Wedding List Checklist

Find what to do next, tick off your planning tasks, and pick up where you left off on this device.

Wedding planning checklist

180 planning prompts. Suggested periods are guidance; use your own supplier dates.

Start here

□ Write the season or date range you are considering.
□ Set a guest-count range, not one false-precision number.
□ Write the total amount you are willing to plan around.
□ Describe the ceremony and reception in a few plain words.
□ List the people who need to be part of major decisions.
□ Note travel, accessibility or family needs that affect the plan.

12 to 18 months out

□ Compare venue types against your guest-count range.
□ Ask each venue what the fee includes and what it does not include.
□ Record deposit dates, cancellation terms and any service charges.
□ Choose the people responsible for photography, music or other key work.
□ Start a guest-list draft with household names and contact notes.
□ Create one folder for contracts, quotes and receipts.
□ Decide which parts of the day matter most to you.

9 to 12 months out

□ Confirm the venue and the date in writing.
□ Turn the guest-list draft into an invited, maybe and not-invited view.
□ Review food, drink, rental and service needs against the venue rules.
□ Choose attire direction and record ordering timelines.
□ Plan the invitation wording, address collection and response method.
□ Choose ceremony and reception details that need advance notice.
□ Update the working budget with known deposits and open estimates.

6 to 8 months out

□ Review the guest list with the people who need to approve it.
□ Collect missing addresses and preferred names.
□ Order or prepare invitations after wording and counts are checked.
□ Confirm attire fittings, ceremony participants and key timings.
□ Review music, readings, photos and family requests.
□ Check what the venue requires from outside suppliers.
□ Move firm costs into the budget and keep estimates separate.

3 to 5 months out

□ Send invitations after a final proof of names, dates and addresses.
□ Set a response date that gives you time to confirm numbers.
□ Review dietary, accessibility and travel notes as responses arrive.
□ Confirm the ceremony order and reception flow.
□ Check balances and due dates against each contract.
□ Create a short list of questions for every remaining supplier.
□ Decide who will hold the printed plan on the wedding day.

1 to 2 months out

□ Track responses and follow up with people who have not replied.
□ Confirm the working guest count with the venue and food team.
□ Review seating needs, meal notes and transport questions.
□ Confirm attire, rings, documents and ceremony materials.
□ Check the final week schedule with the people doing the work.
□ Set aside a small reserve for changes and last-minute needs.
□ Print the pages and keep a digital copy of the final plan.

Final two weeks

□ Confirm arrival windows and the best contact for each supplier.
□ Share the final schedule with the people who need it.
□ Pack ceremony items, attire details and printed contacts.
□ Confirm final payments using the current contracts.
□ Review weather, travel and accessibility plans without making promises you cannot verify.
□ Give one trusted person authority to answer routine questions.
□ Stop adding optional projects unless they solve a real problem.

Venue comparison

□ Confirm the room or site named in the quote.
□ Confirm the seated guest range for your planned layout.
□ Ask whether ceremony and reception spaces are both included.
□ Ask when access starts for setup and when cleanup must end.
□ List tables, chairs, linens or other items in the base fee.
□ Note food, drink or supplier rules that affect your choices.
□ Ask which staff roles the venue supplies on the day.
□ Record parking, travel and accessible route details.
□ Check weather cover for any outdoor part of the event.
□ Record deposits, balance dates and change terms.
□ Ask what happens if the guest count moves outside the range.
□ Mark every fee or service that is still unclear.

Supplier research

□ Write the exact job you need the supplier to do.
□ Share the date, location and working guest range.
□ Ask who will do the work on the wedding day.
□ Ask whether another event is booked near your time.
□ Request a written scope with the current price or quote.
□ Mark travel, delivery, setup and cleanup costs.
□ Record what you must supply before the event.
□ Ask how changes are approved and priced.
□ Check deposit, balance, cancel and reschedule terms.
□ Ask what happens if the named worker cannot attend.
□ Save the current contract and later written changes together.
□ Put the next due date on the main wedding checklist.

Guest and invitation

□ Agree on the rule for households, children and plus-ones.
□ Merge both partners' drafts into one current list.
□ Mark each person as invited, possible or not yet decided.
□ Check the range against the venue's seated layout.
□ Collect names and addresses from the right person.
□ Confirm spelling and preferred names before the proof.
□ Set a reply date that leaves time for follow-up.
□ Track waiting, yes, no and needs-follow-up states.
□ Collect meal or access details only when they are needed.
□ Check the final count against each supplier deadline.
□ Date every count sent to a venue or caterer.
□ Update the source list before sending a changed total.

Budget and payment

□ Set a ceiling your household can use for planning.
□ Record any confirmed help from other people as a clear amount.
□ List every major group before dividing the money.
□ Mark each number as estimate, quote, contract or paid.
□ Add taxes, service charges, delivery and setup when stated.
□ Record the deposit and balance date from each contract.
□ Keep a reserve for changes and missed small items.
□ Update the plan when the guest range moves.
□ Update the plan when a real quote replaces an estimate.
□ Note refunds, credits or contract changes in the same record.
□ Check the next thirty days of payments at each review.
□ Stop optional work if the current total passes the ceiling.

