Who Gets a Plus One at Your Wedding?
WEDDING PLANNING TIPS | WEDDING PLUS ONES | WEDDING ETIQUETTE
Determining who gets a plus one at your wedding can be tricky. Balancing venue limitations with making people happy can be difficult. Thankfully, there are some standard etiquette practices you can follow to help make the process a bit easier. Keep reading for tips on who to invite and how to communicate your plus-one policy to accommodate your loved ones while maintaining your wedding vision.
Assess Your Wedding Venue and Budget
The first and most important step in determining your plus-one policy is inquiring about your venue limitations. Venue limitations are strict and often limited by the fire marshall, so there is no flexibility to this capacity. When you know how many people your venue can hold compared to how many guests are on your initial invite list, you’ll know how many plus ones you can add.
The next consideration is your budget. When it comes to planning a wedding, each guest will cost a certain amount of money. You can find this cost by adding the cost of per-head catering and bar, plus any rental items like a chair, plates, and flatware. Based on your set wedding budget, this number should help you calculate how many plus-ones you can afford to invite without going over budget.
Standard Plus-One Etiquette
While the final decision on who to invite is ultimately up to you and your partner, there are some standard etiquette practices that can help guide you. When it comes to plus-ones, the following guests are traditionally given the option:
Immediate family members (siblings and parents)
Wedding party members
Married couples
Other groups of guests that are often given the option of a plus-one include:
Anyone in a long-term relationship
Guests traveling from out of state
Guests who will not know anyone else besides the couple
How to Tell Someone They Have a Plus One
Once you’ve decided who will be invited with a plus-one, it’s time to send out invitations! To eliminate any confusion over who has a plus-one, it’s best to stick to traditional methods. This includes putting “and Guest” on the envelope of the wedding invitation, as well as including the number of seats reserved on the RSVP card. If you are having guests RSVP online, you can include a spot for the guest in the digital RSVP as well.
We would also recommend you add a plus-one policy to the FAQ on your wedding website. This can help eliminate people reaching out to you directly if they have questions. Some simple language such as, “Due to venue limitations, only guests with ‘and guest’ on their wedding invitation are invited to bring an additional person” can make a big difference.
By assessing your venue's capacity, budget, and individual guest situations, you can establish a fair and practical plus-one policy for your wedding. While it may be difficult to set these boundaries, by approaching it with sensitivity and practicality you can create the perfect guest list for your big day.
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