SeatChartBase

Wedding guest list

The wedding guest list is where fights start and seating gets easier. Capture every name (and the +1s you actually offered), mark sides or households if that helps, note who needs a high chair or an aisle seat, then send the clean list into the seating chart tools. This is a working list, not a calligraphy envelope guide.

Guest list

Names before tables

6 guests
NameSide+1RSVPNotes
Continue to seating

Seating tools help you arrange guests — not a venue floor-plan CAD service or a wedding planner contract.

When to use — and when not to

When to use

Before invitations go out; while RSVPs trickle in; before you open the seating chart; when parents submit just a few more names.

When not to

You already have a perfect sheet and only need tables → wedding seating chart. You want etiquette essays about who pays — read a magazine; come back for the grid. You need mass RSVP email → use your invitation platform.

Assumptions

Fields: name, optional household, side, +1 offered/accepted, RSVP status, notes/tags. No address-book sync with Gmail in v1. Export CSV for Sheets/Excel.

Worked examples

Input: 180 must-invite names from both families; trim target 140.

Output: tagged cut candidate notes without deleting history.

Keep cut candidates until invites are truly mailed.

Input: 12 +1s offered, 7 accepted, 3 declined, 2 unknown.

Output: seat count = named guests + accepted +1s.

Unknown +1s are why venues hate early final charts.

How it works

  1. Add guests one by one or paste a column of names.
  2. Mark +1s and RSVP as you learn them.
  3. Filter no seat yet / awaiting RSVP if the UI offers it.
  4. Export CSV.
  5. Open a seating tool and continue from the same data path the product ships.

Common traps

  • Duplicate nicknames (Mike / Michael) create ghost seats — merge early.
  • Kids counting rules vary by venue meal policy.
  • B-list invites need a clear status so you do not seat someone you have not invited yet.
  • Shared spreadsheets with open edit will grow mystery rows; prefer one owner.

Compare

Related on this site: Wedding guest list template · How to organize a wedding guest list · Seating chart generator.

FAQ

Full name for the seat, whether a +1 was offered, RSVP, and any note that affects seating or meals. Addresses live with your invitations tool if you use one.

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