The Complete Wedding Planning Checklist

Planning a wedding is a long list of small decisions wearing a trench coat. The trick isn't remembering everything — it's having the right things on your list at the right time. This checklist takes you from the very first conversation to the week after the big day, stage by stage. Take what applies to you, cross off what doesn't, and never try to do it all at once.

Before you start

Before any deposits go down, get three things roughly in place: what you can spend, who's coming, and what kind of day you want. None of these need to be final — they just need to exist.

• Set a budget. Work out what you can genuinely afford before you fall in love with anything. Split it into buckets — venue and catering first, then everything else — and keep a little aside for surprises. If family are contributing, ask early so you're planning around the real number.
• Write the guest list. You can't choose a venue or a date until you know roughly how many people you want to share the day with. A first draft is fine; you'll tighten it later. This number quietly decides your budget, your venue shortlist and your table plan, so it's worth a proper conversation now.
• Agree on the vision. Start a shared board and gather whatever catches your eye — flowers, dresses, colour palettes, table styling. You don't need a theme yet; you just need to notice what keeps coming back. It's the most enjoyable research you'll do.
• Visit some venues. Before booking, see a few in person so you understand what your budget actually buys, whether the space fits your guest numbers, and whether it matches the mood you're going for.

18–12 months before

This is the season of big bookings. The things that take the longest to arrange — and sell out the fastest — all live here.

• Book the venue. The anchor of the whole day and usually the biggest line in the budget. Popular venues are reserved a year or more ahead, so once you've found the right one, move.
• Finalise the guest list. Lock the numbers that matter for the venue and the budget: who's invited to the whole day, who comes for the evening, and who's a maybe.
• Protect the day with insurance. Before you've spent much, look at wedding insurance. You hope never to use it; you'd rather have it if you need it.
• Book the photographer and videographer. Like venues, the photographers and videographers you actually want get booked up a year out. Nail them down early; the florist and hair can wait a little longer.
• Sort the legal side. Check the paperwork for where you're marrying — giving notice, certificates, and any requirements for your venue. Getting this moving now means it's done and forgotten.

10–11 months before

The other key suppliers come on board, and outfit hunting begins.

• Book the entertainment. DJs, bands and ceremony musicians book up well in advance. If music matters to you, don't leave it late.
• Confirm the caterers. If the venue handles food in-house, this is about menu direction and budgets. If not, book external caterers and start talking about the menu, plus any evening food options.
• Begin dress hunting. Made-to-measure dresses can take around six months to arrive, before alterations. Starting now keeps it a joy instead of a rush.

8–9 months before

The secondary suppliers get locked in, and the invitations start to take shape.

• Book the florist. If you have ambitious plans — arches, installations, lots of flowers — book early; the best florists have limited dates.
• Send save-the-dates. With the date and venue confirmed, let the people who need to plan ahead (travel, accommodation) know. If you're skipping save-the-dates, invitations can go around four to six months out — but start looking at designs now.
• Choose your wedding party. Ask your bridesmaids, groomsmen and attendants, and give them a clear sense of what you'll need from them.
• Say yes to the dress (if you haven't) so there's time for arrival, alterations and any delays.
• Book first-night accommodation. If the venue doesn't have rooms, sort the wedding night for yourselves — and consider a block of rooms for close family and friends.

6 months before

The halfway point, and the moment things get very real. Most of the remaining suppliers are booked now.

• Book the cake. Confirm the design, delivery or collection, and when payment is due. Elaborate cakes need the lead time.
• Arrange transport. If the ceremony and reception are in different places, decide how you and your guests will get between them — and how you'll arrive in style.
• Shop for the wedding party's outfits. Groomsmen, bridesmaids, flower girls and pageboys all need time, especially for a larger group.
• Have a menu tasting. Choose the final dishes and, importantly, talk through how allergies and dietary requirements will be handled.
• Book hair and makeup. Book trials now, with plenty of room to adjust before the day.
• Book the honeymoon. A welcome break from the admin — just watch the season, the leave you have, and passport or vaccination requirements.
• Set up your digital invite. This is the moment your invitation earns its keep: one link holds the date, venue, travel details, menu choices and RSVP, so the paper invite can stay simple.

4–5 months before

The fun-detail stage: rings, accessories, and the invitations finally going out.

• Create a gift list. If you're having one, get it ready in time to go out with the invitations.
• Order the rings. Allow three to four months for delivery, especially for engraving or bespoke pieces.
• Send the invitations. Include a clear RSVP date. If guests are travelling, send them earlier rather than later.
• Shop for accessories. Shoes, bags, ties, hair accessories, jewellery — collect them in time for the final fitting.
• Buy the extra décor. Favours, menus, place cards, signage, a guest book, and deciding on table names.

2–3 months before

The countdown shifts from booking to doing: fittings, timings, and the first real run-through of the day.

