When To Send Wedding Invitations & Save the Dates

When To Send Wedding Invitations & Wedding Save the Dates

Confused about wedding save the dates versus wedding invitations and when to send? Here’s how they differ and when to send.

Wedding Save the Dates

Wedding save the dates are sent months before the wedding invitation because they give you time to notify guests that your wedding is coming up before you’ve finalised all the wedding details.

Wedding Invitations

A wedding invitation gives guests all the information they need about your wedding so you’ll need to have found all your suppliers and finalised all the details before you can send it. In fact, you don’t want to send your wedding invitation too early or it will be forgotten so 3-4 months before your wedding day is the recommended time to send your wedding invitations.

If you’re having a destination wedding you might want to send your wedding invitations slightly earlier to give guests time to organise flights etc

In the meantime, your wedding save the date cards can be sent as early as you choose. Wedding save the date cards only need the wedding date and location so they get sent months before the heavy organisation begins.  Around 8-10 months before the wedding is the average time to send out save the date cards. Again, for a destination wedding you might want to aim for the longer end of the scale at 10-11 months to give guests plenty of notice to prepare.

So, both save the date cards and wedding invitations work together to keep guests fully informed. See our matching wedding invitations and wedding save the dates

Check out the full wedding stationery timeline checklist for your preparations