For some, this seems impossible.  You may come from a large family. You may have a lot of friends. You may not be able to say no to inviting everyone you know to be a part of your big day.  All these reasons are understandable but if you want to stay within your budget, some people may have to be left off the guest list.

Your guest count is a direct factor for your wedding budget.  For each guest, you invite that is an invitation, dinner, and drinks. That is an extra seat which will lead to extra tables which will lead to extra decor.  When it’s all said and done, each guest can easily cost you roughly $275.00 and up per person just to host them at your reception. So if you are inviting 150 wedding guests that’s $41,250.00. You didn’t hire a photographer, cinematographer, DJ, ceremony musicians, makeup artist or any other wedding vendors you may need to make your big day special.

So when you tell a wedding vendor you are on a tight budget but your inviting 250 people, don’t be surprised if they (aka me) laugh at you. How can you be on a tight budget and still invite 250 people? The number of people you invite will dictate your wedding budget and/or the type of wedding you will have.  I’ve never planned a wedding for 200 people that cost less than $75k. Yes, I’m sure there are couples that did it but I’m speaking about my experience and the style of weddings my clients have chosen.

I know for some cultures, a wedding of 250 guests is considered a small wedding.  If your guest count is large because of cultural obligations, then I get it and that’s a whole other blog post.  If you don’t have these cultural obligations, then do yourself a favor and follow the chart below.  It will help you make the decision process a little easier and more importantly, save you money.

Are you having guest list trauma? Are your parents inviting the world? You are not alone. It happens all the time. Share your wedding guest list drama in the comments and I will help you through it!

Have a Fabulous Day!

Deniesha Joseph

Owner and Voice behind the Blog!

Fun Fete Fabulous Floral Design & Event Planning