• Enjoy the hen and stag dos. After months of planning, this is the break you've earned.
• Decide the day's timings. When hair and makeup arrive, when photos happen, when you eat, when you cut the cake. Share it with everyone who needs to know.
• Write the speeches and confirm readings. Decide who speaks, in what order, and make sure they're happy with it.
• Pay the suppliers in full. Check every payment schedule so nothing is outstanding in the final weeks.
• Create a vendor schedule. A simple document telling each supplier when they arrive and where to set up. Send a final playlist to the DJ while you're at it.
• Start fittings. Most initial dress or suit fittings happen around six weeks out, with a final fitting one to two weeks before the day.

1 month before

Everything is booked; now it's about gathering the loose ends.

• Chase the last RSVPs. You need firm numbers for the venue and caterer, so follow up with anyone who hasn't replied. If your invitations are digital, the RSVP tracker shows you exactly who's answered and who hasn't.
• Check in with the venue or coordinator. Walk through the day's schedule and the legalities so nothing surprises you on the morning.
• Buy thank-you gifts. For the people who've carried the planning with you.
• Catch up with the photographer. Share the shots and moments that matter, and who's in the group photos.
• Write your vows. Starting now means you can revisit them and actually mean every word.
• Confirm numbers and start the table plan. Once RSVPs are in, begin the seating plan — but leave the final tweaks until the last minute in case of cancellations.
• Break in your shoes. The one everyone forgets.

Week of the wedding

Almost nothing left to decide — just double-checks, and rest.

• Have the final fitting and take the outfit home.
• Book any final beauty appointments — early enough that nothing feels rushed.
• Go through the schedule with your wedding party. Who's where, when, and who's holding the rings.
• Pack the emergency kit. Lip balm, spare hair pins, plasters, clear nail polish, paracetamol, a nail file, safety pins — the small things that save the day.
• Try to sleep. Honestly. The day works better when you're rested.

Day of the wedding

The hard work is done — the only job left is to enjoy it. A few things worth remembering between the getting-ready selfies and the first dance.

• Eat. Something filling before the day gets away from you.
• Get ready with everything laid out — outfit, jewellery, shoes, and the emergency kit. Have the evening outfit ready too if you're changing.
• Give yourselves a moment to relax. A short walk, or a quiet ten minutes, does more than you'd think.
• Hand out the wedding party gifts, whether first thing or during the speeches.
• Leave with plenty of time. Add a buffer — rain, traffic and nerves always take their share.
• Consider a first-look shoot. Optional, but a private moment before the ceremony makes for wonderful photos and calms the nerves.

After the big day

The checklist ends with a short, gentle list — tie the loose ends while the memories are fresh, then put the lists away.

• Collect everything from the venue. Gifts, cards, the guest book, and any decor you want to keep. Ask someone to own this on the night.
• Write thank-you cards. Your guests gave you their time and their good wishes; a proper thank-you goes a long way.
• Leave reviews for the suppliers who made the day what it was.
• Sort any post-wedding admin, including changing your name if you're doing that.
• Rest. You just pulled off something remarkable.

The best checklist is the one you can actually keep up with. Plan one stage at a time, celebrate the ticks, and let the details that don't matter fall away.

Common questions

When should I start planning?

As soon as you're engaged, if not sooner. You don't need to start booking straight away — the early months are about the quiet groundwork: a budget, a guest list, and a rough idea of the day. Starting early matters most for the things that sell out a year or more ahead, like the venue, the photographer and popular entertainment. If your wedding is a year or more away, the 18–12 month section above is exactly where you should begin.

What should I book first?

The venue. It anchors your date, your guest numbers and a large share of your budget, and almost every other booking hangs off it. Once the venue is locked, the guest list and the rest of the plan start to make sense.

How far in advance should I send the invitations?

Around four to six months before the wedding is a comfortable middle ground, and earlier still if guests are travelling or need to arrange accommodation. A clear RSVP date on the invitation — and a gentle reminder a week before it — is what actually gets the responses in. If you're sending invitations digitally, your invite carries all the details in one link and collects RSVPs for you, so nothing gets lost in the post.

When should I chase RSVPs?

About a month before the day, once the deadline has passed and the venue and caterers are asking for final numbers. A single friendly nudge to anyone who hasn't replied catches most stragglers, and it's far easier to chase from a list than from memory — your RSVP tracker shows exactly who has answered and who hasn't.

How do I build a seating plan?

Start once the RSVPs are in, not before. Group guests by connection — family and households together, at least one familiar face at every table — and set a target size per table to keep it manageable. Leave the final arrangement until close to the day, because cancellations and late replies always happen, and a drag-and-drop seating chart makes the inevitable reshuffles painless.

Do I need a wedding planner?

No — most couples plan beautifully on their own with a checklist and a little organisation. Where a planner or an on-the-day coordinator really earns their keep is the wedding day itself: someone to handle the suppliers, the setup and the schedule so you can actually enjoy it. If that's not in the budget, handing the day's running order to a trusted friend works too.

Where the tools fit

A checklist keeps you honest about what to do; a little tooling keeps the doing from becoming admin. When your guest list, RSVPs, seating and budget all live in one place, the answers are always current and the plan stays the plan — create your first invite and everything's there from the start.