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Save the Date Cards for Your Wedding: A Six-Step Guide
Once a save the date is in the mail, you can't take back the date you printed or the guest you sent it to. The rules for wedding save the date cards are short. Send one only to guests you will surely invite. Print your names, the date, the city and "invitation to follow", then choose between a mailed card and an image you text or email.
Why the guest list comes before the card
A save the date is a promise. According to the Emily Post Institute's guide to 21st century wedding trends, anyone who receives one must also receive a wedding invitation. So the card you mail decides part of your guest list, months before the invitation does. Get the list right and the rest of the job is easy.
A save the date can't be taken back, so settle the guest list before you print.
Step 1: Decide who gets a save the date
Send one only to people you are certain to invite. If a cousin or a coworker is still a maybe, leave them off and let the invitation do the work later. A smaller first round costs nothing. Sending one and then no invitation hurts feelings and is hard to explain.
Count households, not people. A couple or a family at one address gets one card with every invited name on it. Write the names in full on the envelope, so a plus-one or a child is clear from the start. If someone may bring a guest, add "and Guest" to the name on the envelope.
You can skip people who can't come anyway. If Grandma's travel days are over, a phone call does more than a card. Guests invited to the reception only have their own rules, covered in when to send save the date for wedding guests.
Step 2: Write the five lines for wedding save the date cards
Your save the date needs far less than an invitation. Five lines carry it. Anything more makes the card crowded and pulls details forward that may still change.
Etiquette advice from the Emily Post Institute is to mail save the dates as soon as the date is known, and that the location may also be included. The city is enough at this stage. Guests need it to judge travel. The venue, the time and the dress code can wait for the invitation.
| Put it on the card | Leave it for the invitation |
|---|---|
| Your two names | Ceremony and reception times |
| The full date, with the year | The venue's name and street address |
| City and state | RSVP card or reply-by date |
| "Invitation to follow" | Meal choices |
| Your wedding website, if it is live | Registry details |
Three wording sets fit the five lines:
- Classic: Save the Date / Emma Clarke and James Ortiz / June 12, 2027 / Asheville, North Carolina / Formal invitation to follow
- Casual: Hold the date! / Emma & James are getting married / 6.12.27 / Asheville, NC / Invite coming soon
- Funny: We're finally doing it / Emma & James / June 12, 2027 / Asheville, NC / Details when we've decided on them
If you list a website, have it ready first. Put the site live before the save the date goes out if you can, as the Emily Post Institute's wedding website tips advise.
Step 3: Choose paper, a phone or both
A printed card feels like the start of the wedding. It also costs postage and needs an address for every guest. A digital save the date costs nothing to send and reaches people whose address you don't have. Many couples mail cards to older relatives and text the image to friends.
Email is fine for friends and family when the tone is relaxed. The Emily Post Institute's wedding email dos and don'ts call email a great way to send an informal note asking people to put the date aside. Write to each guest by name. A group email or a group chat feels like a mass announcement.
A 5 × 7 card is too big to mail at the postcard rate. USPS letter and postcard rules describe standard postcards as 5 to 6 inches long and 3½ to 4¼ inches high. Bigger cards need letter postage, and the USPS also charges more for square envelopes and for envelopes addressed vertically. Put your 5 × 7 card in a rectangular envelope and address it the long way.
If you want both formats, our printable save the date templates with a matching digital image give you the 5 × 7 card and the image from one set of details. You type once in the personalizer, which opens in Google Chrome on a computer and works offline. The card downloads as a PDF to print. The image comes at 1080 × 1350 px for a feed and 1080 × 1920 px for a phone screen.
