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Wedding planning checklist by month

Enter your wedding date and get a planning checklist dated month by month, fitted to the time you have, with steps linked to the guides and tools that help with them.

How do you make a wedding planning checklist?

Start from the wedding date and work back. Settle the budget and a working guest count first, because the venue waits on them. Book the venue next, because the other vendors have to fit its rules. Then date the rest in the order the steps depend on one another. If planning starts late, keep that order and fit the steps into the time you have.

Your dates are kept in this browser so they are here when you come back. They are not uploaded, and Clear entries removes them. The checklist does not read your contracts.

Your planning checklist

Enter your wedding date to see a dated checklist, month by month.

The calendar file holds one date-only entry per step, with no automatic alerts. It is a snapshot; replace the events if your date changes, since importing again may create duplicates.

The layout, in plain sight

The full layout places the steps across 52 weeks, from agreeing the budget 52 weeks before the wedding to the vendor handoff one week before, with a closeout step two weeks after.
Available time, A, is the number of days from the date you start planning to the wedding.
With 364 days or more, a step keeps its place in the layout.
With less, a step in the final eight weeks (56 days) keeps its place, and a step placed d days before the wedding moves to 56 + (d − 56) × (A − 56) ÷ (364 − 56) days before, rounded to the nearest day.
With less than sixteen weeks (112 days), the final stretch becomes half of A: a step in it moves to d × (A ÷ 2) ÷ 56 days before, and an earlier step moves to A ÷ 2 + (d − 56) × (A ÷ 2) ÷ (364 − 56) days before, both rounded to the nearest day.
The order does not change, so a step does not land before a step it waits on. Steps after the wedding keep their place.

For example, for a wedding on Saturday, May 1, 2027, planned from Sunday, November 1, 2026, A is 181 days. Agreeing the budget moves from 364 days before to 181 days before, the start date. Booking the venue moves from 315 days before to 56 + 259 × 125 ÷ 308 = 161.1, so 161 days before: Saturday, November 21, 2026. Giving the final count stays 21 days before, on Saturday, April 10, 2027, as a placeholder for the date in your contract.

The steps, in order

With a year or more to plan, these are the places the steps take. Enter your date above to see them on a calendar.

Agree the budget and who is contributing (52 weeks before). The total you agree sets the range for the venue and the quotes that follow it.
Draft the guest list and a working count (51 weeks before). A working count sizes the venue, the catering quote and the rentals, so it comes before them.
Shortlist venues and ask for quotes for your dates (49 weeks before). Ask for a written quote for your date range and working count, and what it includes.
Compare the venue quotes on the same guest count (47 weeks before). Put the quotes on one guest count, with the service charge and tax on the base the quote states, before you compare totals.
Book the venue and fix the date (45 weeks before). The venue contract sets the date, the hours and the vendor rules the rest of the plan has to fit. Read the cancellation terms before you sign.
Put the venue payments on your calendar (44 weeks before). Enter the payment dates from the signed contract, and add later contracts as you sign them.
Decide whether you want a planner or coordinator (43 weeks before). The venue rules and your date shape how much coordination you need. Put the scope in writing.
Book catering and the bar, if the venue does not provide them (41 weeks before). The venue contract says whether outside caterers are allowed and on what terms. Check the service charge and tax bases before you sign.
Book photography and videography (39 weeks before). These wait on the date and the venue. Ask for the hours included and when the photos and film are delivered.
Book the band or DJ (37 weeks before). The venue sound rules and end time set what the contract has to fit. Read the overtime clause.
Confirm the officiant (35 weeks before). Confirm the date, the time and the fee in writing, and ask what the ceremony needs from you.
Send save-the-dates (33 weeks before). They wait on a fixed date, the venue location and the guest list.
Order what you will wear (32 weeks before). Ask the maker how long ordering and alterations take, and work back from the date.
Reserve a hotel block, if guests are travelling (30 weeks before). Note the date unbooked rooms are released and put it on your calendar.
Book florals and décor (27 weeks before). These wait on the venue décor rules and delivery hours. Check how design, delivery and setup are charged.
Count and book rentals (25 weeks before). Start from what the venue includes, then count the tables, chairs and linens for your guest count.
Settle the rain plan (23 weeks before). Agree with the venue and the rental company who makes the weather call, and by when.
Book hair and makeup (21 weeks before). This waits on the date and the start time of the day. Ask whether a trial is included.
Book transportation (18 weeks before). This waits on the ceremony and reception addresses and times. Ask about waiting time and overtime.
Order the cake or desserts (16 weeks before). Match the servings to the count you give the caterer, and ask the venue about a cutting fee.
Work out the RSVP date from the final-count deadline (14 weeks before). Take the final-count deadline from the catering or venue contract and count back to an RSVP date and a send-by date.
Send the invitations (11 weeks before). If the RSVP calculator gives a different send-by date, use that date instead of this one.
Collect the insurance certificates the venue asks for (8 weeks before). The venue contract says who needs a certificate and what it has to name. Ask the vendors concerned to send theirs.
Check the marriage licence requirements where you marry (6 weeks before). Ask the issuing office about waiting periods, expiry and what to bring.
Draft the day-of timeline (5 weeks before). Build it from the hours your vendors are contracted for, and note where two of them meet.
Give the final guest count (3 weeks before). The date here is a placeholder. Use the final-count date in your catering or venue contract.
Finish the seating plan (2 weeks before). This waits on the replies and the count you gave.
Make the final payments (2 weeks before). Check an invoice against its contract before you pay it.
Confirm vendor meals and breaks (2 weeks before). Give the caterer the vendor count and when they eat.
Send the timeline and contacts to your vendors (1 week before). Confirm arrival times, the address and the contact on the day.
After the wedding: check the final invoices and deposits (2 weeks after). Compare the final invoices with the contracts, and follow up on a security deposit return.

Where this checklist stops

The dates are planning targets, not deadlines. The final-count date, the payment dates and the cancellation windows that bind you are in your contracts. The payment calendar and the RSVP deadline calculator take those dates as you enter them.

The checklist does not know your venue, your vendors or where you marry, and it does not decide what to book or when a vendor takes bookings. Ask the vendors you are considering, and confirm the dates with them in writing.

A step that does not apply to your wedding, such as a hotel block, can be ignored; the others keep their dates. Days are calendar days, counted in the same way for weekends and holidays.

Common questions

When should you start planning a wedding?

There is no single right start. This checklist lays its steps across 52 weeks. With more time, the steps keep those places; with less, they are fitted into the time you have, in the same order. The dates that bind you come from your venue and vendor contracts.

What if we have less than a year to plan?

Enter your date and the checklist fits the steps into the time from today. The final eight weeks keep their layout while there is room for them, and the earlier steps move closer together. With less than sixteen weeks, the final stretch shrinks as well.

Why does the venue come before the other vendors?

The venue contract fixes the date, the hours, the capacity and the rules for outside vendors. The catering, photography, music and floral contracts have to fit those, so booking them first can leave you with terms that do not match the venue you choose.

Are these the dates vendors need?

No. They are planning targets on this checklist’s layout, not booking deadlines. Ask the vendors you are considering what they need from you and by when, and where your contracts set a date, follow the contract.

Does the calendar download set reminders?

No. The .ics file holds one date-only entry per step with no alerts. Your calendar may apply its own defaults, so check the imported events and choose notifications that work for you.