Wedding planning checklist: what to do and when, from engagement to the big day
Planning a wedding is far less stressful when you know what comes next and when. Here is a timeline from a year out to the final week, with the most important tasks highlighted.
Číst česky →The most stressful part of planning a wedding isn't the amount of work. It's the nagging feeling that you've forgotten something. This checklist takes that worry off your hands. Read it through once, then come back to whichever stage you're in.
Three decisions that shape everything else
- Budget: how much you can and want to spend.
- Guest count: it decides the venue and the catering.
- Date: it tells you which vendors are free.
Don't book anything else until you have these three.
12+ months before
- Agree on a budget and who contributes what (you, your parents).
- Write a rough guest list: start with everyone, then cut.
- Pick a date and two back-ups.
- View and book the venue. Popular venues for a Saturday in peak season can be fully booked a year ahead.
- Decide whether you want a wedding planner or coordinator.
9–12 months before
- Book the photographer and, if you want one, a videographer. The best ones fill their season quickly.
- Book the music: a DJ or a band.
- Arrange catering if the venue doesn't provide it.
- Choose your wedding party and ask them in person.
- Send save the dates to guests who will travel a long way.
6–9 months before
- Start shopping for the dress. Made-to-order dresses can take several months, plus alterations.
- Book your officiant: reserve the ceremony slot at the registry office or with your celebrant, or arrange preparation with your place of worship.
- Choose a florist and the style of decorations.
- Arrange accommodation for guests coming from far away.
- Set up a wedding website with everything guests need: venue, schedule, parking, dress code.
4–6 months before
- Send the invitations and set a reply deadline (ideally 6–8 weeks before the wedding).
- Order the rings. Making and engraving them takes time.
- Choose the cake and dessert table.
- Book hair and make-up, including a trial.
- Sort out transport: a car for the two of you, perhaps a bus for guests.
2–3 months before
- Legal paperwork. Every country has its own rules: a marriage licence, a notice of intent, birth certificates, proof of divorce or translations for a foreign partner. Ask your registry office or officiant early what you need, because some documents take weeks to obtain.
- Write the timeline for the day (see our wedding day timeline).
- Choose the ceremony music and your first dance.
- Buy gifts for your wedding party and parents.
- Chase guests who haven't replied yet.
Tip
When guests reply online you don't have to phone anyone. You can see who has answered, how many children are coming and who needs which meal. Everyone else gets one email reminder.
1 month before
- Close the guest list and give the caterer the final numbers.
- Make the seating plan (tips in A wedding seating chart without the drama).
- Final dress fitting.
- Send the timeline to every vendor and your wedding party.
- Prepare the printed bits: place cards, table numbers, menus, seating chart.
The final week
- Confirm arrival times and places with every vendor.
- Prepare envelopes with final payments and tips, and hand them to someone you trust.
- Pack an emergency kit: plasters, needle and thread, safety pins, painkillers, deodorant, a phone charger.
- Give the rings to the best man or maid of honour the day before.
- Get some sleep. Seriously.
After the wedding
- Thank your guests: a short email or message with a link to the photos.
- Update your name on documents and accounts, if you're changing it.
- Close the budget and pay the remaining balances.
In only.wedding this checklist comes ready-made and split by date. You tick it off together and always see what's coming up this month.