How to cut down on costs when having your wedding

Written by 
Bill Tsouvalas
Bill Tsouvalas is the managing director and a key company spokesperson at Savvy. As a personal finance expert, he often shares his insights on a range of topics, being featured on leading news outlets including News Corp publications such as the Daily Telegraph and Herald Sun, Fairfax Media publications such as the Australian Financial Review, the Seven Network and more. Bill has over 15 years of experience working in the finance industry and founded Savvy in 2010 with a vision to provide affordable and accessible finance options to all Australians. He has built Savvy from a small asset finance brokerage into a financial comparison website which now attracts close to 2 million Aussies per year and was included in the BRW’s Fast 100 in 2015 as one of the fastest-growing companies in the country. He’s passionate about helping Australians make financially savvy decisions and reviews content across the brand to ensure its accuracy. You can follow Bill on LinkedIn.
Our authors
, updated on June 6th, 2023       

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Making your big day one to remember doesn’t mean you have to be left with a hefty bill that you and your partner will still have to pay off in the next 2 years. There are a couple of savvy ways that you can get the wedding that you want this December and save at the same time. These are the five ways in which you can save money on your wedding without busting your finances.

1. Take time to plan your wedding

You probably have an idea of how you want your wedding to be and where you want it to be. If you still fuzzy about the details, then it is best to take your time ironing out every detail to avoid rushing the process which can end up costing you. Carefully planning your big day can give you ample time to budget the cost of your wedding, compare, and find specials that will work for your finances. You may have to postpone your wedding to cut back on costs.

2. Start saving

Weddings are not cheap affairs, but there are ways in which you can have an inexpensive wedding that will not leave you with financial stress. According to ASIC, the average cost of an Australian wedding was around $36,200. Depending on how big and extravagant you want the affair to be you could end up forking out more. Once you have researched the cost of hiring out a venue, photographer, caterer, and more you will have a realistic budget to save towards to help pay off the costs. You can also consider taking out a wedding loan, which is a personal loan, to help should the expenses.

3. You may have to make sacrifices

Having a champagne wedding on a beer budget is the quickest way to start your marriage on the wrong foot. Which comes as no surprise that many Aussie couples make sacrifices to make their big day possible. Research by ASIC revealed that 32% of Australians ended up compromising and settled for a cheaper wedding than what they wanted. You may have to consider looking in areas in your life where you can cut back to help boost your wedding savings.

4. Go easy on the venue

Venue costs are probably one of the largest costs couples will have to face. It pays to know a few alternatives to help you save on venue costs. You can consider using a venue that doesn’t require that you use their vendors. This can give you ample room to compare prices for various vendors and help you save thousands of dollars. You could also consider cutting back on the guest list to hire a smaller venue and reduce food costs.

5. Something borrowed

Having everything at your wedding bough brand new can push the cost of your wedding up. Instead of buying new you could consider getting quality used items. This also means that you can get a used wedding dress and tux which can help you save money instead of letting it stew in some dark place in your closet.

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