Are you contemplating skipping the craziness of planning a wedding and eloping with your loved one? If you find it hard to justify spending money on a grand wedding and prefer a day dedicated solely to you and your partner, elopement is the ideal choice.
Lately, many couples are opting to elope the old-fashioned way, like visiting City Hall and acquiring their marriage certificate from a judge. Most find this process simple, straightforward, and relatively cheap.
Some couples prefer getting slightly creative, eloping at their favorite park, at the peak of a mountain, or traveling to an epic destination to say their vows. Others prefer to do several activities as they elope, like declaring their love while skydiving or on a kayak.
Regardless of the style of your elopement, you’ll still have to factor in the amenities of a traditional wedding, such as florists, cake bakers, drivers, and a photographer, to mention but a few.
Given the array of elopement options available, you may wonder about the cost to elope. Fortunately, you’ve come to the right place! To help you figure out how much it costs to elope, go through this guide to the end.
The Average Cost of Eloping
One of the biggest questions couples begin researching if they’re thinking of eloping is, “How much does it cost to elope?” Even though there’s no fixed cost to elope, on average, most couples spend $ 5,000 – $15,000, way much less than the traditional average wedding cost.
Elopement is highly affordable if you intend to forego the entire wedding frills. With an elopement, you’ll only be required to pay a small fee for your marriage certificate, plus a government employee is required to legally officiate your marriage.
Something ideal about eloping is the chance to choose what you feel is important to you and ignore what you feel isn’t necessary. After all, the day you choose to elope is only for the two of you and no one else!
Elopement Costs: The Breakdown
As you plan your elopement, you’ll definitely have to incur some costs on essential things that you’ll find hard to ignore, such as the following:
- Travel costs ($0-$400)
- Wedding guests ($500 – $5,000)
- Florist ($60 – $1,000)
- Cake Baking Costs ($50 -$450)
- Wedding officiant ($500 – $800)
- Musicians ($500 – $900)
- Car/helicopter tour cost ($300 per day for a car)
- Outdoor guide cost ($200 – $1,200 per person)
- Photographer & videographer cost ($2,000 – $7,000 for a full day coverage)
- Elopement attire ( $280 – $1,600 for a wedding dress and $300 – $1,000 for groom suit)
1. Travel costs
Obviously, if you choose to stay closer to home for your elopement, the costs will be less expensive compared to hosting the event offshore. Should you elope to a nearby national park, state, local conservation area, or city park, the photography and ceremony permit will cost you anywhere from $0-$400.
If you plan to elope within your region, for example, Rhode Island but want to elope around the Finger Lakes region, say in upstate New York, you may need to factor in gas for travels along AirBnB or hotel costs.
Traveling internationally or during peak seasons will be more expensive because of the costs you’ll have to handle. You may want to add an additional $1,000-$5,000, especially for offshore travel costs.
2. Wedding guests
The number of wedding guests makes things slightly expensive or manageable. However, the costs will be low for an elopement compared to a traditional wedding. For a conventional wedding, you may have to hire a large venue, plan for meals, or even housing for some of your guests.
If you wish to keep your costs low, eloping is the best option, as you don’t have to spend more to impress your guests. Having a small but meaningful outdoor elopement with a few guests won’t be expensive. You can add an extra $500 – $5,000 if you plan to add some housing or feeding costs.
3. Florist
To make your elopement a success, you’ll need to hire the services of vendors to assist you on your special day. For example, you’ll need the services of a florist to make the bride’s bouquet and a set of other flowers you may need.
The average florist will charge you anywhere from $60 – $1,000 for the bride’s bouquet. The average price stands at around $175. For a floral archway, you’ll have to add another $500 or more. Many eloping couples choose to forgo bridesmaid flowers, but you may have to include such when eloping.
4. Cake Baking Costs
A majority of couples, even if they choose to elope, prefer to have a special cake, cupcakes, or a favorite treat on their special day. On average, the national price for wedding cakes is around $350 – $450. However, most eloping couples request smaller cakes, some of which cost around $50.
