Backyard Wedding on a Budget: The Best Creative Ideas

Hosting a wedding in your own backyard is a great way to throw an intimate and personal wedding while saving big bucks on a venue. The problem is, the cost of an outdoor wedding can quickly become higher than you might expect. Plus, there is a lot of planning and detail that goes into planning a backyard wedding day. Sometimes there’s more planning than goes along with conventional venues! Consequently, it helps to go into the backyard wedding planning process with your eyes open.

In this post, I’ll go over budget-friendly outdoor wedding ideas that you can apply to a big or small backyard wedding. I’ll also talk about important considerations for your backyard ceremony and/or wedding reception.

Saving on Your Wedding Budget

In 2023, the wedding website Zola estimated that the average cost of a wedding was $29,000-$35,000! Average wedding costs were even higher in many cities. For many of us, that wedding cost is out of reach or doesn’t work in the context of our other goals and values.

So how do you have the wedding of your dreams while on a budget? In another post, I talked about wedding money-saving tips. I’ve also talked about how to plan a small wedding or elopement. Another great option is having a home wedding, and that’s what I’ll discuss today.

A home or backyard wedding allows you to save money on a wedding venue, which is a huge chunk of many couples’ budgets. Indeed, the average couple spends, $12,800 on a venue. That cost is even higher in many cities. In Seattle, I struggled to find a venue that fit within our budget. Affordable venues were considered to be around $5,000 for bare bones venue that would require renting tables, chairs, flatware, and more. This is hardly a unique situation for many areas.

Plus, many venues require a wedding coordinator, use of preferred vendors, and other factors that can quickly eat up even more of your budget. Consequently, a wedding at home can be a huge money saver. It allows you to save on venue fees and focus on the vendors you want.

Assess Your Space and Your Guest List

Before committing to a backyard wedding, get a sense of your guest count and evaluate the space you have available. You want to have enough space available to fit your guest list. Even if you are having an intimate wedding, you might be surprised at the amount of space you need.

For example, a 20×20 foot space generally fits 67 wedding guests for a wedding ceremony with a 4-foot aisle. It also fits 32-48 guests sitting at tables for a reception. Wedding tent websites are a great source of information for how much space can fit how many people in a variety of configurations. Even if you’re not using a tent, you can use this as a guideline to measure your own space.

As you are evaluating the needs for your big day, also keep in mind any additional space you will need for the various components of your wedding. If you are having a wedding ceremony, make sure to leave enough space to fit the people in your wedding party. If you are having a ceremony and reception, assess how you will “flip” the space between events. Also evaluate whether you have space to store both ceremony and reception items. Moreover, if you plan to have a cocktail hour during the “flipping” time, where will your guests go? And consider whether you have enough flat surface to work with.

These same recommendations hold if you consider smaller venue weddings, public park venues, or weddings that might need to happen under a tent. Once you evaluate how your space will work for your wedding, you can decide whether you can move forward with a backyard wedding or whether a traditional venue works better for your needs.

Backyard Wedding Rentals

If you’re using an outdoor wedding venue, including a backyard, it’s important to account for the additional things you’ll likely need to buy or rent. For example, you’ll likely want to consider renting or buying a tent in case of bad weather. You can find a variety of styles and sizes of tents that range from hundreds to thousands of dollars.

Assuming you don’t have lots of tables and chairs lying around, you’ll want to rent those as well. Rental companies generally charge fees for delivery and setup of rentals. You can save lots of money by picking up and setting up items yourselves (or having friends or family members help) as these fees can be hundreds to thousands of dollars. However, keep in mind that doing so may make for a more stressful wedding day!

It’s also a good idea to consider buying, renting, or making a dance floor if you want to dance outside (or not scuff up your floors inside).

If all of this feels overwhelming, you might consider having the reception in your backyard and doing the ceremony at City Hall, a park, restaurant, or a traditional wedding venue. Generally, venues are much cheaper if you only need them during the daytime. Hiring a day-of coordinator or wedding planner can also be a good option for a backyard wedding. They can help you handle vendors and wedding guests while you get ready. While that of course costs extra money, it may save a lot of headaches down the line.

Food Ideas for a Backyard Wedding

One of the great things about a backyard wedding is that you can pick whatever food options you prefer. This isn’t always possible with traditional wedding venues. Some will require you to use preferred vendors or pay a fee for bringing in your own food. That being said, there can be extra complications with food at a backyard wedding.

