How to get married in 2025 without spending a fortune

Getting married is an expensive business! During 2024, the average cost of a wedding in the UK was over £20,000. And this figure rises further to around £25,000 once the cost of the engagement ring and honeymoon are added in.

So if you are planning to get married in 2025, the potential cost is very daunting.

The good news is that it is possible to have a lovely wedding for far less cost. In this article we share five useful tips about how to do just that. Here’s how you can spend less money on:

  • The ceremony
  • The reception
  • The wedding outfits
  • The photography and flowers
  • The honeymoon

 

Tip 1 : Ceremony

Wherever you hold your wedding ceremony there will be fixed costs to pay. There is no getting round these. The universal fixed cost is for a registrar, which costs £56 at a register office and £104 at a registered religious building, but may be different at other approved premises. You will also need to pay for one or more copies of your marriage certificate which cost around £10 each.

Before your wedding you will also legally need to give notice of the forthcoming marriage, which costs from £35 each.

You will also need to pay a fee to the venue where your ceremony is being run. For example, a registry office will typically cost you anything from around £60 for the most basic ceremony rate up to a few hundred pounds for a ceremony room and staff. Registry office rates tend to be lower during the week than at weekends.

If you decide to marry in a church or other religious institution, the fees are likely to be slightly more. For example, The Church of England has a required legal fee. This is a maximum of £567 if you marry in your home parish and £675 for a parish away from where you live.

So when planning your wedding, the costs of the ceremony – wherever and however you want it – will definitely have to be paid.

But the rest is completely up to you!

 

Tip 2 : Reception

Your wedding reception is a great opportunity to celebrate your big day but also has scope to be whatever you want it to be. You do not have to spend a fortune in a fancy venue for it to be wonderful. 

There are so many possibilities for good value reception venues that you are literally spoiled for choice. If you are having a wedding in a church or other religious venue, there may be an adjoining hall where you could have the reception afterwards at a good price. And these kinds of venues are worth investigating for your reception even if you don’t get married in the same place.

Also look at other village halls and community centres, and check out local sports clubs that often have venues for hire. Or you can often find great local pubs that would be happy to host your event and at a fraction of the cost of a more upmarket hotel. And perhaps also consider a party in a private home or garden if it has enough space. 

The main thing is to find somewhere that you really like, and that is also good value.

Depending on the type of venue you go for, you may then need to arrange your own catering, and there are many creative ways to organise this without spending a fortune. For example:

  • Have a self-serve buffet instead of a sit down meal. You could either get local caterers in or ask everyone to bring along a dish. Either way, there will be plenty of food and it won’t break the bank. 
  • Hire a street food van, serving food such as pizza or curry;
  • Order food such as fish and chips to be delivered at a set time;
  • Consider timing the wedding so that you can serve afternoon tea instead of a main meal;

 

As for drinks, you could either provide a basic selection and ask family and friends to bring a bottle along as well, or perhaps hire in a cash bar for the occasion.

And don’t fret about your wedding cake. These can be incredibly expensive but generally no-one is particularly interested by that point. A lot of wedding cake is left uneaten, which is a terrible waste. So why not either get a friend to bake a simple cake or even get a celebration cake from a supermarket, then decorate the cake the way you wish. It will serve the purpose at a fraction of the cost.

 

Tip 3 : Wedding outfits

Many wedding dresses cost hundreds of pounds, but the truth is they do not have to. The first thing to do is to decide on the style of dress you want, bearing in mind that it doesn’t have to be a traditional wedding dress, unless you want it to be. It is completely your choice. 

Once you have decided on the kind of thing you think you want, have a good look online to see if there may be something suitable. Many department and High Street stores also now do their own ranges of wedding and celebration dresses.

If you don’t mind the dress not being new, then also take a look on second hand sites such as eBay or Vinted and also scout round local charity shops that often have wonderful wedding dress bargains. Or another option would be to hire a dress. Many bridal shops and department stores do this, or check out general clothes hire sites such as Hurr or By Rotation.

And of course another option would be to have something hand-made, if you are lucky enough to have a family member or friend who could do this.

The above ideas also apply to other wedding outfits such as bridesmaids’ dresses and groom’s wear. They may even already have something suitable to wear that could be accessorised to coordinate with the bride’s dress.

The important thing is that everyone looks and feels good, and will be comfortable in what they are wearing for the whole event. And if you can all achieve this without paying silly prices, then so much the better.

 

Tip 4: Photography and flowers

Another aspect of a wedding day that can be very expensive are extras such as photography and flowers.

Increasingly, many couples are taking the decision not to hire a professional photographer and instead rely on family and friends to take as many photos as they can during the wedding day. These can all be uploaded afterwards to a shared drive such as Dropbox for the best ones to be chosen.

And if you want flowers at your wedding, consider having family and friends do these instead of paying a huge amount of money to a florist. Having flowers supplied and arranged professionally is very expensive but if you’d be happy with something simpler, there may well be a few people in your wedding party who would be willing to help.

An alternative option to consider for both the above is to investigate whether there is a local vocational college near you who may be willing to recommend willing and able students who could do a good job for you at a reasonable cost.

 

Tip 5 : Honeymoon

Many newlyweds dream of a fabulous honeymoon but can’t afford the price tag. A good way to get round this is to ask for contributions towards it as a wedding gift, either in holiday vouchers or cash. 

You could take a short mini moon break immediately after the wedding then plan your main honeymoon later in the year once you have enough funds to do so. Think of it as stretching out your wedding celebrations just that little bit longer.



We hope that this article has given you some helpful tips for cutting the cost of your 2025 wedding. Another way to spread the cost could be to top up your funds with a loan. If this is of interest, remember that Munzee offers loans over 24 months which may be able to help

Check back here soon for more lifestyle and financial tips from Munzee Loans.