When should you send out your wedding website?

01The usual timeline

Zola's save-the-date guide gives a window of no earlier than eight months and no later than four months before the wedding, and earlier, six to twelve months, for destination weddings and holiday weekends. Joy recommends launching the website when you send your save-the-dates, about six to eight months before the wedding, so it is ready when they land in mailboxes.

02What to launch with

You do not need everything at launch. Guests opening a save-the-date want to know the date, the city and where to stay. Put those up first and write "More details to come" on the rest. A half-finished site that has the hotel block is more useful than a polished one launched too late for anyone to book.

Do switch RSVPs off until invitations go out, or label them clearly. Guests who RSVP from a save-the-date before you have finalized meals or events create cleanup work.

03How to share it

Print the address on the save-the-dates and again on the invitations or an insert. Short addresses survive better on paper: a custom domain such as mayaandsam.com is easier to type than a platform path, which is the main argument for getting a custom domain. For guests you message directly, send the link with a one-line note about the RSVP deadline.

Some couples print a QR code on the card. It helps younger guests; keep the written address too for anyone who will type it.

04Keep it current

Update the site whenever something changes, and tell guests when it matters: a shuttle time, a weather plan, a venue change. Put a short "Updates" note at the top of the home page in the final weeks so returning guests see changes first.

After the wedding, many couples add a thank-you and a photo link, then take the site down or make it private after a few months. If you used a custom domain, decide whether to renew it; what happens when a domain expires explains what to expect if you let it lapse.

05If you are running late

If the save-the-dates are already out without a website address, do not worry. Launch the site with the essentials, then send it by message or email with one line: the date, the hotel deadline and the address. Put it on the invitation as well. Guests rarely notice the order; they notice a hotel block that sold out before they heard about it.

If you have under two months to go, skip the extras. A single page with schedule, address, dress code and RSVP is enough, and how to make a wedding website shows how to build it in an afternoon.

06Reminders that actually get RSVPs back

Most platforms can email guests who have not answered. Send one reminder about a week before the deadline and a second, personal message to stragglers the day after it passes. Keep the link and the deadline in the first line.