Kid’s Party on a Budget: Ultimate Tricks and Hacks You Shouldn’t Miss

October 16, 2020

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Hosting your kid’s party on a budget… is that possible? Check out this article to find out.

When your child is still a toddler, throwing a kid’s party for him is easier and cheaper. Perhaps, you might have been able to get away with just a few balloons and a simple cake.

But now that your child has grown up and already knows how a kid’s party should be, hosting one has become pricier.

A lot of parents go overboard and spend more than they should when throwing a kid’s party. They go beyond the imaginable costs of a kid’s party, which has drastically raised the industry by $38 billion just in the United States alone. What more in the entire world?

But despite this booming industry, which might pressure you to jump into it, you actually don’t have to. Remember, no law states that a kid’s party should be like this or that.

You don’t have to spend thousands of dollars on your kid and his guests to have an extravagant time for his birthday. Sure, a kid’s party comes with a price, but you can always pull off a great one without breaking your bank account, most especially when you are on a tight budget.

To help you pull off a kid’s party on a budget, we have put together the best tips and tricks that you shouldn’t miss.

Favors and Supplies

Look for On-Sale Supplies

There is no such thing as too early when it comes to sourcing out supplies for your kid’s party. In fact, doing so comes with a benefit: you’ll be able to compare prices from one shop to another.

Also, many party supplies go on sale at different times of the year, saving you from last-minute buying, which is usually more expensive.

Send Out Digital Invites

The world is already digital, and there’s no enough reason not to use technology when hosting a kid’s party on a budget. Instead of sending out printed invites, a digital invitation is a cheaper way to let your guests know about the party you are hosting.

With it, you have saved money and the earth as well, since you don’t have to use paper anymore. Digital invites also saves time since you no longer have to go from house to house to send out the invitations. With just a click, your guests will already have it right in front of them. Less hassle, more efficient!

Level Up Plain Supplies

Creativity is very important when it comes to hosting a kid’s party on a budget. Instead of buying decorated party supplies, go for plain options, and decorate them yourself. Typically, decorated supplies cost twice as much as the plain ones.

For example, you can decorate a plain paper plate by punching holes around its outer edge. You can also level up plain balloons by decorating them with stickers based on the party’s theme.

Buy Supplies Online

Some party supplies are cheaper when bought online. Shopping online for the supplies and favors you need for a kid’s party on a budget may help you go away from impulsive buying.

Another good thing about shopping online is that there are a lot of online sites that offer discounts and vouchers for party supplies. With this, you are hitting two birds with a single stone – you have saved money and time at that.

Streamline the Goody Bag

There are a lot of goody bag items that are sold in sets. Instead of putting one set in one goody bag, buy different sets and place one from each set on the goody bags.

This way, the items on your goody bags are varied. Children will surely love this since this isn’t just an average goody bag containing the same thing.

Kid’s Party Logistics

Get the Timing

Knowing the best time to throw the party is very essential when hosting a kid’s party on a budget. Ideally, the best time to finish a kid’s party is between 2 PM and 5 PM.

This is because, during these times, guests won’t expect a full meal to be served. Instead, they’ll look forward to a simple snack, which helps you stick to your budget.

Host the Party at Home

Make your home exactly where the party should be. Renting out a place is tempting, but it’s a big no when planning a kid’s party on a budget. This is because the party venue usually takes the biggest chunk in a kid’s party budget.

But if you host the party at your house, you don’t have to rent out a venue, which saves you a lot of money. Just make sure that your home is kid-proofed to avoid any accident from happening, most especially since you are dealing with kids.

Entertainment

Choose Crafts that Doubles as Party Favors

Choosing craft activities that double as party favors is helpful when hosting a kid’s party on a budget. Having a craft station comes with a lot of benefits.

With it, you don’t have to rent party entertainers. The kids will surely enjoy the craft activities you have prepared. This can also be very helpful in keeping the kids away from throwing tantrums.

Another advantage is that you cannot have party favors since the kids can bring home what they have made. Just make sure that the craft activities you’ll be having are valuable to the kids and their parents.

Choose No-Cost Activities

Another way to successfully throw a fun kid’s party on a budget is to choose no-cost activities. Many activities don’t need a lot of materials, and more often than not, these materials are already found at home. More so, there are activities that don’t need any material at all.

Some of the no-cost activities are the following:

Freeze Dance
“Simon says”
Keep-Up-the-Balloon
“Button, button, who’s got the button?”
Musical Chairs
Duck, Duck, Goose
Hot Potato
Three-Legged Race
Red Rover
Charades

Thrifty Tips for a Kid’s Party on a Budget

Create Out of What You Have

When planning a kid’s party on a budget, do not be afraid to repurpose or DIY out of the things you already have. Regardless if it is the decoration, party favors, entertainment, or theme, there is nothing wrong with repurposing. Go and search on Pinterest for excellent ideas that you can imitate.

