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Small weddings have become increasingly popular for couples looking to celebrate their big day in a more intimate way, both in terms of guest count and budget. But how much does a small wedding cost? While smaller weddings typically mean lower expenses, there are still a variety of factors that can influence the total cost.
In this guide, we’ll break down the key elements that go into the price of a micro wedding, so you can better understand what to expect and how to plan your budget accordingly. And if you're eloping, check out our blog about how much an elopement costs.
Before we get into how much a small wedding costs, let’s make sure we’re on the same page as far as what a small wedding is.
According to The Knot, the average wedding size in the US in 2023 was 117 guests. We consider a small wedding to be anything with less than 50 guests. There’s a lot of gray area between minimonies and small weddings, and micro weddings versus elopements so we try to keep it simple. The only thing that defines a small wedding is the size of the guest list. It doesn’t matter how long your wedding event is, what vendors you hire, or where you get married. As long as there are 50 guests or less, you’re having a small wedding. And if you’re not have any guests, we consider that an elopement versus a micro wedding.
Small weddings can be formatted in a variety of ways. From a simple courthouse wedding with just the two of you and a special dinner to follow to a full-blown, all-out event rivaling any celebrity wedding. There are very few limitations to how you can structure it and having a small wedding actually gives you a lot more flexibility (which is a big reason why we’re fans!).
According to Zola, the average cost of a traditional sized wedding in 2024 is $33,000. For smaller weddings, the average is around $15,000, but remember that’s an average. We spent about $18,000 on our wedding with 40 guests (a full breakdown of that is below), but we easily could have spent less or much more.
Compared to a traditional wedding, small weddings cost less, on average. Choosing to reduce your guest count will allow you to save in several areas. About half of the common expenses for a wedding are impacted by guest count—we’re breaking down each one below.
It’s worth saying that this is not a perfectly black and white thing to talk about. For example, I will list Officiant as something you shouldn’t expect to save money on because generally, that expense is not tied to headcount. However, there are Officiants that have micro wedding and elopement packages that are less.
A lot of people wonder, “how much does a small wedding cost?” And the answer is, of course, it depends.
Some things will be more impacted than others when it comes to your wedding bill. The determining factor of whether or not you’ll experience savings is if you will have less of something as a result of having less guests. Examples would be food (less mouths to feed), event rentals (less chairs and tables needed), decor and florals (less space to decorate), and invitations (less people to tell). Here’s a breakdown of the big expense line items and how they will affect the cost of your wedding if you choose to go small.
Generally speaking, the things that affect the cost of a small wedding are:
This is a huge one, and where I saved the most money by choosing something non-traditional. The wedding venue contributes to a large portion of the small wedding cost. Having a micro wedding opens up so many possibilities when it comes to choosing a location. If you don’t want to get married in a church or a traditional wedding venue you could choose a park, botanical garden, National or State Park, restaurant, bowling alley which can be good cheap wedding venues.
Or, you can still totally go traditional if you want. There are a ton of wedding venues opening up small wedding package options (that usually cost less) due to the popularity of choosing to have less guests.
Food and drink are two more costs you can expect to have with your small wedding and they tend to take up a large portion of your budget, this includes dessert.
Simple math suggests that if there are less people to feed, you will spend less money. This is true in most cases as long as your caterer or chosen restaurant doesn’t have minimums that you won’t be able to meet with your small guest count. There are plenty of private chefs, catering companies, and restaurants that would be thrilled to support a smaller event.
Ok, so this one falls into the category of ‘it depends’. The average cost of a small wedding photographer hovers somewhere around $2,000 (The Wedding Report). I’ve seen couple who are eloping spend most of their budget here and I’ve seen couples cut it way back, choosing to have just a few hours of coverage. While this one is not directly tied to headcount, it’s possible that your small wedding is more simple and would require less hours to cover the event. So for this one, it’s really more about the number of hours as opposed to the number of people.
If you choose to have flowers and decor at your wedding there will likely be less space to decorate which means you need less of it. Most of the time, that will also translate to lower costs.
Less people to tell equals less paper (and less postage) to buy. That means your costs for save-the-dates and wedding invitations will be lower with less guests.
We compiled some data from The Wedding Report on average cost by wedding category and size so you can get a sense of what you can expect to spend. Just remember these are averages and there are a lot of factors that impact cost, but it will give you an idea of what a small wedding costs.
These common small wedding costs will likely be about the same no matter how many guests you have.
