Party Planning Checklist

Who this is for

A party in five stages. The jobs are grouped by when they need doing, so the list you look at is only ever the one for now.

Anyone hosting a party at home or in a hired room — a birthday, an anniversary, a leaving do, a housewarming — who would rather tick a list than lie awake.

What this helps you track

• What has to be decided and booked early, before the date is fixed in other people's diaries
• The jobs for the last week, when the shopping and the confirming happen
• What to do the day before so the day itself is only the day
• The clear-up and the thank-yous, which are the part everyone forgets

How to use it

1. Write what the party is for, the date, the place and the number you expect at the top.
2. Work through the weeks-before list first: the date, the place, the guest list and the invitations are the decisions everything else waits on.
3. Return to the sheet each week and tick what is done. The week-before and day-before lists are short on purpose.
4. Add your own items in the blank lines of each stage on paper, or with the add button in the browser version.
5. On the day, hand the on-the-day list to whoever is helping so you are not the only one who knows what is left.

Formats

• Printable PDF (A4 and US Letter)
• Fillable PDF with form fields
• Fill in online, saved in your browser

The printable is laid out inside a box that fits both A4 and US Letter, so the two files are identical and neither one is scaled. The fillable PDF has real form fields. The online version keeps what you enter in your own browser and builds the completed PDF on your device.

How to print

Download the A4 or US Letter file to match the paper in your printer, open it in a PDF reader and print at 100% — not "fit to page", which shrinks the writing space. Both files leave a 14 mm margin, which clears the unprintable edge on home printers. To print the online version with your entries in it, use the Print this sheet button, which prints only the sheet and none of the page around it. More on printing.

Questions

How far ahead is weeks before?

As far as you have. The stage is about the decisions that other things depend on — date, place, guest list — rather than a fixed number of weeks. Start whenever you start and the order still holds.

Is this for a children's party or an adult one?

Either. The items are the jobs every party has; there is nothing about ages, entertainers or drinks. The birthday party planner adds a guest and shopping list for a child's party specifically.

Does it include a budget?

No. It is a list of jobs, not of costs. If you want to track spending, the birthday party planner and the wedding budget planner both have cost tables.

Can I reuse it?

Yes. On paper, print a fresh copy. In the browser, the ticks are saved in your own browser until you clear them, so untick and start again for the next one.