Also, instead of hiring party entertainers, you can create video animations that can keep the kids entertained. If not, prepare a craft station that is way cheaper than hiring a party entertainer.

Plan the Party Strategically

Choosing the party’s time wisely will help you save a lot of money, both on food and entertainment. How long the party will last also determines how much money you will spend or save.

Ideally, a kid’s party should only last for around two to three hours. Hosting a party longer party than that is more expensive since you have to prepare more food and fun for everyone.

Related Article: How Long Does a Kid’s Party Last?

Also, having a party during lunchtime or dinner time will cost you more since you just don’t have to prepare food for lunch or dinner. You also have to prepare snacks for everyone to eat while the different activities are ongoing.

So, to avoid overspending, schedule your kid’s party either in the mid-morning or mid-afternoon. With this, you’ll only have to serve snacks, no other foods needed.

Don’t Overspend with Party Favors

If you choose to have party favors, make sure that you don’t splurge so much into it, not when you are hosting a kid’s party on a budget.

Instead of buying different expensive items, a homemade chocolate drink mix or a nicely wrapped cookie is a cheaper option that will cost you almost nothing.

If you don’t have the time to prepare for homemade treats, coloring books, cartoon stickers, and friendship bracelets are an excellent go-to. There are many options, just make sure that you choose the suitable ones for your guests.

Keep the Guest List Small

Since you have a limited budget, inviting a lot of people isn’t necessary. In as much as possible, keep your guest list as minimal as possible to ensure that you’ll accommodate everyone out of the budget you have.

It’s okay if you can’t invite the whole class where your child belongs. No rule says each one of them should be present at your kid’s party. Having all of them around is nice, but that is not realistic when on a tight budget.

If possible, limit your guest list to under ten kids only. If you want more, then keep it under 20.

Why so low? Well, the parents of the kids will surely stick with them, which can double the number of your guests in an instant.

If your child only wants to invite a friend or two, spending your kid’s birthday on bowling, the zoo, or a play center is cheaper.

Bake or Decorate Your Own Cake

If you can bake, baking the cake for your kid’s party is a cheaper option. But if you don’t know-how, then you can simply buy a plain or generic cake and decorate it yourself.

Generic cakes are cheaper than custom-made cakes. But what if your child wants a themed cake?

You can print out the items related to the theme, cut it out, and place it on the cake. If not, put sticks into them, then place them on the cake.

Keep the Menu Simple

A kid’s party on a budget or not doesn’t need to have a very elaborate menu. Most kids don’t even like that. Instead, a few fun and basic food to munch on already impresses them.

For example, if you are throwing an outdoor party, having burgers, hotdogs, sandwiches, and a few side dishes are totally okay. There’s also no need to load up on expensive bottles of water and soda when it comes to the drinks. Instead, you can make kid-friendly punches that kids will surely love.

Provide Your Own Entertainment

If you have rented a place without a party package for entertainment, then you don’t have to hire an entertainer. What you can do is to come up with something that will entertain your guests.

It might be tempting to hire a mascot, but is it really needed? Some kids are even scared of it.

Instead, prepare activities that will cost you nothing at all. For example, host different games that you can play either indoors or outdoors.

Organize fun relay races, play tug of war, water balloon fight, or treasure hunt. If not, you can host a talent show with a small prize.

Finally, a craft station can help you entertain your guests, especially the kids, during the party.

Skip Renting Equipment

Commonly, parents hire tents, bouncy castles, and food makers for a kid’s party. These are fun but aren’t necessary.

Although renting is cheaper, their overall price can still damage your budget. Besides, renting food makers means having someone to man these stations, and that’s additional expenses again.

Similarly, renting a bouncy castle when hosting a kid’s party on a budget isn’t reasonable at all. Instead, find a friend who owns a trampoline and borrow it for a day.

If the party can go on and still be fun, then there is no need for you to invest in different party equipment. You can just allocate what you have for more essential supplies.

Conclusion

While a kid’s party on a budget is more time consuming and needs a lot of legwork and effort, the money you will be saving is more. If you haven’t decided yet whether you will push a modest at-home party or a birthday bash at a local recreation center, then think of more significant ways on where you will be spending the money that you can save when throwing the party at your house.

Hosting a kid’s party for your child doesn’t have to be expensive. Remember, there’s no price tag to happiness.

There’s also no need to join the extravagant birthday craze today just to boast that your kid’s party is in. A simple one, but a whole lot of fun is something that your kid will love and treasure for the years to come.