Blog
When to Send a Save the Date for Your Wedding
The worry is simple: send too late and the guests you most want there may already have plans. For most couples, the answer to when to send save the date for wedding guests is four to six months before a local wedding, six to eight when people fly, and up to a year for a holiday weekend or a wedding abroad.
Months before the wedding, by type of wedding
The farther your guests travel, the earlier the save the date goes out. The table below is our rule of thumb, built on one idea. Guests need the date before they make other plans, and before they would have to book flights or rooms.
| Type of wedding | Send it | Earliest sensible | Latest before it is too late |
|---|---|---|---|
| Local, most guests drive | 4 to 6 months before | 8 months | 3 months |
| Many guests fly within the US | 6 to 8 months before | 10 months | 4 months |
| Holiday weekend | 8 to 10 months before | 12 months | 6 months |
| Destination or abroad | 9 to 12 months before | 12 months | 6 months |
| Short engagement (under 6 months) | the week the venue is booked | the same week | skip it, send invitations |
The Emily Post Institute's 3 to 6 months checklist lists "address and send save-the-date notices if necessary (or earlier)". Read that as the latest window for a local wedding. The same institute's guide to 21st century wedding trends also says to mail them as soon as the wedding date is known.
When to send save the date for wedding guests who travel
Travel is the reason save the dates exist. A guest who has to fly needs time to save, take days off and book flights and rooms while there is still a choice. The Emily Post Institute's 6 to 9 months checklist has you plan and reserve accommodations for out-of-town guests in that window. Your save the date should reach guests before you send them the hotel details, so eight months or more is safer when most of your list flies.
For a wedding abroad, add time for passports. Some guests won't have one, and some will need to renew. Send the save the date nine to twelve months out and say on the last line that a passport is needed.
Holiday weekends need more notice
A three-day weekend is good for guests who travel, and bad for guests who already made plans. Family trips, reunions and other weddings land on the same dates. The federal holidays list from the U.S. Office of Personnel Management shows the 2027 dates. Memorial Day falls on Monday, May 31, and Labor Day on Monday, September 6. Thanksgiving falls on Thursday, November 25.
For three Saturdays in 2027, using nine months for the holiday weekends, the mailing windows work out as follows.
| Wedding date in 2027 | Holiday | Save the dates in the mail by |
|---|---|---|
| Saturday, May 29 | Memorial Day weekend | August 29, 2026 |
| Saturday, September 4 | Labor Day weekend | December 4, 2026 |
| Saturday, June 12 (no holiday, local) | none | December 12, 2026 to February 12, 2027 |
Too early or too late?
Send it too early and people forget, or your list changes after the cards are out. More than a year ahead is rarely worth it. Wait until three things are fixed: the date, the city and the guest list. Once a card is out, that guest has to get an invitation.
Send it too late and it stops doing its job. Under four months, a destination or holiday-weekend save the date arrives after many guests have made plans. Under three months for any wedding, skip it and put the effort into the invitation. Our article on save the date vs invitations wedding explains how the two cards split the work.
A save the date is only as useful as the time it gives your guests to plan.
If you're already late, you can still close the gap today. Send the save the date as an image by text or email, and mail cards only to the guests who expect paper. Our save the date templates that print as a card or send as an image make both from one set of details.
Do evening or reception-only guests get one?
Yes, if they are certain to be invited. Guests who come only to the reception plan around your date just like everyone else. Send theirs on the same day as everyone else's.
Word their card for the part they attend. "Save the date for our wedding celebration" with the evening date and the city works well. On our template, the heading and the last line are free text, so you can make a separate version for reception-only guests without changing the design.
Mail every card on the same day
Guests talk. If half the family gets a card in March and the rest in May, someone feels like an afterthought. Address and stamp every card first, then mail them in one batch.
Allow for delivery time. USPS lists First-Class Mail delivery at 1 to 5 days within the US. Mail a week before your target date if you want every card in hand by then. Guests abroad need longer, so post their cards first or send them the image.
When a save the date is the wrong choice
A save the date is the wrong choice when your wedding is under three months away. At that point an invitation with a clear reply-by date serves guests better, and when to send wedding invitations covers that timing. Skip it, too, for a very small wedding where you can phone every guest. A personal call does the same job and costs nothing.
Frequently asked questions
Is 4 months too late to send save the date?
Not for a local wedding where most guests drive. Four months is the late end of the usual window. For a destination wedding or a holiday weekend it is late, because guests may have booked other travel, so send the save the date at once and mail invitations on time.
Is 2 years too early to send save the date?
Usually, yes. Most couples send save the dates no more than a year ahead. Two years out, guest lists, addresses and plans still change, and people forget. Book the venue, tell close family by phone, and send the cards about a year before at the earliest.
Do you send save the dates to people only invited to the reception?
Yes, if you are certain to invite them, send them one at the same time as everyone else. Word the card for the part they attend, for example "Save the date for our wedding celebration" with the evening date and the city.
How far in advance should I send out save the dates for a destination wedding?
Nine to twelve months ahead. Guests need time to save, book flights and take time off, and the Emily Post Institute puts reserving rooms for out-of-town guests six to nine months before the wedding, so the save the date should reach guests before that.
Conclusion
The right month to send a save the date for your wedding depends on how far your guests travel. Four to six months suits a local wedding, six to eight months suits a guest list that flies, eight to ten months suits a holiday weekend, and nine to twelve months suits a destination wedding. Send only once the date, the city and the guest list are settled, mail every card on the same day, and fall back on a digital image when a card would arrive too late.
Sources
- The Emily Post Institute, Wedding Planning: 3-6 Months in Advance (n.d.)
- The Emily Post Institute, Wedding Planning: 6-9 Months in Advance (n.d.)
- The Emily Post Institute, 21st Century Wedding Trends (n.d.)
- U.S. Office of Personnel Management, Federal Holidays (2027)
- USPS, Mail and Shipping Services (2026)
