How Much Does it Cost to Elope in 2025?
Building Your 2025 Elopement Budget
Let’s be real- weddings are not a cheap event. It seems the second that something is deemed “wedding” related, the price tag increases tenfold. With the average traditional wedding cost escalating by the day, it is no surprise that one of the key reasons couples are choosing to elope is to cut some costs. So how much can you expect to spend on your elopement?
Elopements can be executed on a wide range of budgets. Ultimately, you can pay for the cost of your marriage license and get hitched at the courthouse if that is what you envision. At the end of the day, it all comes down to your priorities, and the experience that you want your wedding day to be. We are firm believers here at Trail Magic that choosing to elope does not mean that you have to sacrifice creating joy-filled memories of your once-in-a-lifetime day. There are still costs to consider, and services that we recommend choosing to invest in to bring your dream day to life, and to make sure it is beautifully documented for years to come!
Curious how to build your elopement budget, and what costs you can expect to pay? Keep reading for professional advice from an experienced elopement planner!
Identifying your priorities
The first step in planning your elopement budget is to identify your priorities for your elopement experience. The best way to do this depends on you, and how your planning brain works. Some different ideas include:
Journaling your dream day
What do you want to do?
Where do you want to be?
How do you want to feel?
Creating a spreadsheet
Identifying different potential vendors/components of a wedding day
Rating them on a scale of 1-10, from least to most important to your vision
Having conversations with your partner
Bouncing ideas off of each other
Listening to what your partner envisions for the day
Researching
Reading about different types of elopements
Reading blog posts about actual elopements
Reading about couples’ real life elopement experiences
Ultimately, no one can tell you what your priorities are for your elopement day. One of the most beautiful things about elopements are the unique nature of them, and how specifically they can be catered for your individual love story. Is it essential for you that you elope somewhere there are beautiful sunset views, because that is how you ended your first date together? Do you want a bouquet of lilies because they were your mom’s favorite flower? Do you envision a meal cooked by a private chef after your ceremony? It can happen!
When you feel like you have your general vision and priorities in mind, write them down in the most direct, tangible way possible. This will help you to gain an understanding of exactly what you need to be able to accomplish fulfilling your vision. For example, if your vision is…
… photos with your sister as she helps you get ready for your ceremony.
You should write down…
… photographer to cover getting ready moments, nice place to get ready at.
Or
… having a mountain top picnic & cake-cutting after your vows.
You should write down…
… a cake from a local bakery, a vendor that will set up your picnic for you.
Spelling out your priorities in this fashion will help you identify what services you need to research as you organize your budget!
Researching your Vendors
Once you have identified what vendors you may need, the next step is to get an idea of the price range of what each vendor can cost. You don’t need to select any vendors in this step. In fact, the more vendors you look at per category, the better idea you are going to have of what your budget will look like.
What vendors are most common in the elopement space? We would say the number one most popular elopement vendor across the board is an elopement photographer. Some other popular vendors include hair & makeup artists, videographers, officiants, planners, and florists, amongst others! Let’s break down some average costs associated with these potential vendors.
Elopement Photographers
The largest chunk of your elopement budget will likely be spent on photography services, and for good reason! Choosing to document your day with beautiful images is not only a great way to have keepsakes of your special day forever, but it is a great way to share your day with the people you love who were not present!
When researching photographers, I’m sure you’ll come to find that there is a very wide range of price points that photographers start at. Ultimately, you’ll find that for an experienced photographer, prices will generally fall in the $3k-$7k+ plus range, with some more luxury/niche photographers charging $10k+ for their services. Although this seems like a large investment, these photographers are there for the entire experience of you elopement, from location recs & timeline planning to delivering a full experience day of, to curating a stunning gallery of your day.
With a photographer, as well as all of the following vendors as, you are paying for a wealth of experience, artistry, and refined skills. Keep in mind that the price is often a reflection of the quality of the craft!
Hair & Makeup Artists
Not every bride opts to have a professional do their hair and makeup for their elopement, but many do! In places where elopements are very popular, you can even find Beauty vendors that will meet you at the trailhead! What we see most often is artists who come to the vacation rental our couples are staying at to get them all dolled up there. Depending on your distance from the actual salon, if the salon has any service minimums, if you would like trail services, etc, costs can vary. I would estimate that you can expect to spend $500-$600 on your wedding hair & makeup.
Videographers
If you would like further documentation of your day beyond photography, videographers are an awesome addition to your day! They’ll tag along for the elopement adventure, and create a film capturing the most magical moments for you to watch and re-watch for years to come! Videography services generally start at a minimum of $1500, and typically range in the $3-4k range, with some options exceeding $6-7k. Some important things to look for in an elopement videographer include the length of video they create, if they offer drone footage (if that is of interest to you!), and package lengths.
Officiant
Whether or not you need an officiant for your ceremony is dependent on your location (i.e. if you’re getting married in Colorado, you can self-solemnize), many couples opt to have one to lead their ceremony. In many places, you have the option to choose a friend or family member to officiate, given they are willing to get ordained for you. However, if you are choosing to invest in a professional, it its likely that you can expect to spend around $500+ for these services. How much you spend is also dependent on personalized you would like your ceremony to be, how far your officiant is traveling, and how many hours you are expecting their services for (which is generally not super long, but if they are hiking a mile to your ceremony location, that is something to keep in mind!).