5. Officiant
As mentioned earlier, in most cases eloping couples will need to be accompanied by a few witnesses and an officiant to officiate their elopement. Officiants will cost you anywhere from $500 – $800 to officiate your ceremony. You may consider to give the him/her a wedding officiant gift as a token of appreciation.
An alternative and cheaper option is to hire or ask a loved one to become ordained. But in some states, an officiant isn’t even necessary. To ensure your elopement goes on smoothly, check your area’s marriage laws to find out what’s required of you.
Alternatively, you many opt to elope to states that are easy to wed legally.
6. Musician(s)
Other vendor costs that you’ll have to factor in are musician costs. Hiring a band will cost you anywhere from $500 – $900. If you are on budget, consider hiring a DJ over a band as DJs are cheaper than a band.
7. Car/helicopter tour
Are you planning to hold your elopement ceremony at an outdoor destination out of town where you’ll find off-roading a fun activity with your partner? If you elope at such locations, you may consider renting a 4×4 vehicle like a Jeep Wrangler. Hiring a 4×4 Jeep Wrangler can cost you about $300 per day.
If you prefer a helicopter, especially to take you and your partner to your elopement spot, plan on paying anywhere from $300 per person per hour to several thousand dollars, especially if you’d like the chopper for the day.
8. Outdoor Guide Cost
Couples that choose to elope mostly opt to do so at epic locations or foreign countries where a tour guide may be a significant requirement. If you prefer an adventurous elopement and wish to visit mountainous regions or hike to someplace stunning, you’ll require an outdoor tour guide.
On average, hiring an outdoor tour guide to show you around, especially in locations you need to become more familiar with, will cost you anywhere from $200 – $1,200 per person, mainly depending on the adventure you wish to have.
9. Photographer & videographer cost
With the average wedding photographer costs standing at USD 3,000, photography accounts for 10% -12% of wedding budget. The costs will also depend on how much coverage you prefer.
You’ll spend less than average if you only want a few hours. But for a full day coverage, be prepared to spend a considerable amount that could cost you anywhere from $2,000 – $7,000 for an experienced videographer or photographer.
10. Elopement Attire
Even if you choose to elope, you must plan for your elopement attire. Ensure you factor in what it will cost to purchase a dress, suit, or alternative clothing you find ideal for your elopement. In the United States, for instance, a wedding dress costs an average of $280 – $1,600, with others falling in the range of $1,000. For grooms, a suit ranges from $300 – $1,000.
3 important tips on saving money when eloping
While elopements are much cheaper than traditional weddings, you’ll be surprised to find several other ways to save more of your money on such small nuptials. Below are a few suggestions to save even more bucks on an elopement:
1. Hold your elopement ceremony on inexpensive wedding venues
If you choose to hold your elopement ceremony in a private location, you’ll likely spend more, almost similar to couples hosting an entire, blown-out ceremony.
We recommend hosting your elopement ceremony in inexpensive wedding venues.
2. Do your shopping wisely
The bride-to-be’s wedding dress is arguably one of the most expensive items for an elopement. However, paying for a full-on gown may be optional, especially if you’d like to forego the traditional wedding ceremony alongside the reception.
As the bride, you may want to find a cheap but cute white maxi dress instead of a full wedding gown that may cost you more. You may also consider renting your wedding gown.
3. Consider doing an exciting yet inexpensive activity
Most couples incorporate memorable and other fun activities into their elopement ceremony, though such can be relatively cheap as other activities such as skydiving. Picnicking, hammocking, hiking, stargazing, and popping champagne are all fun yet inexpensive elopement activities.
Wrap Up
There you have it, a guide on how much it costs to elope in the U.S.A. Its a fact that most elopements are cheaper compared to most traditional weddings, with the most significant costs saved on the reception.
If you’re on a budget or want to avoid all the hustle accompanying a conventional wedding, an elopement is the best choice. After all, it’s a day dedicated to just the two of you.
