What does a civil wedding cost in Phoenix: courthouse or an officiant at home?

In Phoenix, a civil wedding costs at least the $98 marriage license. A courthouse wedding with a justice of the peace usually adds $100 to $120 in cash, in the courtroom and nearly always after 5 p.m. An officiant at your home or venue quotes a price once you share the date, the city and the place.

A wedding with a minister has the same legal standing as one at the courthouse. Arizona law puts justices of the peace and ministers on the same list of people who can officiate a wedding (A.R.S. § 25-124). Whoever marries you, the Clerk of the Superior Court records the signed license (A.R.S. § 25-123).

Who can legally marry you in Arizona?

A licensed or ordained minister can marry you, and so can a justice of the peace, a municipal judge, a judge of a court of record, certain federal judges or a judge of the Arizona court of military appeals. That’s the list in A.R.S. § 25-124. The law counts as clergy anyone a church or religious group authorizes to perform weddings.

A notary public isn’t on that list. In Arizona, a notary commission doesn’t authorize anyone to marry you (Arizona Secretary of State). You need someone on that list, such as a justice of the peace or a minister. Didi can marry you as a minister.

You don’t need a courthouse, either. The law asks for an Arizona marriage license, an authorized officiant who marries you before the license expires, and at least two witnesses age 18 or older who take part in the ceremony (A.R.S. § 25-111 and § 25-125).

Those sections don’t set a place, a time of day or a language. A minister’s ceremony that meets those requirements is your legal marriage: there’s no separate civil ceremony to add. Nor is there a civil registry office like Mexico’s registro civil for weddings: the marriage is recorded when the Clerk of the Superior Court records the signed license.

What does a justice court wedding cost, and how does it work?

A justice court wedding usually costs $100 to $120, cash only, for a civil, non-religious ceremony of about 10 to 15 minutes in the courtroom. That’s how the Maricopa County Justice Courts describe it on their Get Married page.

Each judge sets the fee, so the page asks you to call ahead. It’s cash only because, in the courtroom, the judge can’t take checks, credit cards or money orders.

Weddings are a special service each judge offers at their discretion, and judges won’t interrupt or delay court proceedings to perform one. For active-duty military members, judges at some locations perform the ceremony at no cost during the day. You have to call first to ask and to make an appointment, and the license is still paid separately.

The judge leads the ceremony and asks you to say your vows. Afterward, the two of you and your witnesses sign the license. The judge keeps the bottom portion and files it with the Clerk within 30 days, as the law requires.

Are there justices of the peace who marry couples in Spanish?

Yes, at some courts. The Justice Courts page lists seven locations in Maricopa County where a justice of the peace performs weddings, and its court listings show which judges can perform the ceremony in Spanish. When we checked the page on October 9, 2026, the judges at 12 of the 25 courts listed were marked “Spanish available,” including all five at the Downtown Justice Center in central Phoenix. If you want a judge who marries you in Spanish, check those listings before you go and confirm the language when you call.

If half your guests speak only English and the other half only Spanish, also ask whether the judge can do the ceremony in both languages.

When should you get to the justice court, and what do you bring?

Get to the justice court well before 4:30 p.m. Nearly all weddings happen after 5, once the court day is over, but first you go through security screening and check in at the court window. The doors lock at 5 p.m. sharp, and no one gets in after that.

On the busiest dates (Valentine’s Day, Halloween, New Year’s Eve, Leap Day and other dates with special numbers), the page asks you to allow extra time to arrive and sign in.

Walk-ins are welcome, and some courts book appointments by phone. Bring:

• Your marriage license. Among the justice courts, the page names Ironwood in Gila Bend and the courts in the Southwest (Avondale) and Ocotillo (Chandler) regional buildings as the ones that sell it. They take money orders only, payable to “Clerk of Superior Court.”
• Two witnesses age 18 or older.
• Cash for the ceremony.

Invite whoever you like, but a courtroom is not a reception hall: the page warns that more than 10 people might be tight.

Signs at every courthouse ban photos and video anywhere in the building. The judge will likely allow them in the courtroom if you ask first.

What does an officiant at your home or venue cost?