If you’re having a micro wedding chances are you’re trying to make your dollar go further, or maybe you’re trying to reduce the overall cost. There are tons of cool ways to save money on your wedding, without feeling like you’re sacrificing on quality or vision. Here are a few ideas for if you’re planning a small wedding on a budget:
This is just one example of how much a small wedding costs (mine!). We chose to prioritize spending an entire week in our wedding location (our favorite place in Southwestern Colorado) with close friends and family as opposed to a shorter party with a larger group. We ended up having 38 guests.
The majority of our budget went to the venue which was a VRBO, but it doubled as lodging for us and 5 of our friends. And since we had a destination wedding, it was great to have somewhere for everyone to gather all week. Here’s what we spent.
All in, we spent about $18,000.
We rented a VRBO for six nights which is where we hosted our ceremony and reception, as well as nightly get togethers for everyone in the days before and after the wedding.
The cost included:
We hired an amazing local photographer for four hours of coverage. That was enough for her to capture the final steps of us getting ready, the entire ceremony, couples pictures in an amazing mountain location off-site, and about an hour of the reception.
Our location was pretty rural which left us without any catering options that fit our vision and our budget. (Pro tip: if food is important to you, research options before deciding on your venue). Our options were to spend about $10,000 on catering or do the food ourselves. We chose to do the food ourselves.
We definitely questioned our decision for a while, but it ended up working out great. My husband is a master taco chef so we did a taco bar. We cooked all the meat a few weeks in advance and froze it and then did the final prep the day before and morning of.
The cost included:
Since we used a VRBO for our reception and ceremony we had to rent everything. Private homes are great for small weddings but you do have to keep in mind that they’re not going to have the same amenities as a traditional venue so that’s extra expense and logistics you need to deal with.
The cost included:
I was so happy I decided to hire a planner. I signed up for the day-of package, but they actually stepped in about 6 weeks before the wedding to start coordinating vendors and make sure I hadn’t forgotten anything (spoiler alert: there were a lot of things I hadn’t considered). They also provided an extra set of hands to set up and keep food and beverages stocked which was a lifesaver.
Every wedding planner will have a different set of offerings, but here’s what mine included:
We chose cupcakes from a local baker. Wedding cake wasn’t important to us so this worked great.
We both did custom rings, this cost was for my husband’s. I chose not to have a wedding band.
I am a total flower gal (I actually volunteer at a flower farm), but I had decided not to prioritize florals in my budget. I sort of left this one to the last minute, but eventually landed on dried florals from Etsy.
I ordered two bouquets, one of which I had the day-of coordinators break down into bud vases for table decor. Get my exact bouquet here.
The cost included:
This was pretty standard. I definitely tried to find the most inexpensive dress I could without looking cheap (David’s Bridal for the win!)
We hosted a few evenings before and after the wedding, so this was for additional food and drinks.
I did my own hair and makeup because I have really short hair and don’t usually wear a lot of makeup. I think I spent a total of 45 minutes getting ready— super casual, but I just preferred it that way!
As I mentioned, this wasn’t something that was very important to us so we didn’t have one.
In Colorado, you don’t need an Officiant so we had one of our close friends do the readings and guide us through our vows. It was really special and meaningful having him do that for us.
This was a sticky one and had us stressing up until the day before. If you don’t hire a DJ, you’ll have to find someone to run your music. That means starting and stopping the right songs as you walk up the aisle and then back down again as a married couple. Worth noting, this person usually helps corral people and get them to the right area according to the schedule. It’s a little easier with a small wedding, but you still need someone to do that. Just keep that in mind if you decide to go the playlist route.
I created a simple save the dates on Canva and emailed or texted it to my half of the guest list. My husband did the same for his. We repeated the process with invitations. We leveraged our wedding website for RSVPs and the link was on the invite.
This wasn’t something that was important to us so we skipped it.
Final Tips for Managing Micro Wedding Costs
- Setting a realistic budget from the start
- Prioritizing spending on key elements (venue, food, etc.)
- Flexibility with dates and vendors for cost savings
The cost of a micro wedding can vary significantly depending on your choices, but with a smaller guest list and smart budgeting, you can create an intimate and meaningful celebration without the financial stress of a large-scale wedding. By focusing on what’s most important and being mindful of where you spend, you can plan a micro wedding that feels both personal and affordable. Remember, the beauty of a micro wedding lies in its flexibility—tailor it to fit your vision and your budget.