Planners
I know what you’re thinking… a planner… for an elopement? But as the elopement industry grows, and the meaning of elopement evolves into less of a spontaneous act that defies the wishes of your family and more into an intentional, private way to spend your wedding day together, planners are stepping in to help! As an elopement & micro-wedding planner myself, I believe that couples choosing to elope are just as deserving of a relaxing and stress-free wedding day and wedding planning experience as couples choosing the traditional route! An elopement planner will help you with all additional vendors, help you location scout & choose your ceremony spot, help with accommodations, work with your other vendors to create the perfect timeline for your day, and will often provide day-of-coordination services to bring your vision to life. Depending on the extent of services you are seeking, you can expect to spend between $2k and $5k for elopement planning services. Your planner will also help you to build your overall budget, and to stick to it!
Florists
Although most couples seeking florals for their Elopements are not looking for the full floral shebang that weddings entail, we still love recommending local florists to our couples for their bouquets, boutonnieres, and ant decorative florals they may wish to include (stunning arch, anyone?). Although the cost of your flowers relies heavily on the extent of your vision, you can expect to spend around $200-300 on your bridal bouquet, and $30 or so on a boutonniere. If you are looking for something more large scale, like arch decor, you can expect to spend up to $700-$1k for partial displays, and $4-$5k for fully designed arches. Florals can be done on a wide range of budgets, though, and there are other options to investigate. We also love dried florals, and silk florals (especially for spots that don’t allow real flowers!).
Choosing Your Location
Location is often the biggest price difference between elopements and traditional weddings. Realistically, you can spend as little as $0.00 on your ceremony site, a jarring juxtaposition from the thousands that many venues start at. Of course, not every location is free to get married at, so let’s chat about potential costs!
Permits
The first step when you are interested in eloping somewhere is to research whether or not the site requires a permit. If it is on National Park Service land, it is pretty much a guarantee that it will. These permits vary quite a bit in price, with permits in parks like Great Smokey Mountain National Park costing $50, and permits in Rocky Mountain National Park costing $300. These permits also do not include park of parking passes required to get into/be in the parks, so that is something to consider as well!
Venue
When it comes to public land, there is no guarantee that although you got the necessary permits to reserve a site, you will be the only people there. There won’t be another couple eloping there, but you cannot guarantee full privacy from the general public. For this reason, some couples opt to book private spaces, like an Airbnb accommodation, or a natural, but privately owned venue like Weddings Over Waterfalls in Western North Carolina. Although these options are going to likely cost more than utilizing nearby public land, the guaranteed privacy is important to couples who opt for this route. We’ll break down some more vacation rental costs in the next section.
Accommodations
Once you have selected your ceremony site, the next move is to select where you’ll stay for your elopement experience. The majority of couples we work with are eloping a little ways from their home, or wish to have a different space to celebrate their wedding experience. We love vacation rentals for this purpose, because they can provide a bit more seclusion than a hotel stay would. Obviously these can hugely vary in cost, with some smaller spaces in less popular areas starting at $100-$200/ night, while more luxury rentals in more popular places can start at $500+ a night. It is important to know when booking your accommodation if you are looking to elope or have any photos/video taken on the property, so that you can ensure that is allowed on the premises before booking!
Eloping With Guests
As with any wedding, the guest count of your elopement will affect the overall cost. It can be a bit difficult to define what exactly the line is with guest counts and qualifying as an elopement, but here at Trail Magic Elopements, we generally classify an elopement as having less than 10 guests. So how does including guests impact your overall budget?
Dining
If you are planning to celebrate your elopement with a nice dinner out, a reserved private space, or some other form of small “reception,” including guests will up the costs associated. Of course this is not always the case, and sometimes a guest (or multiple guests) will pitch in to split the bill, but make sure you have budgeted ahead of time with the expectation of covering this cost.
Accommodation
Something we see fairly often in the elopement space is couples choosing to book an accommodation that will comfortably fit part or all of the group they are inviting to their elopement. Renting out a larger space will increase your budget by a fair bit, with the cost of 3-4+ bedroom house often starting at closer to $500 or $600/ night, and going up from there. Another thing to consider in this situation is if you’ll be stocking the fridge, providing food for the length of the stay, etc.
Limitations on Land & Vendor Limits
It is important to keep in mind when eloping with guests that not every ceremony site and vendor is going to have the same definition of an elopement. When including guests, you may end up having more limitations on certain locations, and may want to prioritize booking a more private, venue like space to ensure comfortability for your guests.
Ultimately, your elopement budget is entirely up to YOU and YOUR priorities for your day. For some couples, this looks like $5,000, and for others this looks like $15,000. At the end of the day there are no wrong answers if you are following your heart and vision. We always encourage our inquiring couples to reflect on what their priorities are, and how they want to remember their big day in the years to come. We believe that your love story is worth investing in, and just because you are choosing to have an intimate affair does not mean you need to skimp on the things that will make it beautiful and memorable. This is a once-in-a-lifetime kind of day to celebrate your once-in-a-lifetime kind of love, and that alone deserves the very best!
Planning your own Elopement and need some help?
Hi, we’re Becca and Hannah! A North Carolina and Colorado based wedding Photography and Planning team!
We’re more than just the vendors setting up table decor and shooting posed portraits after your ceremony.
We’re here to create a safe and community driven space for you to make your meaningful wedding vision a reality, without you having to do any of the heavy lifting!
Elopement planning is our absolute jam, so if you’re interested, reach out here to schedule your free consultation with us!