A wedding with an officiant at your home or venue costs the $98 license plus the officiant’s fee. Didi is our bilingual wedding officiant in Phoenix, and we confirm her fee on WhatsApp once you send us the date, the city and the venue.

The difference from the courthouse is that you decide how the wedding goes. You choose the place in Arizona: your living room or backyard, a reception hall or a garden. You set the day and time with Didi instead of working around court hours, and you invite as many people as the place holds.

The ceremony can be in Spanish, English or both, so both families can follow the vows. You talk it through with Didi before the wedding.

After the ceremony, the two of you, your two witnesses and Didi sign the license, and she returns it to the Clerk within 30 days, as A.R.S. § 25-123 requires.

How do the courthouse and an officiant compare?

The courthouse and an officiant differ in the place, the time, the language and the ceremony fee. Both need the same license and two witnesses.

	Justice court	Officiant at home (Didi)
Who marries you	A justice of the peace	Didi, our wedding officiant
Where	The courtroom	Your home, a hall or the place you choose in Arizona
When	Nearly always after 5 p.m.; arrive well before 4:30 p.m.	The day and time you set with Didi
What it’s like	Civil, not religious, about 10 to 15 minutes	The ceremony you plan with Didi
Language	Spanish with some judges, shown in the court listings; ask when you call	Spanish, English or both
Guests	As many as you like, but more than 10 people might be tight	As many as the place holds
Ceremony fee	Usually $100 to $120, set by each judge; cash only	Confirmed on WhatsApp with your date, city and venue
Witnesses	Two, age 18 or older	Two, age 18 or older
Who returns the license to the Clerk	The judge, within 30 days	Didi, within 30 days
Source	Maricopa County Justice Courts	Our wedding service; A.R.S. § 25-123 and § 25-125

Justice court details checked October 9, 2026. The $98 license is extra either way.

What other costs are there besides the ceremony?

The fixed cost is the license: $98 in Maricopa County, whether a judge or an officiant marries you. These are the fees the Clerk of the Superior Court lists:

What	Cost	Good to know
Marriage license, in person	$98	At the Clerk: cash, money order, debit or credit card. At a justice court that sells licenses: money order only, payable to “Clerk of Superior Court”
Marriage license, online	$98 plus $8 postage and handling	Credit card only, and only if one of you lives in Arizona, the wedding is at least 30 days away and you both have valid ID and a Social Security number
Certified copy, mailed	$43.50	Mailed after the Clerk records the license; you can pay when you apply for the license or any time after
Certified copy, your own envelope	$35.50	If you hand in a business-size, self-addressed stamped envelope when you request it
Converting a traditional license to a covenant marriage	$35	Optional

The license expires one year after it’s issued (A.R.S. § 25-121). If the wedding doesn’t happen by then, you’ll have to buy a new one.

A covenant marriage is an optional kind of Arizona marriage in which the couple declares that the marriage is for life. Couples who choose it on the license application also need premarital counseling (A.R.S. § 25-901). Couples who are already married can convert without that counseling (§ 25-902).

The steps to get the license are in how to get a Maricopa County marriage license.

Courthouse or officiant: which fits your wedding?

If price comes first and a short ceremony is enough, start with the justice court: it publishes what it usually charges, $100 to $120 in cash, plus the license. It works if you can get to the court well before 4:30 p.m. and the guest list is short.

An officiant fits if you want to marry at home or at a venue, at an hour you pick, with more guests, or with a ceremony in Spanish and English that both families can follow. Ask the officiant’s price for your date and place, and compare it with the court’s before you decide.

Reserve your ceremony with Didi

If you’ve settled on a wedding at home or at a venue, message us on WhatsApp at (602) 332-9460 with the date, the city, the venue and the language you want for the ceremony. We’ll tell you whether Didi is free that day and what it costs. You can also contact us by email or through the form, or call us at (602) 332-9460.

What this guide does not answer

This guide does not cover how marriage affects an immigration case: that’s legal advice, and we don’t give it. For that question, talk to an immigration attorney or an accredited representative of an organization recognized by the Department of Justice. EOIR, the office that runs the immigration courts, publishes the roster of recognized organizations and accredited representatives.