Cheap Save the Date Cards: Budget Announcement Options

Okay So Here’s The Deal With Cheap Save The Dates

Look, you don’t need to drop $500 on save the dates. I’m gonna be real with you because I’ve seen too many couples blow their budget before they even get to the actual invitations and it drives me absolutely nuts. Save the dates are literally just “hey mark your calendar” cards – they’re not heirloom pieces your grandkids will treasure.

The cheapest option hands down is going digital. I know, I know, some of your relatives will clutch their pearls, but hear me out. Services like Paperless Post, Greenvelope, and even Canva let you send gorgeous save the dates for free or like $20-40 total. You can track who opened them which is kinda cool actually. I had this couple back in spring 2023 who were SO stressed about their budget and I convinced them to do digital save the dates and they saved almost $400 that went toward their photographer instead. Way better use of money.

But if you need physical cards because your grandmother will disown you or whatever, there are still tons of budget options.

Print At Home (The Cheapest Physical Option)

This is what I did for my own wedding actually, though that was ages ago. You design something on Canva or even just in Word if you’re really keeping it simple, buy some decent cardstock from Amazon or Staples, and print them yourself. A pack of 100 cardstock sheets runs about $15-25. Ink is the killer here – if you’re doing color printing, make sure you have enough ink or this becomes NOT cheap real fast.

The trick is keeping your design simple. Lots of white space, minimal color coverage. Those designs with full-bleed color backgrounds? Yeah, those will drain your ink cartridges faster than my cat knocks things off my desk, which is saying something.

You can get blank postcards too which saves you the cost of envelopes. Postcards as save the dates are totally acceptable and you save on postage – like 40 cents vs 60-something cents per piece. Over 100 cards that’s real money.

Online Print Services (Still Budget Friendly)

Vistaprint is the obvious one everyone knows about. They run sales constantly – like literally always – so never pay full price. Sign up for their emails and wait for a 50% off code. I’ve ordered from them probably a hundred times for clients and yeah the quality isn’t luxury wedding stationery, but for save the dates? Perfectly fine.

Their postcards are usually the best deal. You can get 100 for around $30-50 depending on sales. The 5×7 size is standard and doesn’t look cheap or anything.

Zazzle is another option and they also have constant sales. Same deal – wait for a promo code. What annoys me about Zazzle though is their interface is kinda clunky and finding what you want takes forever because there are like eight million designs.

Shutterfly is slightly pricier but better quality than Vistaprint in my opinion. They do 40% off sales pretty regularly. Their magnets are actually really popular for save the dates – people stick them on their fridge and don’t lose them. Magnets run about $50-80 for 100 when on sale.

Postcard Save The Dates Are Your Friend

I’m just gonna say it again because people don’t think about this enough – postcards save you SO much money. No envelopes to buy, no envelope printing or addressing labels needed, cheaper postage. The USPS postcard rate is significantly less than a regular letter.

Some people worry postcards look cheap but honestly if you design them well they look modern and intentional. Put a nice photo on one side, your info on the other, done. I’ve seen couples do gorgeous postcard save the dates that looked way better than some expensive traditional cards I’ve seen.

The only downside is your guests’ nosy mail carriers can read them but like… it’s just a date and location, not your deepest secrets.

Design Templates Are Free Money

Canva has thousands of free save the date templates. THOUSANDS. You can customize them with your colors, photos, details, whatever. Then you can either print them yourself or upload the design to a print service. This is what I recommend to basically every budget-conscious couple I work with.

Etsy also has tons of affordable templates – usually $5-15 – that you can edit yourself in Canva or Templett. You buy it once, edit it unlimited times, print as many as you need. Way cheaper than hiring a designer or buying pre-made cards.

The thing people mess up is making their design too complicated. Keep it simple – your names, the date, the location (just city/state), and maybe “invitation to follow” or your wedding website. That’s it. You don’t need your engagement story, your pet’s names, a poem… I had a client who wanted to include their “how we met” essay on their save the date and I was like, bestie, no one is reading all that.

Actual Cheap Printing Companies

CatPrint is one I discovered maybe two years ago and they’re legit cheap. Not a typo – that’s really their name. Their postcards start around $25 for 100. Quality is decent, shipping is reasonable, turnaround is quick.

GotPrint is another budget option. They do rush sales all the time where stuff is like 60-70% off. Sign up for their emails and you’ll get bombarded with deals.

PrintRunner and Overnight Prints are similar – always running specials, decent quality for the price point.

The key with all these cheaper print companies is to order samples first if you can, or at least look at paper weight specs. Anything under 100lb cardstock is gonna feel flimsy. You want at least 100lb, preferably 120lb or 14pt cardstock.

Ways To Make Cheap Cards Look More Expensive

Okay so this is where you can get a little creative without spending extra money or maybe just spending a tiny bit extra.

Good design matters more than expensive printing. A well-designed card on basic cardstock looks better than a poorly designed card on fancy paper. Use nice fonts – not like 12 different fonts, maybe two max. Make sure there’s enough contrast so it’s readable. Don’t cram everything into every inch of space.

If you’re printing at home, you can add a simple ribbon or twine wrap for like 10 cents per card. Bulk ribbon from Amazon is cheap. It makes them feel more special without blowing your budget.

