Guides · 18 August 2026
When to send Save the Dates: exact timing for every kind of wedding
Short answer: send Save the Dates 6 to 8 months before the wedding. If guests will travel, if you're marrying in peak season (May–October) or on a holiday weekend, move it up to 9–12 months. Formal invitations follow later, about 2–3 months out. Every wedding has its own calendar, so here's the detail.
The timeline at a glance
| Your wedding | Save the Date | Formal invitation |
|---|---|---|
| Standard (mostly local guests) | 6–8 months out | 2–3 months out |
| Guests from other cities or countries | 9–12 months out | 3–4 months out |
| Destination wedding | 12 months out | 4–6 months out |
| Peak season or holiday weekend | 9–10 months out | 3 months out |
| Small wedding planned quickly | As soon as you have date and venue | 6–8 weeks out |
Why not earlier (or later)
Not before date and venue are locked. A Save the Date is a promise — "keep this day free" — and changing it later is awkward for you and confusing for them. Wait for the signed contract.
Not more than a year out either, unless the wedding is far away: people don't block calendars that early and the message gets lost. The exception is a wedding abroad or in August — then the earlier the better, because flights and holidays are involved.
Less than 4 months out, skip straight to the invitation. A Save the Date loses its purpose if the invitation arrives two weeks later.
What it should include (and what it shouldn't)
The essentials fit on a small card: your names, the date and the city. Optional but very useful: your wedding website address, where you'll add everything else (times, directions, hotels, RSVP).
What NOT to include: exact times, the reception address, menus or an RSVP request. All of that belongs on the formal invitation — putting it here means repeating it later, and correcting it if anything changes.
Digital or paper: how timing changes
With a digital Save the Date (a page with your names, the date and a countdown, shared on WhatsApp), the "when" becomes more flexible: it's sent in a minute and updated if anything changes. That's why many couples send it the moment they book the venue, even 11 months out — it costs nothing and the date is already reserved in everyone's head.
At Weddara the Save the Date is free: fill in names, date and city and you have an elegant page with its own address to share. When it's time for the full website, you convert it without losing the address that already went round.
Common mistakes
- Sending it to only some guests. If you send Save the Dates, everyone who'll later get an invitation should get one. Otherwise: "Wait, am I not invited?"
- Forgetting the maybes. If in doubt, send it: removing is easier than adding late.
- Leaving out the city. Out-of-towners need to know whether they'll travel; the city is enough, the venue goes on the invitation.
- Sending it without the website. With the site linked, each Save the Date is also where guests will check for news — sparing you "is the time set yet?" a hundred times.
A real timeline
Wedding on 12 June 2027 in Seville, family in Bilbao and friends in London: - July 2026 (11 months out): digital Save the Date to everyone, website linked. - September 2026: hotel block published on the website. - February–March 2027 (3–4 months out): formal invitation with times and RSVP. - May 2027: final WhatsApp reminder with the RSVP link.
Still at "where do we even start?" — our complete Save the Date guide has 10 format ideas, and how to create your website walks you the rest of the way.