How to Plan Your Courthouse Wedding: Tips and Ideas
A courthouse wedding is not a compromise. It is a choice, and for a lot of couples it is the clearest and most honest expression of what getting married actually means to them.
No performance, no logistics spiral, no year of planning. Just the two of you, the people who matter most, and the moment itself.
Done with intention, a courthouse wedding is one of the most beautiful ways to get married. Here is how to plan one that feels exactly like you.
The Legal Logistics First
Photo: greenweddingshoes
Every courthouse wedding starts in the same place: the marriage license. The requirements vary by state and sometimes by county, so the first thing to do is look up the specific requirements for the courthouse you plan to marry at rather than relying on general information.
The things that vary most commonly from state to state:
- Waiting periods between obtaining the license and the ceremony, ranging from zero to five days depending on the state
- How long the license remains valid once issued, typically between thirty and ninety days
- Whether a blood test is required, rare now but still required in a small number of states
- The identification documents required, usually a government-issued photo ID and proof of any prior marriage dissolution if applicable
- The fee, which ranges from roughly twenty-five to one hundred dollars depending on location
Call the specific courthouse or check their website directly for current requirements. Requirements change and information found on general wedding planning sites is not always current or jurisdiction-specific.
Most courthouses also require an appointment for the ceremony itself rather than allowing walk-ins. Book as early as the schedule allows, particularly if the preferred date falls on or near a holiday or a popular date.
What to Wear
Photo: kaylie.photo
The courthouse wedding outfit question produces more anxiety than it should. The answer is straightforward: wear something you feel genuinely beautiful in that matches the formality level of the day you are planning. That could be a full bridal gown. It could be a chic white midi dress. It could be a tailored suit in ivory or a color that means something. There is no wrong answer as long as it feels intentional.
A few directions that photograph especially well at courthouse weddings:
- A slip dress or bias-cut midi in ivory, champagne, or white with minimal accessories and a small bouquet
- A tailored blazer and wide-leg trouser set in cream or a soft neutral, which reads as modern and deliberate
- A short bridal dress or tea-length gown for brides who want something clearly bridal without a full-scale look
- A printed or colored dress for brides who never wanted white and a courthouse wedding is the perfect occasion to wear exactly what they want
Shoes matter more in courthouse wedding photographs than in traditional wedding photographs because the outfit is often less voluminous and the shoes are visible in more shots. A great pair of heels, loafers, or embellished flats is worth the investment.
The Guest List
Photo: vogueweddings
One of the genuine freedoms of a courthouse wedding is the guest list. The ceremony space at most courthouses accommodates a small number of witnesses and guests, usually between two and ten people depending on the specific courthouse and room. That constraint is a gift rather than a limitation.
The people present at a courthouse wedding are the people the couple chose specifically for this moment, which gives the day an intimacy that larger weddings work very hard to create and sometimes never quite achieve. Every person in the room is someone who was chosen. That is a rare thing.
Two witnesses are typically required by law. Beyond the legal requirement, the guest list is entirely the couple’s decision and should be made without reference to who might be offended by not being included. A courthouse wedding is a private and personal choice. The people present are the people who belong in that specific moment.
Making It Feel Special
The courthouse is the ceremony. What surrounds it can be as simple or as considered as the couple wants.
The Bouquet
Photo greenweddingshoes
A small, loose bouquet carried by the bride transforms the courthouse moment in photographs more than almost any other single detail. It does not need to be elaborate. Five garden roses tied with a ribbon, a handful of ranunculus and eucalyptus, a single oversized bloom. A florist can put together a small bridal bouquet for a fraction of the cost of a full wedding arrangement and the photographs will show why it was worth doing.
The Photographer
A photographer is the single most valuable investment a courthouse couple can make beyond the license itself. Courthouse weddings are short, usually fifteen to thirty minutes, and without a photographer the visual record of the day is whatever a guest managed to capture on a phone. A few hours with a photographer who understands intimate weddings produces images that the couple will have for the rest of their lives. Many photographers offer elopement or micro-wedding packages specifically designed for courthouse ceremonies and the hours immediately after.
The Celebration After
The ceremony is the marriage. The celebration after is the wedding day memory. A long lunch at a restaurant that means something, a picnic in a park, a suite at a beautiful hotel, cocktails at the bar where the couple had their first date. The most memorable courthouse wedding celebrations are the ones that feel completely like the couple rather than like a scaled-down version of a traditional reception. This is the day to do exactly what you would actually choose rather than what a wedding is supposed to look like.
The One Thing Worth Remembering
Photo greenweddingshoes
A courthouse wedding is a complete wedding. Not a placeholder for a celebration later, not a lesser version of the real thing. The marriage begins in that room on that day and the simplicity of the ceremony is not a reflection of how seriously the couple takes the commitment. Often it is the opposite.
The couples who choose a courthouse wedding because it is exactly what they wanted, rather than because it was the path of least resistance, almost universally describe it as one of the best decisions they made. The day stays clear and present in the memory in a way that larger, more complex weddings sometimes do not. There is nothing between the couple and the moment except the moment.
