Affordable Party Ideas for the 4th of July

Affordable 4th of July Party Ideas

If you are wanting to throw a festive but yet affordable 4th of July party, then check out the ideas below! I am going to share some affordable party ideas for the 4th of July! You can have a festive time, and not break your piggy bank in the process. 

The 4th of July is one of the biggest celebrations of Summer, so you want it to be a bang! But if you find you’re strapped for cash after graduations, family vacations or money is just tight in general, then here are some affordable ideas! 

Host a Festive 4th of July Party for Less 

Block Party: This is a traditional party idea, but a lot of towns don’t do this anymore. Consider doing a block party with your neighbors. Assign each household a certain food, drink, or dishware to bring. This will cut down the cost of buying a whole meal to feed a lot of people, and you will have lots of fun! 

Pot Luck: A 4th of July party is not a birthday celebration, so it is okay to ask family and friends to bring a dish. You could ask them to bring sides, or drinks, or designate each person a certain dish that compliments the main dish! 

Cups, Plates, Silverware: Don’t go all out for the red, white and blue star and striped paper dishes. You will pay a ton of money for these, and probably less count in the pack. Instead, you could mix and match solid colored items for a lot less. Look at dollar stores or even the dollar bins at Target. They will have solid red, white and blue cups, plates, silverware, that won’t cost much. Or if you have enough dishes, use your own and just toss in the dishwasher after. 

Decorations: You might be surprised what the dollar stores have for decorations. You could find some really neat 4th of July inspired paper lanterns, centerpieces, and more to decorate with. They have a really cute decor for cheap. Just budget a certain amount for decorations and make sure not to go over it. Streamers are a very affordable decoration idea, you can truly decorate a lot with a roll of streamers! 

Outdoor Games: If you have children coming, consider just simple outdoor games to keep them entertained. Spray paint stars and stripes on the lawn, or do a big hopscotch area on the sidewalk. Buy some glow sticks for them to play with, water balloons. Anything that doesn’t take much to do. Most kids will just run around and play the whole time or watch fireworks being shot off. 

Fireworks: If you plan to shoot off some fireworks, consider buying them the day of the 4th. A lot of stands will already begin to discount the fireworks on the 4th of July. You can save a little money this way. Also, feel free to ask guests to bring a few fireworks if they want to shoot some off as well. 

Dress: Don’t feel you have to run out and buy the whole family red, white, and blue outfits! First hit up your closet and see if you can piece an outfit together to make it work! A lot of times you will find something that will work just as well as buying a new shirt. 

Food Ideas for a 4th of July Party

BBQ: Consider doing hot dogs and hamburgers, the classic bbq food. Instead of buying pre-made hamburger patties, make your own, you will save a ton this way. Or buy a few pork butts and put them in the crockpot with some bbq sauce for slider sandwiches. Some stores will offer a buy one get one free on these roasts! 

Side Dishes: Consider doing beans, potato salad, pasta salads, and so on. These are all easy to make and pretty affordable. If you make your own salads, you can make three times as much for half the price of buying a container already made. 

Fruit: Buy a few watermelons and then a star cookie cutter, and make cute star-shaped watermelon pieces. This is a festive and very affordable treat. Also, do strawberries and other berries, you can buy on sale and then have them out. 

Cake: Do a cake for a dessert. This is a very affordable dessert, and you could do a flag design on top, or do a jello poke cake, and then cool whip for frosting and top with slices of strawberries. It won’t cost more than $5-$7 to make and will feed a lot. 

Drinks: Consider doing water, tea, and lemonade. All are very affordable drink options, and scream summer! If people want alcoholic drinks, as them to bring it themselves.