I don't know how Super Bowl Sunday got to be one of the biggest parties of the year, but I'm glad it's almost here. Even if I have no interest in any of the teams participating, I find any excuse to get together with friends to be a good one.
Hosting a Super Bowl party can be a lot of fun, but if you're not careful, you could end up spending way more than you expected. Between the delicious appetizers and frothy adult beverages, it's easy to get carried away and put your budget in a bind for the rest of the month. (You can keep tabs on your spending and debt levels by viewing your free credit report card, with updates every 14 days, on Credit.com.)
Here are a few suggestions on how you can host a Super Bowl party on a budget.
1. Start With a Budget
How much do you want to spend on the Super Bowl party? If you want to stick to a budget, you need to know how large it'll be. The party you throw when you have $5,000 to spend is different than the one you throw when you're looking to keep it to under $100. Once you've established your budget, you can start employing some of the strategies below to keep your spending within limits.
2. Limit the Guest List
Much like a wedding, keeping costs low while having a great time involves getting the right people together. Parties are fun because of the people. The more people you invite, the more expensive the party will be, and the longer the cleanup afterward. Fortunately, a Super Bowl party isn't a personal marquee event like a wedding, where people may feel slighted if they aren't invited. Feel free to keep the group small if you need to.
3. Potluck Meals & Appetizers
Food is one of the biggest expenses of any party, and a Super Bowl party is no different. The easiest way to reduce that expense is to host it potluck-style — that is, have each of your guests contribute a dish to the party. We use a Google Doc to coordinate who brings what so we don't end up with eight bowls of crab dip.
If you want to make a signature "meal" while leaving the appetizers to your guests, you can always go with something like a stew or a chili. Stews and chilis are typically easy to prepare, relatively cheap, very filling, and delicious. You can buy meat in bulk from a wholesale club like Costco, and with so many people coming over, you won't be stuck with a ton of leftovers. Bonus points if you prepare it in a slow cooker so you can leave it alone during the party.
As back up, we also pick up a few frozen pizzas. If you are afraid you're going to run out of food, it's probably going to happen late in the game. At that point, anyone who is hungry will happily welcome a slice of fresh oven-baked pizza.