How to Shop Online to Save Money on Your Wedding Favors

The web is a great way to comparison shop, but leave time for shipping

By Steve Smith

Photo by iStockphoto.com

If you are buying favors for a large wedding, you probably want to save money any way you can. By shopping online, you can find hundreds of stores that sell wedding favors at extremely low prices because there is so much competition. You can even find discounts on top of the rock-bottom prices they already offer.

• What You Need to Know
• You'll find a greater variety of wedding favors for sale on line than in any one store--but weigh that against the fact that you won't be able to handle the merchandise before you make the purchase.

Step 1:

Search for the wedding favors you like on Google Product Search or a similar shopping site, like NexTag or FindGift. Some sites will allow you to compare prices on the same item and choose the store with the lowest price.

Step 2:

Double-check the price to ensure it includes everything you need, including gift boxes, thank-you tags, and engraving. Also, check to see if the price is for a set or a single item. Many wedding favors are sold in sets.

Step 3:

At each online store, bookmark the page featuring the favor you want to buy and do a further price comparison. Compare the final cost for each item, including shipping and engraving fees (if you are having the item engraved), by adding the item to your cart and selecting "check out" or "purchase."

Step 4:

Continue to search for additional comparisons at other online wedding stores. Also compare similar but lower-priced wedding favors. For instance, seasonal-themed wedding coasters come in many styles, but some may be more expensive than others.

Step 5:

Buy large quantities of wedding favors online to save an additional 10 percent to 15 percent off the price. Many companies offer bulk discounts on certain favors. Buy 100 or more and you can save more money.

• Tips & Warnings
• Engraving is free on most favors. If a store doesn't offer free engraving, find one that does.
• Making CDS of the bride and groom's favorite music is also an option to consider.
• Start looking for wedding favors well in advance of the wedding, keeping in mind the shipping time of items bought online.