Wedding planning checklist from your date
A wedding checklist is every planning task in time order. This one has 56 tasks in 9 groups, from 12+ months before the day to after it.
Enter your wedding date. Every task gets a due date, and anything already late moves to Catch up.
No account. What you type stays on this page: nothing is stored or sent.
Your checklist
12+ months before
9–12 months before
- Look into wedding insurance
- Book the photographer
- Book the caterer, if the venue doesn’t cater
- Ask your wedding party
- Book your officiant
- Reserve a hotel room block
- Book the band or DJ
6–9 months before
- Choose and order what you’ll wear
- Set up a wedding website
- Send save-the-dates
- Book the florist
- Set up your registry
- Book hair and makeup
4–6 months before
- Plan the honeymoon
- Order the cake
- Book rentals: chairs, linens, tent
- Book transportation
- Order invitations
2–3 months before
1 month before
- Write your vows
- Book final fittings
- Make the seating chartSeating chart
- Follow up on missing RSVPsRSVP link
- Give the final guest count to the caterer
- Get your marriage license
Last 2 weeks
- Confirm times with every vendor
- Share the day-of timelineTimeline
- Print escort cards and the seating chartPrint studio
- Set aside final payments and tipsBudget
- Break in your shoes
- Pack an emergency kit
- Hold the rehearsal and dinner
- Hand the day over to your planner friend
Wedding day
- Bring the rings and your documents
- Hand out final payments and tips
After the wedding
- Return rentals and borrowed items
- Order copies of your marriage certificate
- Send thank-you notes
- Change your name, if you’re changing it
- Review your vendors
- Download a backup of your plan
How it works
- Each task is set a number of weeks before the wedding.
- Your date turns those weeks into due dates.
- Open tasks with a due date before today move to Catch up.
What we assume
- A classic wedding: a ceremony and a reception, 80 or more guests.
- You can skip anything that does not fit your day.
- Your venue and vendors may need different lead times. Their dates win.
Task timing is our own planning template, not survey data. Updated October 2026.
Questions
When should I start planning my wedding?
This list starts 12 months or more before the day, with the budget, the guest list and the venue. That timing is our own planning template, not a rule. Venues and vendors differ by place and season, so ask early about the ones you care about most.
What if my wedding is only a few months away?
Enter your date anyway. Tasks past their usual time move into a Catch up group at the top. Do the ones that still matter, and skip the rest.
Is this list right for a small or courthouse wedding?
This page shows our Classic list, for a ceremony and reception with 80 or more guests. The checklist in the planner also has Small, Destination and Courthouse lists.
Does this page save my checklist?
No, nothing here is stored. To tick tasks off, add your own and keep them, open the checklist in the planner. It is free and saves in your browser, with no account.