I often get emails from brides wanting advice on how to save on weddings. Planning a wedding can be both exhilarating and exhausting, but one part of the wedding process that many brides get excited about is conquering the infamous wedding registry. Wedding registries can be a wonderful tool to help friends and family keep track of what you need and want, and while part of the goal of a registry is for family and friends to be able to bless you with gifts for your new life together, there are also ways for you to save as you create your registry!

Top Wedding Registry Tips

Choose Your Registry Carefully

There are several stores that offer wedding registration, but make sure to choose your stores wisely. It can be easy to want to register at many different stores but consolidating your list to about three or less stores makes it easier for both you and your family and friends to keep track. You can even make a wedding registry on Amazon, which can be a more frugal option for your internet savvy guests.

See my post on wedding registry incentives for more details about all the registry options as well as perks and bonuses.

Understand How the Registry Works

While registries are a great way to keep track of gifts, some stores tend to have trouble marking gifts as purchased on the registry, so every once in a while, it is a good idea to look over your registry and make sure everything has being marked off as purchased once you have received them. Most registries allow you to manually change the purchase history of items so you can change the items to purchased when the store does not mark them off. This will help to avoid duplicates and make for an easier return process.

Know the Return Policy

Different registries have different limits on how long you can return items. Also, pay attention to when the clock starts ticking. Some registries count from when the item is purchased (which, depending on how long you’re engaged, could be many months before your wedding. Others count from the date of your wedding.

Know the Exchange Policy

Store exchange policies are different for each store so make sure you know the specific policies for the store you are returning a product to. Bed, Bath, and Beyond allows you to return almost any item for cash as long as it’s on your registry. Target will take back items listed on your registry, but will give you gift cards instead of cash for returns. Also keep in mind that registries expire after a certain amount of time, so you’ll want to make any exchanges early.

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