The Guest List

Thanks Katie for another post!


I was planning on writing my next blog post about finding a ceremony and reception site, but then it occurred to me that finding these sites generally depends on the size of your guest list! When couples come in to view our facility, we like to ask them roughly how many people they are anticipating, so we can educate them about how many people we can comfortably hold and what their options are. At our site, less than 100 people is considered small. Over 200 wedding guests is not as common. According to Google, the average guest list is 175 people. This got me to thinking about how couples decide on a guest list. Are there people that you are “required” to invite, such as family members, even if you do not see them very often? When a friend of mine got married, she had little control over the guest list because her parents were paying and they therefore wanted say in who was coming. Another friend had compiled her list before she was even engaged!! From my own experience and discussions, I get flustered about having to invite family members that I have only seen once or twice in my life over friends who are a daily part of my existence, simply because inviting family to your wedding is the norm. Is it rude not to include your whole extended family?

Budget is another issue when it comes to a guest list. The fact of the matter is, the more people you invite, the more people you have to feed! And let’s be honest, the catering can potentially be the most expensive component of a wedding! Other things to consider are where people are coming from and whether or not they need somewhere to stay. Plane tickets, hotels rooms, and cars all add up in a hurry, especially if you opt to assist your guests in paying for these things.

So back to the original point: compiling the final guest list. I have a vision in my head of a bride-to-be and her fiancé sitting down with a pen and paper writing out every person they can think of as a starting place. Start with family members, move on to friends, work your way down to co-workers, so on and so forth. How about inviting the people that you are friendly with, for example, who cuts your hair?! Where does the list end?! Is there an actual method to the madness?

A final option would be to set up a budget and work within those limits. From my experience attending weddings, I think it is also important to keep the list at a manageable number so that it will be possible to interact with your guests, in order to make them feel appreciated. In the end (in my humble opinion) it is you and your fiance’s day and you should be allowed to surround yourself with whoever you feel will support you in your new life as a married couple.



How did you decide who would attend your wedding?? How many people are you inviting/did you invite and why?