First, if you’re using a caterer, consider whether you want them using your kitchen. If not, you’ll want to find a caterer that can prepare food ahead of time and bring it to your home.

Alternatively, consider other budget-friendly wedding food options. For example, hire a food truck, get catering from a local restaurant or local grocery store, have a potluck wedding, or do a mix. If you have an immediate family member who’s great at making cakes, they might make a cake. However, you could get dinner catering from your favorite restaurant.

As you’re planning and budgeting, make sure to account for tips, tax, and any staffing fees if you’ll have caterers, servers, waiters, or bartenders. Also make sure you check local regulations on serving alcohol. You may need to get a permit and follow particular rules. All of these things can quickly add up.

Backyard Wedding Vendors

While your caterer is a key vendor, you’ll also want to make sure that your other vendors will be a good fit for your backyard wedding. For example, you might decide you don’t need a DJ. Instead, have guests submit ideas for their favorite songs with their RSVPs. You can then curate a playlist yourself and use your own sound system. If you hire a DJ, make sure you understand what resources and hookups they’ll need to be able to play music in your home or backyard.

Similarly, if you’re hiring a hair stylist and/or makeup artist, consider where you will get ready and whether you have enough space for them to do their work. You might ask if they have experience with backyard weddings and how they have accommodated similar, previous weddings.

I personally believe that a good photographer is one of the best investments you can make for your wedding day. As you’re comparing wedding photographers, look for people who have good experience taking pictures outdoors. You might also look for someone with a more naturalistic style that will fit the vibe of your wedding.

As noted above, you may find a wedding planner and/or day-of-coordinator useful for reducing stress on your special day. It’s easy to lose track of all the things you need to do without the help of a qualified professional. For these and any other vendors you might be considering, make sure you evaluate the resources they need, their experience with similar weddings, and whether they make sense for the wedding you are planning.

DIY Backyard Wedding Ideas for Decorations

One of the great things about an outdoor wedding is that you can truly give it a personal touch. You have complete freedom to bring a little creativity into your decorations. You can see my post on low budget DIY wedding decoration ideas for lots of detail. However, I’ll include a briefer synopsis of those ideas here.

First, the right lighting can transform a space and quickly make it magical. String lights, paper lanterns, candles (or electric tea lights for a more fire-safe option!), and more can all make an outdoor space look ethereal. You can find inexpensive light options on Amazon, local craft stores, Etsy, and more.

Moreover, floral arrangements and centerpieces can quickly beautify a space. However, they often come with a high price tag. To save money, try renting or buying fake floral arrangements, using flowers from local Farmer’s Markets or grocery stores, or taking inspiration from your natural surroundings and create bouquets and centerpieces from the plants around your home.

I also love all of these adorable ideas for using mason jars as centerpieces from Craftsy Hacks. You can easily make a mason jar fit your wedding theme. For example, wrap a mason jar in burlap ribbon for a rustic vibe. Spray painting a mason jar is also an easy way to make a centerpiece that fits your wedding colors without spending a ton of money.

And you can find lots of great decor options from local thrift stores. For example, you might look for photo booth props. Some couples also create their own simple wedding arch from reused items like trellises or even old ladders or bookshelves. Purchasing inexpensive lawn games is another great option for making your wedding fun without spending much money.

Final Thoughts on a Budget Backyard Wedding

A backyard wedding is a great idea for couples looking to have a personalized and meaningful wedding on a budget. Planning a backyard wedding may involve a little extra legwork and planning. However, it more than pays off in terms of money saved and memories made. After all, the last thing you want is to start your marriage stressed and in debt.

As an added bonus, you’ll get to create a fun, unique, and generally laid back environment for your guests to celebrate. I have heard many people say that their favorite weddings they have attended have been backyard weddings. Indeed, my own parents had a beautiful outdoor wedding that was reportedly incredibly fun and low cost.

I hope these small backyard wedding ideas have provided inspiration for your own wedding celebration! They highlight that you can have an incredibly special day while also not spending a lot of money.

If you enjoyed this post, please consider liking, subscribing or sharing with others. It’s always a huge help! Interested in related content? Check out my posts on wedding planning, planning a bachelorette party and wedding shower, and how to tactfully ask your guests for money as a wedding present.