How Many People Should I Invite to My Wedding? (And how can I cut my list down?)

The short answer: as many as you can afford. 

The long answer: keep reading. 

Deciding who to invite to your wedding is a difficult task. You don’t want to be the bad person and you can find a reason to invite virtually everyone you have ever come in contact with over the 20+ years of your life, and the thought of them finding out about your wedding having not received an invite - causes you severe anxiety. 

But the reality of the situation is that the number of people on your guest list DIRECTLY impacts everything else when it comes to planning your wedding - especially the amount of money you are going to end up spending. A venue for 50 people is significantly less expensive than a venue for 150. Food and drinks for 100 is significantly less than food and drinks for 300. Catch my drift? You want to be strategic with your guest list because you want to ensure you can allocate money to those elements of the wedding that are most important to you. You may come across articles that say the average couple invites X amount of people to their wedding - but don’t let that number be your guide. Let your bank account guide you. Every single person has a unique situation and more importantly, a unique vision for their wedding, so you should do what suits you when it comes to that number.

Now you’re probably wondering - okay, so I know I don’t want to invite the 200 people who are currently on my list but how on earth am I going to cut this list down??

Here are 3 major things to consider: 

1 - When was the last time you spoke to this person? If you can’t think about the last important and positive conversation you had with this person (OR your last conversation with them made you never want to speak to them again) then they probably shouldn’t be on your invite list. 

2 - Is the only time you speak with this person in a group text? Let’s be real - oftentimes we know people by association, but if it came to you and them being friends 1-1, there probably wouldn’t be much there. If you’re only inviting them because you’re inviting the other people you're in a friend group with - they should probably not be invited.

3 - Does everyone get a plus one? The best way to determine who gets a plus one should be one of hierarchy: yes, if they are married; yes, if they are engaged; yes, if they have been dating their current partner for more than 6 months; no, if they have been dating their partner for less than 6 months; no, if they are in a situationship; no, if they want to bring their latest tinder/bumble/or coffee meets bagel date. See, easy - plus one’s should be reserved for people who are in relationships and you actually know about (and like!) their plus one. 

Bonus: please don’t over invite because you believe (and again, have read in articles) that only 70-80% of people will show up - there are tons of horror stories out there about couples who over-invited and could not accommodate everyone because basically everyone showed up!  Invite who you truly want and what your budget can accommodate and no more. 

Our hope is that the information in this post helps you as you work on one of the most important elements of your wedding planning checklist. If you need help with this or anything else, don’t hesitate to send us a message at info@dunniweddings.com!