No-Frills Guide to Wedding RSVPs

The content in this blog post first appeared in my monthly newsletter in September of 2025. Sign up here for first access to more content like this!

Hi Friend!

Happy September – hints of Fall can be felt in the air and seen on the trees, I’m getting excited for cozy sweaters and bonfires, and I’ve even started making my Christmas shopping list (actually this is a late start for me; I usually start shopping in July or August). Fall is my favorite time of year, and I expect this year to be no different.

This month’s newsletter is all about the dreaded task of collecting RSVPs from your wedding guests. For elopements and intimate weddings, this task is not nearly as difficult. But for larger weddings it can very easily turn into a nightmare. At my own wedding there were only 50 guests – not at all what I’d call a large wedding – and it was enough of a challenge. More recently, I planned a 70th birthday celebration for my dad, and the RSVP system I used for that event worked fairly well (don’t worry, I’ll outline it here for you too). So here you have it, Bree’s No-Frills Guide to Wedding RSVPs:

A couple walking hand in hand through a lush green forest, surrounded by greenery and sunlight filtering through the trees.

A close-up portrait of a couple gazing into each other's eyes, bathed in soft sunlight with a dreamy atmosphere.

A close-up image of a bride holding a bouquet of white roses, pampas grass, and greenery. The photo is in sepia tones, emphasizing the floral arrangement against the soft background.

A couple standing on a sandy riverbank, the man in a white shirt and suspenders, and the woman in a flowing white dress holding a bouquet of flowers and smiling.

Sending RSVPs

When you’re choosing how to send the RSVPs for your wedding, it’s truly a balancing act between sustainability, convenience, tradition, and cost.

Sustainability

I wrote quite a bit about sustainable invitations in my blog post “Planning A Sustainable Wedding Shower”. It’s definitely worth a read, so I won’t repeat too much here other than that digital invitations save approximately 140 grams of carbon dioxide per invitation – that’s the equivalent of four plastic grocery bags or nine disposable coffee cups. It might not seem like much, but these numbers can add up pretty quickly

A close-up portrait of a man and woman gazing lovingly into each other's eyes, with soft sunlight illuminating their faces.

An overhead view of wedding rings placed on a brochure for a national river, surrounded by flowers and a piece of white paper on a sandy surface.

Convenience

The best way to get people to RSVP is to make it super easy for them. In my opinion, one of the easiest ways to do that is to stay consistent with the form of RSVP that you’re sending them. For example, if you’re sending electronic invitations, have a link directly taking your guests to the online RSVP form. If you’re sending physical invitations, include a stamped and addressed envelope for them to return the RSVP card. And while you’re at it, as an added convenience for yourself, consider numbering the RSVP card or envelopes so you can see who has responded.

A mistake I often see is that couples will send a physical invitation with instructions on how to RSVP electronically. Even if your instructions are super clear, that process still requires your guests to go to the internet and type in the url (and possibly have a typo) before being able to RSVP. That’s way too much of an opportunity for them to think “Oh, I don’t have time right now, I’ll do that later”. And then later never comes.

Tradition

If you’ve been around here for any amount of time, you know that I’m not big on tradition, especially when it’s just for tradition’s sake. The days of big, flowery, lacy wedding invitations are over. If you are dead set on sending physical invitations, I definitely recommend searching for a small business stationer who prioritizes sustainability in their business.

Close-up of a woman wearing elegant earrings with floral designs, showcasing her wavy hair and part of her shoulder.

A smiling woman with wavy hair, wearing earrings, poses outdoors. She has a joyful expression and is resting her hand on her shoulder.

A close-up of a bridal bouquet featuring pale pink roses, assorted greenery, and a delicate ribbon tied at the base.

Cost

Wedding budgets in 2025 are no joke. That being said, don’t ever let anyone make you feel bad for choosing something that is cost effective for your wedding, especially if it’s for something like stationary that ultimately won’t affect anything on your actual wedding day.

Bree’s Recommendations

Choose one method or use a combination of methods. For example you could send a physical invitation to anyone who might have trouble navigating an electronic invitation, then send an electronic invitation to extended family and friends.

Below is a breakdown of the benefits of a few different methods that I recommend:

1. Electronic Invitations – these score high on sustainability, convenience and cost, but low on tradition
2. Thrifted & Crafted Invitations – high on sustainability, tradition and cost, low on convenience
3. Plantable Invitations – these score high on sustainability, convenience, and tradition, low on cost

Remember, it’s all about what is most important to you on your wedding day.

Close-up of white and soft pink flowers, including roses and delicate filler flowers, arranged beautifully in a bouquet.

A soft-focus, sepia-toned portrait of a woman with long, wavy hair and earrings, looking contemplative amidst a blurred natural background.

Close-up of a hand holding a bouquet with ribbons and wedding rings, captured in a sepia tone.

