When to Send Save the Dates for Your Wedding: A Clear Timeline for 2025

Think you can wait until after you book the venue to send out save the dates? You’re not alone-but you might be risking your guests’ schedules. The truth is, save the dates aren’t just nice-to-haves anymore. They’re essential tools to lock in your big day before your guests’ calendars fill up with holidays, work trips, and family events.

Why Save the Dates Matter More Than Ever

Weddings today aren’t just local affairs. Guests often fly in from other states or countries. Some need to take time off work, book childcare, or save up for travel. If you wait too long to send save the dates, you’ll find your closest friends saying, “I wish I knew sooner-I already booked my trip to Bali.”

A 2024 survey by The Knot found that 68% of wedding guests said they needed at least 6 months’ notice to plan for a destination wedding. Even for local weddings, 42% said they needed 4-5 months to rearrange their schedules. That’s not a suggestion-it’s a reality.

When to Send Save the Dates: The Standard Timeline

For most weddings, send save the dates 8 to 12 months in advance. This window gives everyone enough time to mark their calendars without feeling like they’re being bombarded too early.

• If your wedding is in June 2026, send save the dates between June and October 2025.
• If your wedding is in December 2025, send them no later than April 2025.

This timing works whether you’re having a backyard ceremony or a beach wedding in Bali. It’s the sweet spot: early enough to help guests plan, late enough that your venue and vendor bookings are confirmed.

When to Send Them Earlier: Destination and Holiday Weddings

Some weddings need a head start. If you’re planning a wedding in another country, on a major holiday weekend, or during peak travel season, aim for 12 to 18 months ahead.

Examples:

• Wedding in Tuscany in September? Send save the dates by March 2025.
• Christmas Eve wedding? Send them by September 2025.
• Valentine’s Day wedding in a popular city? Don’t wait past January 2025.

Why? Airfare spikes. Hotels book out. People start planning vacations months in advance. If your guests don’t know your date early, they’ll assume you’re not serious-or worse, they’ll book something else and miss your day.

When You Can Wait a Little Longer

Not every wedding needs 12 months of notice. If your guest list is small, mostly local, and you’re getting married on a regular weekend (not a holiday or school break), you can send save the dates as late as 6 months out.

For example:

• City hall elopement with 15 close friends? 6 months is fine.
• Weekend wedding in your hometown with mostly neighbors and coworkers? 5-6 months works.

But even here, don’t push it past 6 months. People forget. They get busy. They assume the wedding’s not real until they see something official.

What Happens If You Wait Too Long?

Let’s say you send save the dates only 3 months before your wedding. Here’s what you might hear:

• “Oh wow, I didn’t realize it was that soon-I already booked my sister’s baby shower that weekend.”
• “I wanted to come, but I didn’t know until now. My boss approved my vacation for next month already.”
• “I would’ve flown in, but flights were $1,800. I thought you were just casually getting married next year.”

These aren’t excuses. These are real situations. And they’re avoidable.

One couple in Melbourne delayed their save the dates until 5 months out. Of their 80 guests, 18 couldn’t attend because of prior commitments. That’s 22.5% of their guest list missing out-not because they didn’t want to be there, but because they never had the chance to plan.

What to Include on Your Save the Dates

Keep it simple. Your save the date doesn’t need a poem or a watercolor illustration. It needs three things:

• Date - Day, month, year. No abbreviations. Write out “October” not “Oct.”
• Location - City and state, or country if it’s international. “Melbourne, Australia” is clearer than “The Big Venue.”
• Website or RSVP info - Even if it’s just “More details coming soon!”

Optional extras: couple’s names, a photo, a color scheme that matches your invites. But don’t overload it. The goal is clarity, not decoration.

How to Send Them

You have two options: digital or physical.

• Digital save the dates - Email, WhatsApp, or wedding website links. Great for younger guests, eco-conscious couples, or tight budgets. Costs less, sends faster. But not everyone checks email regularly.
• Physical save the dates - Printed cards mailed in envelopes. Feels more formal. Better for older guests, international guests, or if you want to make a statement. Costs more, but gets noticed.

Many couples use both: send physical cards to parents and close family, and email to coworkers and distant friends. It’s practical and thoughtful.

What Comes Next

Once you’ve sent your save the dates, you’ve done the hardest part. Now, focus on:

• Booking your venue and vendors (if you haven’t already)
• Finalizing your guest list
• Designing your full wedding invitations (send these 6-8 weeks before the wedding)

Don’t forget to update your website or RSVP page if anything changes-like a venue switch or date adjustment. Let your guests know immediately. No one likes surprises on their calendar.

Pro Tip: Track Who’s Received Them

Use a simple spreadsheet. List every guest, their email or mailing address, and the date you sent the save the date. Add a column for “Confirmed Received.” This helps you spot who might’ve missed it and need a reminder.

It’s not about being pushy. It’s about making sure the people who matter most don’t miss your day.

Final Checklist: Send Save the Dates When

• ✅ Your venue and date are confirmed
• ✅ Your guest list is 90% final
• ✅ You’ve estimated travel needs (local, interstate, international)
• ✅ You’re not getting married on a holiday weekend unless you’re sending them 12+ months out

Stick to this, and you’ll avoid the panic of last-minute cancellations. You’ll give your guests the gift of time-and you’ll get the wedding you dreamed of, with the people who matter most, right there beside you.