Upgrading your envelopes if you’re using them can make a difference too. Basic white envelopes are cheapest but kraft envelopes or colored envelopes are only slightly more and add visual interest. I’m talking maybe $10-15 more for 100 envelopes.

The Magnet Situation

Save the date magnets are having a moment and honestly they’re not that much more expensive than cards if you shop around. Vistaprint’s magnets are usually around $60-70 for 100 when they’re on sale. People actually keep them which is the point – you want them to remember your date.

The downside is they’re heavier so postage costs more. You gotta factor that in. They usually require a larger envelope too. But people genuinely do stick them on their fridge and see them every day, so there’s real value there.

What About Minted And Paperless Post Physical Cards?

Okay so Minted is gorgeous but definitely not the cheapest option, though they do have sales sometimes. If you’re really committed to having stunning save the dates and can catch a 20-30% off sale, you might get them for around $150-200 for 100. That’s still way more than budget options though.

Paperless Post recently started offering physical cards which is kinda funny since they built their brand on digital invitations. They’re nice quality but again, not the cheapest route.

These are more “mid-range trying to be luxury” options. If your budget is truly tight, skip these.

Timing And Postage Tips

Order or print your save the dates at least 2-3 months before you need to mail them. This gives you buffer room for mistakes, delays, whatever. Rush shipping and rush printing costs extra and eats into your savings.

Mail them 6-8 months before your wedding, or 8-12 months if it’s a destination wedding. You don’t need to mail them a year in advance unless you’re getting married on New Year’s Eve or something where people really need maximum notice.

Buy your stamps in bulk from USPS online or at Costco if you have a membership. Sometimes you can find slight discounts. Use regular Forever stamps – don’t waste money on fancy specialty stamps for save the dates. Save that for your actual invitations if you want.

Weigh one fully assembled save the date before you buy all your stamps. If it’s over 1 oz you’ll need extra postage. This is where people mess up and then have cards returned for insufficient postage which is just… it’s annoying and wastes money.

The Addressing Question

Hand addressing is free but time consuming. If your handwriting is nice, go for it. If not, printed labels are fine for save the dates – you can save the fancy calligraphy for your actual invitations.

Avery labels and a mail merge in Word is the cheapest way to print addresses. You can buy a sheet of 30 labels for a few dollars. There are tons of tutorials on YouTube for how to do mail merge if you’ve never done it.

Some online print services offer envelope printing for an extra fee – usually $20-40 for 100 envelopes. Whether that’s worth it depends on how much you value your time versus money.

Things You Don’t Need On Save The Dates

Registry information – nope, don’t put this on save the dates, it looks gift-grabby. Your wedding website can have registry info but even then, don’t be too pushy about it.

Dress code – you can mention this on your website but it’s not necessary for save the dates.

Hotel blocks – again, wedding website. Keep your save the date simple.

RSVP info – that’s for the actual invitation, not the save the date. Save the dates are just announcements.

The more info you cram on there, the more cluttered it looks and the more expensive it might be to print depending on design complexity.

My Actual Budget Breakdown

If you go the cheapest route possible – digital save the dates – you’re looking at $0-40 total. Done.

If you print at home with Canva templates and basic cardstock as postcards: roughly $40-60 total including cardstock, ink, and postage for 100 people.

If you use Vistaprint postcards with a sale: about $60-90 total including printing and postage for 100 people.

If you want cards with envelopes from a budget printer: around $80-120 total for 100 including printing, envelopes, and postage.

Compare that to “luxury” save the dates that can run $300-600 for 100 and yeah, you can see why I’m so pushy about this. It’s literally just a heads up card.

The One Thing That Really Annoyed Me

I had a bride in summer 2021 who insisted on ordering expensive letterpress save the dates because her friend had them and they were gorgeous. Her budget was TIGHT – like really tight – and I tried so hard to talk her into saving that money for something else. She spent $450 on save the dates and then three months later was stressed about not being able to afford her dream photographer and asked if we could cut costs somewhere. Like… bestie, we tried to tell you. That still bothers me honestly because save the dates are so temporary – people look at them once and stick them on the fridge or throw them away. It’s not the place to splurge when money is limited.

Other Random Tips

If you’re crafty at all, you can find DIY save the date kits on Etsy or Amazon. Some of them are actually cute and run about $50-80 for supplies to make 100. Whether this saves you money depends on how you value your time and sanity.

Consider skipping save the dates entirely if your wedding is small (under 50 people) or if most guests are local. Just send your invitations 3-4 months out instead of the usual 2-3 months. Save the dates aren’t actually required – they’re a courtesy for people who need to make travel plans or request time off work.

If half your guest list is local and half is traveling, you could send save the dates only to the travelers and just tell local people verbally or with a quick text. Unconventional but it works and saves money… though you’ll probably have some local people who feel left out, so think about your specific family dynamics before doing this.

The wedding website route is really underutilized. You can create a free website on Withjoy, Minted, TheKnot, whatever, and include all your details there. Then your save the date just needs to say “Save the date for our wedding on [date]” and your website URL. Keeps printing costs down because there’s less text to fit.

Okay I think that covers most of the budget save the date options. The main thing is just don’t overthink it and don’t let anyone convince you that you need to spend a fortune on these. They’re announcements, not the main event. Put your money toward things that actually matter for your wedding day – your photographer, your food, your flowers, whatever is important to you – not cards people are gonna recycle in a few months anyway.