. Little things like favors, extra dessert options, and whatnot add up. And larger things like open bars or videography really add up. Ultimately the two of you should figure out what is most important and what you don't really need or want.


We are skipping favors, and the garter toss (holy they can be expensive!), and we are also having a cash bar and an evening reception that allows us to skip a whole dinner in favor of light apps and dessert. We splurged on photos because we agreed we both wanted beautiful photos.

We decided to skip the "cocktail hour" for our guests during our photos after the ceremony! We are at a hotel, so we figured people could head to their rooms or just hit the hotel bar if they're looking to do something between the ceremony and reception.

I would check out your local marketplace on facebook and join a couple of facebook wedding sell and swap groups in your area. You can find a lot of things that people are selling from their weddings for a great price!

The biggest one I always tell people is to factor in tax and gratuity to every line item. Often times people forget and that alone can balloon your budget.

Buy things during sales. Since we postponed our wedding, we were able to use this year's Black Friday and Boxing Day to get all the things we'll need for the wedding at a fraction of the cost.