Step 4: Work out what 100 save the dates cost
Postage is the biggest part of the bill. USPS First-Class Mail prices start at $0.82 for a standard rectangular letter, $1.31 for a square or oddly shaped envelope, and $0.65 for a standard postcard. The table shows what 100 save the dates cost to send each way, using those prices and our $8 template.
| Route for 100 save the dates | Postage | Template | Total before paper, ink and envelopes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Printed at home, mailed in standard envelopes | 100 × $0.82 = $82 | $8 | $90 |
| Printed at home, mailed in square envelopes | 100 × $1.31 = $131 | $8 | $139 |
| 60 mailed, 40 sent as an image | 60 × $0.82 = $49.20 | $8 | $57.20 |
| All 100 sent as an image by text or email | $0 | $8 | $8 |
| Ordered printed from a stationer | 100 × $0.82 = $82 | the stationer's price per card | $82 plus the order |
Printing at home adds paper and ink. Our 5 × 7 card prints two to a Letter or A4 sheet, so 100 cards take 50 sheets of 80 to 110 lb cover cardstock. Buy a few extra sheets for test prints.
Step 5: Pick a save the date idea that needs no photo
Not every couple has engagement photos by the time the cards go out. A save the date that needs no photo can go out the week you book the venue. Five ideas work on type and artwork alone:
- Let the city lead. Set the city large and the date small. It suits a destination or a hometown wedding.
- Match the season with color. Terracotta for a fall wedding, dusty blue or charcoal for winter, sage green for a garden in spring.
- Use the venue's mood. A botanical wreath for a vineyard, a clean arch for a city loft, pampas grass for a beach or desert wedding.
- Make the date the art. Write the date in full words for a formal wedding, or in numbers for a casual one.
- Add a playful last line. "Pencil us in, then switch to pen" or "Book the sitter now" keeps it light without a photo.
Our four save the date designs work without a photo. Olive Grove has olive branches, Meridian an arch and a fine line, Copperplate formal script, and Wild Pampas pampas plumes and palms. Each comes with six color palettes and two layouts per item.
Our templates take no photo upload. If your heart is set on an engagement photo filling the card, a photo save the date from a print shop or a photo editor is the better choice for you.
Step 6: Print the cards and send them
Print at Actual size (100%), not "Fit to page", on 80 to 110 lb cover cardstock. Cut on the crop marks with a paper trimmer. For a print shop, send the single-card PDF or the 300 ppi JPG, which for a 5 × 7 card is 1500 × 2100 px. Address the envelopes, add the stamps and mail the batch.
The right mailing month depends on your travel and guest list. When to send save the date for wedding guests covers timing by type of wedding. If you're still choosing a design, compare our save the date templates for print and phone side by side.
The six steps at a glance
| Step | What to do | What to watch for |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Decide who gets one | Only guests you are certain to invite, one card per household |
| 2 | Write the five lines | Names, date, city, "invitation to follow", website if live |
| 3 | Choose paper, phone or both | 5 × 7 cards need letter postage in a rectangular envelope |
| 4 | Work out the cost | 100 mailed cards cost $82 in stamps, an image costs $0 |
| 5 | Pick a design | Photo-free ideas can go out the week you book |
| 6 | Print and send | Actual size (100%), crop marks, mail all on one day |
Frequently asked questions
What goes on a save the date?
Your two names, the wedding date, the city and state, and a line such as "Invitation to follow". A wedding website can go on the last line. Leave the time, venue details, RSVP and registry for the invitation.
Is it rude to send a save the date and not an invitation?
Yes. The Emily Post Institute says anyone who receives a save the date must receive a wedding invitation, so send save the dates only to guests you are certain to invite.
How much do save the dates cost for a wedding?
Postage is the big cost. A 5 × 7 card in a standard envelope takes an 82-cent letter stamp, so 100 mailed cards cost $82 to send, plus paper, ink and envelopes. A save the date sent as an image by text or email costs nothing to send. Our template is $8 per design and covers both.
How to send save the date for a wedding?
Mail a printed card in a rectangular envelope addressed the long way, or send the image by text or email to each guest one by one. The Emily Post Institute calls email a good way to send an informal note asking friends and relatives to keep the date free.
Conclusion
Good save the date cards for a wedding do one job. They tell the right people your names, the date and the city, and they promise an invitation. Settle the guest list first, keep the wording to five lines, and decide card by card whether paper or a phone suits each guest. Mailed by letter post, 100 cards cost about $82 in stamps. An image costs nothing to send, so a mix of both often makes sense.
