How to Save Money As a Wedding Guest, Straight From the Experts

Your loved one is getting married! Cue the cheers…and the credit card swipes. While weddings are memorable celebrations, they are also a big financial investment. But you shouldn't have to choose between partying with your pal and your budget. With some strategic planning, learning how to save money as a wedding guest is possible.

I spoke with some knowledgeable wedding and financial experts to get their take on the best ways to pinch pennies while attending a wedding. LendingTree chief credit analyst Matt Schulz weighed in with his financial perspective while I also tapped three expert wedding planners to offer their advice. Kelsey Connely, the owner of San Francisco-based Downey Street Events, Alyssa Pettinato, the owner of New York-based Alinato Events, and Nicole Day of Las Vegas-based Ember and Stone Events, offer their advice below.

With these tips, you'll never again need to decline an RSVP because the wedding was too expensive to attend. Consider this "how to be a wedding guest on a budget" 101.

In this story:

• How to Attend a Wedding on a Budget
• Ways to Save Money as a Wedding Guest
• How to Tell a Loved One You Can't Afford to Attend Their Wedding

How to Attend a Wedding on a Budget

The key to saving money on wedding guest costs is to plan ahead, act decisively, be flexible and rely on the nearlywed's advice. From the minute you find out about a friend's wedding, start saving money and outlining a budget for how much you want to spend to attend. As soon as possible, book travel and accommodations to capitalize on early-bird rates. While planning, consult the couple's wedding website to stay informed and avoid incurring unnecessary expenses. Ultimately, if you're willing to plan strategically and be a bit flexible, you can easily attend a wedding on a tight budget.

FEATURED VIDEO FROM THE KNOT

Ways to Save Money as a Wedding Guest

Here are the top tips to keep in mind that will help you save money as a wedding guest. Utilize some or all of these pieces of advice to make attending a wedding more affordable.

1. Consult the Wedding Website

The couple's wedding website should be your source of truth for everything ahead of the wedding. To-be-weds will commonly use this as a place to share details (like affordable hotel rates and pre-arranged transportation information) and direct guests to RSVP and wedding registry tools.

Nicole Day encourages her clients to also utilize wedding websites to provide suggestions for activities in the area, like "restaurants and tourist attractions to help guests create a budget for the weekend." By relying on the information and research that the couple has gathered, you'll save planning time and also avoid possibly making any costly plans that are at odds with what the couple has in store.

2. Utilize the Hotel Room Block

On the wedding website, you'll likely find information about hotel room blocks the nearlyweds have set up for guests to book. A hotel room block is a set of rooms at a property near the wedding venue that can be booked at a pre-arranged discount.

Booking within the couple's room block is beneficial for many reasons. Firstly, the accommodations will be discounted and may be more reasonable than other lodging in the area. Secondly, it is helpful for the couple to know who is staying where. To-be-weds are able to get a list of guests booked in their room block and can use this to plan welcome bag deliveries and shuttle routes. If you book elsewhere, you might not be able to utilize the couple's transportation.

3. Stick to the Wedding Registry

Another piece of information guests will find on a couple's wedding website is information about their wedding gift registry. As much as you might want to give them a gift that you found outside of the registry, no one wants their present to go to waste. The best way to ensure that the couple wants and needs the present you're investing in is to stick to their registry.

Buying from their wish list also saves you valuable time on research. Marriers will add products at a variety of price points to their registry so you can easily purchase a present based on the amount you want to spend. (Pro Tip: If you don't know how much to give as a wedding guest, consult this wedding gift calculator.) Once you've purchased your gift from the registry, it will automatically ship to the address the couple has on file which is another major plus. You don't have to dedicate premium luggage space to their gift and, instead, can pact as compactly as possible for the event.

4. Rent or Rewear Attire

On the topic of packing, you don't need to bring brand-new attire to your loved one's wedding. Many of the pros I spoke with encouraged thriftiness with wedding guest attire.

Day advises that "wearing items that you already have in your closet can be a huge cost savings." Alyssa Pettinato goes on to suggest that you could even do a "closet swap" with friends so you can wear a used, but new-to-you outfit for the wedding. Kelsey Connely agrees that "borrowing your friends' dresses or accessories rather than purchasing something new" is a good option. She also goes on to suggest renting attire from companies like Rent the Runway, Nuuly or Vivrelle as yet another cost-saving option for wedding guests.

5. Plan Ahead and RSVP Promptly

Beyond saving you money, RSVPing promptly is generally sound advice if you want to be an A+ wedding guest. Day urges wedding guests to "RSVP as soon as you can. You'll benefit from better rates for car rentals and flights." Connely seconds that advice, specifically regarding finding affordable flights. She suggests that after receiving a save-the-date, attendees should create "a Google Flight Tracker on a specific flight so that you can get alerts when the price drops."

6. Buddy Up

While you're eyeing flights and making transportation plans, start a conversation with other folks you know are attending the wedding to see if you can join forces to save even more money. From carpooling to booking accommodations with other guests, all four experts I spoke with touched on the benefits of buddying up with other folks to save. Matt Schulz adds that if you don't know who else is attending the wedding, you can consider reaching out to the couple to see if they'd be "willing to at least make a quick email introduction among their guests."

