Tent Wedding Cost Breakdown
6 months ago, my husband and I got married on a piece of land that is very special to us and hosted a tented reception. When planning, people would often say to me, “Well that will be nice! You’ll save so much money!” While we found the process of a family land wedding to be deeply personal, fun, and more intimate than a venue could have ever been, we did not find it to be any cheaper than a venue.
To any brides who may be considering a “backyard” type of wedding, first of all DO IT! But here are some “venue costs” you may not be considering:
All photos by Rebecca Lillian Photography
RENTALS: $5,200
This is very conservative for most tent weddings. Includes no decor, no linens, and no signage. Essentially dinnerware, 2 sets of chairs, a couple coolers, and a serving tray or 2.
2. THe actual tent
A lot of what you see from tent weddings on Pinterest are sailcloth tents which can be $5,000-$20,000 depending on size, added flooring, location, sidewalls, etc. We opted for a regular pole tent which was much cheaper but we did kind of have to dress it up a bit.
We also rented 1 big tent, 1 small food prep tent, and 1 small tent for the bridal party to wait in before the ceremony.
Dance Floor: $1,000
We were very fortunate that my FIL made ours which was still not free but to rent one was going to be around $1,000
Seating: $1,000
If you want any sort of cocktail hour where people arent sitting at their tables, you need lounges, cocktail tables, etc. outside the tent. We ended up having less than I was planning but alas.
Restrooms: $2,000
Initially, I thought I was so low maintenance I would just do porta poties. But after considering great grandparents, etc. I thought we better invest in an air conditioned, comfortable bathroom.
Lighting: $350
This one is not major just something to think about. Some people buy chandeliers, etc. I ended up using only half of the string light I bought. Was also able to resell these.
Ceremony Structure: $1,800
A lot of venues have an arbor, arch, something to get married under. I dreamed up a floating flower installation but regardless of what you choose, it will likely cost money.
Power: $1,700
We rented 2 industrial capacity (quiet) generators. 1 for the ceremony and 1 for the reception for DJ, speakers, bathrooms, lights, etc. and then you have to pay for drop cords and a few other accessories. We got these where Alex works so it was discounted from this price.
Golf carts: $1,000
We rented 5 golf carts to get people from ceremony to reception and also zipping around morning of.
The bar
We DIYed our bar from a vintage store counter off Facebook as well as the back bar. But if you plan to have one custom made or rent one, this can be pretty pricey. However, I do think you save on alcohol with no venue upcharges or minimums!
If youre even considering it, I promise you will not once regret having a tent wedding. It was one of the best decisions we made and we got so many compliments on how authentic and unique it felt.
plan it and ill take your pics!!
