The guide on the Knot says this. The guide on Zola says that. The plethora of guides on Pinterest are allllll over the board. So… when do you send save-the-dates and invites? The quick answer is that there is no definitive answer.
Below is my take on when to send, and most importantly, WHY I recommend sending in these time frames:
SAVE THE DATES:
- If several guests will require travel plans (flights, hotels, etc.), I recommend 11-12 months in advance. This puts your date on their radar and allows them to start looking for travel deals a littler sooner.
- If very few guests are traveling, 10 months in advance is plenty.
- If guests receive the save-the-date more than a year in advance, guests may set it aside knowing they have “more than a year”, then forget about it
- Take into account any special circumstances that may be a factor in guests needing to plan for your wedding date. If any of these apply, I recommend sending closer to that 12-month mark:
- Holidays
- Hosting during a peak travel season (for example, Orlando/Disney around spring break)
- Other weddings you know of that your guests may be attending around the same time
- Multi-continent travel
- Hosting the same weekend as large scale events in the town the wedding is being hosted (example, major music festivals or the Super Bowl)
INVITATIONS:
- Regardless of when (or if, because save-the-dates are not a necessity if trying to cut costs) save-the-dates are sent, I always recommend sending invites 12 weeks ahead of when your final guest count is due to the caterer and/or venue. This number of weeks also takes into account a 2 week buffet to chase down anyone you haven not heard from.
- Be sure you’re sending based on count due dates and not your wedding date. While some caterers only need 7 days prior to the wedding for that final count, others may require 4+ weeks. A few weeks is a big difference when collecting RSVP’s.
- Example: Wedding is June 21, but catering requires the final count 28 days in advance, which is May 24. I always ask for RSVP’s 2 weeks prior to that due date, which allows me 2 weeks to chase those that haven’t responded, then get my ducks in a row before confirming a final count. With RSVP’s being needed May 10 (2 weeks ahead of catering final), I would plan to mail invites on or just prior to March 1.
- Why do I not recommend more than 12 weeks? Two reasons. First, with too much notice, guests will forget to RSVP. We’ve all done it… that text pops up on our phone at an inopportune time and we tell ourselves we will go back to it later. Same happens with wedding invites. Guests see they have X amount of time to RSVP and can set the invite aside and plan to RSVP as it gets closer, but forget to. Now you’re chasing down no-response guests. Second, plans change if there is too much time between RSVP’ing and the actual wedding date, and 9 times out of 10, guests will forget to tell you.
*Special note: if you are mailing save-the-dates OR invites in mid-December, add 10-14 days due to increased shipping/mailings around the holidays.*
Helping YOU say ‘I-DO’,
Your WedUcator