5 Ways to Cut Down Your Wedding Guest List

Wedding planning comes with a mountain of obstacles, one of them being putting together the most perfect budget-friendly guest list. We say perfect because that’s the dream right? No drama whatsoever between all of the important people in you and your spouse’s life. Just you and your loved ones making memories you’ll look back on for decades. Sounds too good to be true? With these ideas on ways to cut down your wedding guest list, we hope that you can whittle down the list to not only not break the bank, but to be surrounded by your favorite people with the least amount of drama possible!

5 Ways to Cut Down Your Wedding Guest List

1. Dealing with parents/in-laws

Keeping in mind how difficult it can be to say no to your parents and in-laws, we urge you to really crack down on the “my wedding my way” mentality. The authority figures in you and your partners’ lives will try and put in their two cents every chance they get, this includes wanting all of their close friend’s to be a part of your big day too. We recommend sitting down with them as early on as you can, to lay some ground rules. Let them know that if you need their advice, you’ll seek them out!

Photo by Samantha Leigh Studios

2. Limit your plus ones or have none at all

A big way to cut down your costs is by cutting out plus ones completely! This can be tricky though, so you can also just limit who you give a plus one to. The first group of people who should get a plus one is people who are engaged or married, even if you don’t know their spouse that well. The second group are people who live together who aren’t engaged or married. Sometimes people in serious relationships don’t plan on getting married, don’t forget that these relationships are just as valid! The last group is people who don’t know anyone else. You don’t want anyone feeling awkward at your wedding, so toss them a plus one!

3. Only invite people you can see in your future

A good way to weigh all of the people you’re considering for your guest list, is to try and imagine them in your future. Can you see them being at future birthday parties, holiday get-togethers, beach days, or movie nights? This means don’t invite friends from high school or college that you haven’t talked to in a year. Chances are, if they aren’t that involved in this stage of your life, it doesn’t make too much of a difference if they’re at your wedding or not. 

Photo by Breaking Bread Photography

4. Use notecards to divide your guest list into 3 boxes

Wedding planner Jodi Jackson of ‘Savannah Wedding Dreams’ suggests that you divide your guest list into 3 categories. One box is close family (or family that you have good relations with), the second is close friends that you think will be in your life for a long time, and the third is everyone else you want to invite. By doing this you’re really prioritizing your favorite people first, so then when you see who’s left over, it’ll be easier to recognize if you really want them there, or if it wouldn’t make a difference to you. 

5. Have a kid-free wedding

By having a kid-free wedding, your guest list can go down dramatically! Also, what parents don’t want a night out every once and a while? Some parents are touchy about this subject, so make sure to make it clear on your invitations that this will be an adult only wedding. That way, if people are that upset about it, they’ll just decline your RSVP and there’s no harm done!

Photo by Rosy and Shaun Wedding Photography