Wedding Planning Countdown Checklist

Who this is for

Every wedding job, in the order it usually has to happen. Eight stages run from the first decisions to the week after, each job with a column for who is doing it, a due date you count back from your own wedding date and a tick, and each stage ends on a blank row for jobs of your own.

Couples organising their own wedding, whatever the length of the engagement, and the parent or friend who has offered to keep the list.

What this helps you track

• Which jobs come first and which wait until the main bookings are made
• Who has taken on each job, so nothing falls between two people
• A due date for every job, counted back from your own wedding date
• The notice deadline you have been given, written where you will see it
• The jobs after the day: returns, thank-you cards and name changes

How to use it

1. Write the wedding date, the type of ceremony and any notice deadline you have been given at the top.
2. Read down each stage, cross out the jobs that do not apply and write your own on the blank rows.
3. Put a name and a due date against every job, counting back from the wedding date and from any dates your venue, suppliers or registrar have given you.
4. Tick each job when it is done, and use the notes column for booking references and who you spoke to.
5. Keep the printed copy where you both see it, or fill in the browser version, which saves in your own browser and lets you add rows.

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

Why are the stages not set out in months?

Engagements run from a few months to several years, and venues, suppliers and registrars each set their own lead times. The stages give the order; the due column holds your own dates, counted back from the wedding date at the top.

When do we need to give notice of marriage?

That depends on the rules where you are and on your registrar or officiant, so the sheet does not say. Write the deadline you have been given at the top, and the date you actually gave notice beside it.

How is this different from the wedding day timeline?

This sheet covers the months of planning and the jobs after the day. The wedding day timeline covers the day itself, moment by moment, and is the one to hand to suppliers and whoever is coordinating.

Can we add jobs of our own?

Yes. Every stage ends on a blank row on paper, and the browser version lets you add as many rows as you need. It saves in your own browser, with no account.