How to: Planning the Wedding Guest List

Pearson Wu December 4, 2022 Beauty, Catalogue Collection, Design, Wedding Gown, Wedding Planning 0

Creating a guest list is one of the first tasks you’ll typically complete in the wedding planning process.

It’s a simple process for some couples but much less for others, as there are no absolute requirements when crafting a wedding guest list.

Having trouble picking a guest list for a wedding that would please everyone?

Our expertise as leaders in the wedding industry will help you navigate this wedding guest list dilemma!

We’ve put together a general guide that might help ensure everyone you care about will be present on your special day.

6 Tips to Help You Invite Wedding Guests

Start with a realistic budget

Your guest count will have a significant impact on your wedding budget, affecting everything from how many guests you need to feed to the type of wedding venues to book.

Therefore, creating a reasonable guest list is difficult without being clear about how much you’re willing to spend on the wedding day (and related activities like the rehearsal dinner).

Keep in mind that anyone who contributed to the budget may want a certain amount of influence over the wedding guest list. In these cases, make sure to have an early conversation defining expectations to avoid hurt feelings.

Write a list of everyone you’d consider inviting

Make a list of every single person you would invite to your wedding with your partner if money and venue capacity weren’t an issue. Use a spreadsheet, pen and paper, or whichever method makes the most sense to you.

Start with your immediate family members, bridal party and close friends, then move on to co-workers, classmates, and distant relatives, all the way down to passing acquaintances, partners, and kids.

closest friends mutual friends wedding guest list

Prioritise close loved ones

Once you have your wedding guest master list, identify your VIPs first. You can refer to them as the A-list, the must-haves, or anything else you like.

No matter how you phrase it, the point is clear: you wouldn’t get married without these people. You are familiar with them. No matter where the list goes from here, they will remain firmly on it.

After identifying your must-have guests, work outwards from there with your partner until you reach your magic number.

parents extended family wedding guest list

Set boundaries and stick to them

People will feel compelled to share their opinions with you and your partner regarding wedding-related decisions, especially the attendee list.

These opinions will range from who should get a plus-one to which second cousins should attend. Just remember that this is your special day!

You and your spouse should decide who you actually want to celebrate with on this special day.

how many people wedding guest list wedding venue

Set clear limits about who you feel comfortable inviting – don’t feel obliged to invite your secondary school classmate just because they texted you for the first time in five years to congratulate you!

You should also make a decision in advance regarding plus-ones to avoid having to handle them on a case-by-case basis.

You might want to forbid plus-ones completely. Or perhaps you only allow the members of your wedding party and those in a long-term relationship to bring a guest.

Whatever the situation, decide how you want to handle it as soon as possible. You should feel empowered to set boundaries, even if it means drawing a hard line in the sand.

Stagger your invites

Usually, you should send your wedding invites at least 8-10 weeks in advance. However, when you send out your first round of RSVPs, you will undoubtedly get a few regretful no’s.

This doesn’t mean you’ve been passed over; it just means life got in the way somehow.

The good news is that you now have space to ask the people you would have loved to have included if you had the room the first time around!

Work with your partner to fill these openings while consulting your original master list. Just make sure to send out the next round of invitations as soon as possible because nobody wants to feel overlooked.

Go with your gut

Important moments require connection. You probably wouldn’t want to greet wedding guests all night when you could spend time celebrating with your loved ones instead!

You should have the confidence to craft your guest list in any way you and your spouse want.

When you see all the people you love on your wedding day, you’ll know that you made the right choice.