Ceremony planning

□ Confirm who can perform or lead the ceremony.
□ Check any current legal or venue steps that apply to you.
□ Set the ceremony location and backup location.
□ List the people taking part and what each person needs.
□ Draft the order for entrances, words, readings and exits.
□ Ask who provides sound, seats and any signing table.
□ Check accessible routes and seating with the venue.
□ Confirm where personal items stay before and after the ceremony.
□ Plan a short rehearsal only if the group needs one.
□ Share the final order with the people who cue each step.
□ Pack documents and ceremony items in one named place.
□ Give one trusted person the day-of copy.

Reception and meal

□ Confirm the final room and table layout.
□ Mark entrances, exits, toilets and accessible routes.
□ Place the bar, food service and music without blocking paths.
□ Confirm the meal format and service start time.
□ Send the dated guest and meal count by the contract deadline.
□ Check who announces key moments, if anyone does.
□ Set the order for speeches, food, cake and dancing.
□ Give photo and music teams the same current schedule.
□ Confirm power, light and sound needs with the venue.
□ Assign gifts, cards and personal items to a trusted person.
□ Confirm the final collection or cleanup plan.
□ Add a quiet space or break when your guests need one.

Attire and personal-item

□ Record order dates and expected arrival dates.
□ Book fittings with time left for later changes.
□ List shoes, layers and weather needs beside each outfit.
□ Decide who keeps rings and ceremony documents.
□ Pack any medicine or personal aid you will need.
□ Check cleaning, pressing or steaming plans.
□ Add a simple repair kit only if someone will carry it.
□ Mark where each item will be on the morning of the wedding.
□ Assign transport for clothing that cannot travel with you.
□ Plan where personal items go during the reception.
□ Give return or rental deadlines to a named person.
□ Check the full set once before the final week.

Travel and accessibility

□ Check the route between ceremony and reception sites.
□ Confirm parking, drop-off and pickup points.
□ Ask the venue about step-free entrances and toilets.
□ Record seating or space needs shared by guests.
□ Check the path in the weather you may face.
□ Give travellers the current address and timing.
□ Mark any transport booking and its change terms.
□ Confirm who helps guests when plans change.
□ Keep hotel or room-block terms with the date checked.
□ Add rest time where the schedule needs it.
□ Share only access details that helpers need.
□ Recheck any temporary route or building work near the date.

Weather and backup-plan

□ Identify each part of the day exposed to weather.
□ Confirm the indoor or covered option for that part.
□ Check the guest limit and layout of the backup room.
□ Ask what staff, rental or setup changes it needs.
□ Record any deadline or fee for making the switch.
□ Name the person who makes the final call.
□ Name the people who tell guests and suppliers.
□ Check routes between parking and the covered space.
□ Protect sound, power, food and paper items from weather.
□ Keep the backup schedule with the main schedule.
□ Remove outdoor details that cannot move safely.
□ Review the plan at the agreed decision time.

Final count and seating

□ Follow up on every response still marked open.
□ Count each attending person once.
□ Compare household and person views for missing names.
□ Confirm the meal count and any service notes.
□ Check children, suppliers or helpers against contract rules.
□ Send dated counts to the venue and food team.
□ Confirm table shapes and real seat limits.
□ Assign tables after the count is sound.
□ Review known access needs and conflicts.
□ Make one alphabetical view for guest lookup.
□ Proof every name before a display is made.
□ Keep an editable source until final production.

After-wedding

□ Confirm who takes gifts, cards and personal items home.
□ Return rentals by the agreed time.
□ Collect clothing and items left in changing rooms.
□ Check final invoices against the current contracts.
□ Keep receipts and agreed changes with the planning record.
□ Send any required address or name updates to the right source.
□ Save the photo or video delivery terms and contact.
□ Note borrowed items and their owners.
□ Close any shared planning access you no longer need.
□ Remove private guest files from places that no longer need them.
□ Keep one final copy of the useful records.
□ Write down any open issue and the person handling it.

A plan you can return to

Choose a period, tick the tasks you have finished and skip those that do not apply. The topic checklists help you revisit decisions as details change. Suggested timing is a guide; only a due date you enter makes a task due.

Work saves in this browser on this device, including your own tasks. It does not sync with a partner or another device. Print a copy when you need to share the plan.

For the day itself, use the wedding day checklist. For supplier questions, open the wedding vendor checklist.

Want a paper organiser? Compare wedding planning books after you have worked through your priorities.

Start here

12 to 18 months out

9 to 12 months out

6 to 8 months out

3 to 5 months out

1 to 2 months out

Final two weeks

Venue comparison

Supplier research

Guest and invitation

Budget and payment

Ceremony planning

Reception and meal

Attire and personal-item

Travel and accessibility

Weather and backup-plan

Final count and seating

After-wedding

Add your own task

Wedding planning checklist

Start here

12 to 18 months out

9 to 12 months out

6 to 8 months out

3 to 5 months out

1 to 2 months out

Final two weeks

Venue comparison

Supplier research

Guest and invitation

Budget and payment

Ceremony planning

Reception and meal

Attire and personal-item

Travel and accessibility

Weather and backup-plan

Final count and seating

After-wedding

A plan you can return to