7. Avoid Last-Minute Cancellations

Not only is it rude to cancel your plans to attend the wedding at the last minute, but it will also cost you a lot of money. It is understandable if something comes up, but it's best to communicate as quickly as possible with all stakeholders (from the couple and their wedding planner to your airline and hotel) when you know you're going to need to change or cancel your plans.

"Canceling your plans to attend the event will hurt your pockets most when you're a guest. Most flights are non-refundable and almost all hotel bookings charge a percentage beforehand that is non-refundable. If you do find you are unable to attend an event make sure to let the couple know as soon as possible so you can make the adjustments needed," says Day.

8. Make a Budget and Stick to It

Especially if you're attending a multi-day wedding weekend, it's important to know how much you want to spend so you don't get overwhelmed by FOMO and impulse purchases once the festivities begin

"Setting a budget helps to make sure you don't overindulge in all the wedding activities, food experiences and late nights out. Make sure to chat with the couple or check out the wedding website to have a good idea of what all is planned so you can attend all the fun without regretting it later," says Day.

9. Save and Spend Strategically

Saving early is key to helping you with your budget. You can also take some time to strategically consider how you can use credit card points to your advantage to stretch your budget even more.

Schulz encourages wedding guests to "start saving as soon as possible." He adds that "credit card rewards can help. The right rewards card, used wisely, can definitely extend your budget. Whether you're talking about free airfares or just an extra 1% or 2% cash back with your regular card, every little bit helps. Just make sure that you pay off the balance as soon as you possibly can. Otherwise, the interest you pay can outweigh any rewards perks you might receive."

10. Consider Going Solo

Just because your significant other or family was invited, doesn't mean you all need to attend. Especially if the wedding involves a flight, just having one person represent your crew is a cost-conscious option worth considering. "Going by yourself can help turn an unaffordable trip to a reasonable one. This is especially worth considering if you know that you'll already know a lot of people at the event, so you won't ever have to feel like a third wheel," says Schulz.

11. Prioritize Events

If you're invited to multiple auxiliary events, from a bachelorette to a welcome dinner, consider declining the additional events and instead attending just the main wedding celebration.

Schulz encourages guests to ask the couple "what parts of the event matters most to them. For example, maybe they're big on the bachelorette party but not the rehearsal dinner. Knowing that can allow you to plan your travel accordingly and keep everyone happy without wrecking your budget."

12. Weigh Time Versus Money

When it comes to saving, you need to evaluate how much your time and comfort are worth to you. For example, maybe you could book an inexpensive hotel that isn't part of the room block, but then you'd have to drive yourself and you wouldn't be able to drink at the reception. If letting loose and having a good time is important, then it may be worth it to spend a bit more to book a room where you won't have to worry about end-of-the-night transportation. Similarly, Connely encourages thinking twice about "booking a flight that is going to compromise your experience just for the sake of saving money. Some examples of this would be a redeye flight or a super early morning flight the morning after the wedding. If you are going to spend the time and effort to attend the event, you might as well enjoy the experience!"

13. Be Honest

Honesty is the best policy, truly. "Don't be afraid to be vulnerable," says Schulz. "That doesn't mean that you have to open your books to share all of your financial information, but it does mean that you should be ok with sharing that money is a little tight, for example, and that you might not be able to afford to take part in every single thing. You might just find some more understanding than you'd expect. After all, a good friend shouldn't want to drive another friend into debt."

14. Be Respectful

This goes hand-in-hand with honesty. While it's ok to look for ways to save money, you still need to respect the couple and recognize the effort and intention they've put into the celebration. For example, Connely reminds attendees to "ensure you are always following the dress code of the event. For example, do not try to get away with wearing a suit you already own to a black-tie wedding so that you can save money." If money is so tight that the only way you can swing attending is to cut corners in a disrespectful manner, you may want to consider politely declining the invitation.

How to Tell a Loved One You Can't Afford to Attend Their Wedding

At the end of the day, the financial commitment to attend a loved one's wedding might not be feasible and that's alright. "Do not sweat if you cannot financially swing it, just explain and all reasonable people will be able to respect this," advises Pettinato. Here are some options you can utilize when breaking the news to the nearlyweds.

• Congratulations on your upcoming wedding. Unfortunately, my budget is tight at the moment and I'll have to send my well-wishes from afar.
• I am thrilled for you to enter this new season of life! Unfortunately, I need to respectfully pass on the invitation at this time. I wish you all best and can't wait to see photos from the day.
• Regrettably, I won't be able to attend the wedding since money is tight right now.

Ultimately, you know the nuances of your relationship with the folks getting married and it's important to use your best judgement when considering the pros and cons of attending the wedding.

Please note: The Knot and the materials and information it contains are not intended to, and do not constitute, financial or tax advice and should not be used as such. You should always consult with your financial and tax advisors about your specific circumstances. This information contained herein is not necessarily exhaustive, complete, accurate or up to date and we undertake no responsibility to update. In addition, we do not take responsibility for information contained in any external links, over which we have no control.