Guest List Planner

Count your guests by category, then apply the usual attendance rule of thumb — about 80–85% of invited guests actually come. You get an invited total and a realistic expected number to plan food, drink and cake around.

Quick example: The prefilled list invites 130 guests. At the default 82% expected attendance, that is about 107 guests on the day.

The common rule of thumb is 80–85% for a hometown wedding, and lower if many guests must travel.

Invited vs expected

CategoryInvitedExpected
Total

Expected attending feeds your drink, food and cake numbers — type it into those calculators: Wedding Drink Calculator, Wedding Food Calculator and Wedding Cake Calculator.

How it works

Expected per category is that category's invited count multiplied by your attendance percentage, rounded to a whole person. The total expected is the invited total multiplied by the same percentage, so category figures may differ from the total by one due to rounding.

Frequently asked questions

What percentage of wedding guests actually attend?

Planners commonly use 80–85% for a local wedding. Expect less — sometimes 65–75% — if many guests must travel, and more for a small, close list.

Should we plan food and drink for invited or expected guests?

Plan around the expected number, then confirm the final headcount with your caterer close to the day when RSVPs are in. Caterers usually allow a final-numbers deadline.

How should we count plus-ones and kids?

Count them as their own categories above, as the prefilled list does, so you can see at a glance how much of the list they make up.

Does this list save?

Yes — the counts and percentage are kept in this browser's local storage.

Please check before you print or share. Attendance percentages are a rule of thumb only — your real number depends on your guests, travel and timing, so confirm final numbers with RSVPs before ordering.