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No more Saturday dates available for your wedding this year or even next year? Have to work on Saturdays? Looking to get a discount on your preferred venue? All reasons to consider having a Sunday wedding!
I go into a detailed list of all the pros and cons of having a Sunday wedding for you to consider before you book. Here’s the summary of why a Sunday reception may or may not be for you:
Generally, Sunday weddings are earlier, shorter affairs. They can be cheaper to book, with venues giving discounts for what’s considered an off day. But you may find that guests who have to work the next day sneak out early or other vendors don’t work on Sundays.
What are the full pros and cons of having a wedding on a Sunday?
Pro – There are more dates available
Saturdays typically book up first for venues. If they offer Sundays or other days during the week, they are easier to book. For couples looking to get married this summer and don’t want to wait up to 18 months a Sunday wedding might be the only way to do it.
Pro – It might save you some money
Because Sunday weddings aren’t as popular as Saturdays, many venues will offer a discount for booking that day. So not only will you have a shorter engagement but you might be able to reduce your costs! Even if it’s not a Sunday-specific discount, Sunday weddings may also be cheaper if they are brunch or afternoon weddings, smaller receptions, or shorter events due to people having to work the next day. You may find that overall costs are reduced even if the venue costs the same.
Pro – Guests don’t have to take off from work
With a Sunday wedding it is more important that your wedding starts on time, your events move promptly from one to another, and you’re serving the cake or dessert early enough that guests who need to leave to make it home for work the next day are able to do so.
An easy, casual way to have a Sunday wedding is to turn it into a Cake and Punch reception. Cake and Punch receptions are typically held during the day and are shorter receptions where you simply serve cake and punch, or other light refreshments. You can read more about Cake and Punch-style weddings here.
Pro – You have time to prepare for the wedding the day before
You probably won’t be able to get into the venue the day before to decorate with a Sunday wedding but you will have time to spend with family, run any last minute errands, and get any spa treatments you need before the big day.
Many couples take the day off before their wedding anyway to have time to prep but with a Sunday wedding you likely already have Saturday off. Then you’ll have more time off to use for the honeymoon.
This can lead to a con of not having time off after the wedding to recuperate if you or your guests don’t plan on taking any time off.
Con – No time to rest and recover after the wedding
With Monday as the day after your wedding, you or your guests might not be able to party as much as you want the night of with their Monday morning alarm waiting for them. Or your guests are in for a very rough work day if they didn’t take a day off.
Which leads us to our next con.
Con – Your wedding should start earlier and end earlier
Most of your guests will not take the next day off and will instead plan to cut things short to get home in time for a reasonable bedtime. You shouldn’t expect to have a late evening wedding that drags on well past 10 pm. A lot of your guests will sneak out after the cake is cut or be fuming that it hasn’t happened yet and they have work in the morning if it goes too late. If you’re a night owl and have your heart set on a late night with an afterparty, a Sunday wedding probably isn’t for you.
To plan for a great guest experience, you’ll want to have your wedding start and/or end sooner than average. You can do this by having a brunch or afternoon wedding. You can go for a cake and punch reception for something more casual. Read more about cake and punch weddings here. Or you can have an early evening wedding.
For evening weddings keep your cocktail hour and dinner plans on the shorter side so things are wrapping up around 9 or 10 pm the latest. If you want to know more about planning a weekday wedding and tips to make it successful, check out this post.
Con – Guests might leave early
No matter how you plan it, some guests might sneak out early if they have work the next day. This is just something you’ll want to be prepared for with a Sunday wedding.
If guests leaving early bothers you but you still want some of the benefits of a Sunday wedding, check out our article on the Pros and Cons of Friday weddings to see if it’s a better fit.
Pro – Guests won’t mind a Sunday wedding as much as you think
We did a poll for an article about weekday weddings and most people said they wouldn’t mind a weekday wedding with sufficient notice. We found that most people said they would be down for even a Monday wedding.
There were some people who said that they would only attend a weekday wedding for someone they were close with. If you ask me, it’s a pro to have only the people who truly care about you at your wedding to celebrate with. So if you’re looking for a way to weed out extraneous family members or acquaintances, a Sunday wedding might do the trick. You can also take a look at this wedding guest flow chart to make decisions about who to invite easier to manage.
Con – Some vendors will be harder to book
There will be a lot of venues and other vendors like photographers, DJs, and florists who simply don’t work on Sundays. You’ll have to be upfront about your Sunday wedding plans in your early communications so you don’t waste time getting a quote from someone who can’t fit you in on a Sunday. This is even more of a potential concern than planning a wedding any other day of the week because the wedding industry is so centered around Saturdays that Sunday is the only day off per week for many wedding businesses.
Now that you know all of the pros and cons of having your wedding on a Sunday, are you still considering it? Share your thoughts in our free, exclusive Facebook group Bold on a Budget Weddings.