Collecting RSVPs

Having a system in place for recording RSVP responses is key. It almost doesn’t even matter what the actual system is as long as you have a system and stay consistent with it. That being said, the easier the process, the more likely you’ll be to stick with it.

Physical

Like I said before, having some way to keep track of who has RSVP’d is helpful for following up if they haven’t turned it in by the deadline. That could be numbering the RSVP cards or writing the return name and address on included envelopes.

Electronic

If you use a wedding website service, it can be pretty easy to collect RSVP information like names, meal choice, etc. A word of advice: don’t make the RSVP too complicated with multiple questions other than yes/no or names/guest count. The lower the barrier to RSVP, the more likely your guests will be to answer quickly instead of putting it off if they aren’t sure of some of the answers (meal choice, favorite dance floor song, etc.).

A pregnant woman in a flowing, lace dress and wide-brimmed hat stands on a sandy riverbank, playfully waving at the camera, surrounded by lush greenery.

A couple embracing serenely by the water, the woman wearing a wide-brimmed hat and a flowing dress, while the man is dressed in a white shirt with suspenders, both smiling at each other.

A happy couple standing on the beach, smiling at each other, with the woman wearing a white dress featuring floral patterns, and the man in a white shirt with a bow tie.

A man standing on the beach in a white dress shirt, black pants, and brown sneakers, wearing a black bow tie and suspenders, with greenery in the background.

Incentive

I saw some really great ideas on how to incentivize your guests to RSVP quickly, but one of the more creative ideas I found was a couple who announced on their RSVP forms that whoever was the first guest to RSVP would be the first to go through the reception buffet line, with the winners to be announced at the reception. This is so genius because it doesn’t cost you anything, and it’s such a fun way to get your guests excited to RSVP.

How I Did It

What I did for my dad’s 70th birthday celebration was to:

1. create an invitation .jpeg file in Canva – the free account is all I use and it is more than adequate.
2. I created a master list of everyone we were inviting with their phone numbers, which is how we sent the invitations.
3. Put one person in charge of sending the invitations and recording the RSVPs (me).
4. When people responded to the invitation, I entered that information on the master list. I used a Google Word document, but it could also be done in an Excel spreadsheet.
5. This made it really easy to see who had responded and follow up as the party grew closer. I also sent out text message reminders a few days before the party to those who had RSVP’d that they were coming, which people said they really appreciated. Since all this was in a Google doc, I was able to share it with my brother – who was planning the party with me – so that he had all the same information I did.

A couple stands on a sandy riverbank, the woman wearing a flowing white dress with floral details and a wide-brimmed hat, while the man is dressed in a white shirt and black trousers, looking at each other against a backdrop of lush green trees.

A close-up of a wedding ring placed on a magazine featuring a scenic image of a river, surrounded by light-colored sand and green foliage.

A couple stands together in a sunlit outdoor setting, with the woman holding a bouquet of flowers and smiling joyfully at the camera while the man gazes thoughtfully into the distance.

A close-up of a couple sharing a kiss, with one partner wearing elegant earrings and both showing soft smiles.

A bride and groom share a joyful moment, gazing at each other with smiles. The bride wears elegant earrings and holds a glass, while the groom is dressed in a formal outfit with a bow tie, set against a scenic outdoor background.

Final Thoughts

Collecting RSVPs to your wedding is definitely not one of the more glamorous wedding planning tasks, but it is so important! My advice to you is to:

1. evaluate your priorities when it comes to sustainability, tradition, cost, and convenience
2. choose a method, then stick with it
3. get started as early as possible!

I hope this newsletter has been helpful to you as you plan your wedding. If you haven’t already, I definitely recommend signing up for my email list so that you can have access to all my wedding planning freebies which are only available to my email list subscribers! With titles like “Boudoir Session Style Guide” and boudoir gallery, “Leave No Trace Wedding Guest Guide”, “30 Wedding Favor Ideas That Don’t Suck” (and never any spam!), you will not regret it!

A close-up, sepia-toned photograph of a couple embracing and smiling at each other by a river, with trees in the background.

A couple walking hand-in-hand through a grassy field, with the man wearing a white shirt and suspenders, and the woman dressed in a flowing white dress and wide-brimmed hat, in a sepia tone.

*All my blog posts contain a selection of images that I’ve taken. If you are interested in booking a wedding or session with me, I am more than happy to send you a full gallery upon request!

I’m a wife, a dog mom, a foodie, a wanderer, a registered nurse, and a portraits/elopements/branding photographer … and this blog will cover it all! If you enjoyed this post, first of all thank you, and second of all please follow me on Instagram + Facebook and sign up for my monthly newsletter to get exclusive wedding planning advice and access to all of my new (and old) freebies! If you have any questions about elopement photography, my journey from nursing to photography, or my time spent as a full-time RVer, drop a comment and I just might write a blog post answering your question (but I definitely will)!

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No-Frills Guide to Wedding RSVPs