When to Send Wedding Invitations: The Complete Stationery Timeline

You said yes, you picked a date, and now everyone from your college roommate to your grandmother’s neighbor wants to know when they can start booking flights. Cue the paper. Wedding stationery is the one part of planning that runs on a real schedule, and getting the timing right is the difference between a relaxed RSVP window and a frantic group text the week of.

So here it is: exactly when to send wedding invitations, save the dates, shower invites, rehearsal dinner invitations, and thank-you cards, laid out as one timeline you can count back from your wedding date. We built it around the coordinated wedding collections at Paper Source because their suites let you knock out every single piece in one matching design (and they have a lot of Rifle Paper Co. florals, which we will never say no to). We’ve also sprinkled in our favorite Mountain West stationers for couples who want a fully custom or letterpress suite.

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The Quick Version: Your Wedding Stationery Timeline at a Glance

Count back from your wedding date. Destination and mountain weddings sit at the early end of every range.

Now let’s walk through each one.

Step 1: Save the Dates (6 to 8 Months Out)

When to send save the dates: six to eight months before the wedding for a hometown celebration. If you’re getting married in the mountains, at a resort, over a holiday weekend, or anywhere your guests need a flight and a hotel, push that to nine to twelve months. Think about it: a July wedding in Jackson or Banff means your guests are competing with peak summer tourists for rooms. The earlier they know, the happier (and more present) they’ll be.

What goes on it: your names, the date, the city and state, and “formal invitation to follow.” That’s it. You don’t need the venue or the dress code yet. If you have a wedding website, add the URL so guests can start watching for hotel blocks.

Who gets one: only people who are absolutely, definitely invited. Save the dates are a promise. You can’t un-send them, so finalize your guest list first.

Shop it: Paper Source’s save the dates come in the same collections as the invitations, so your paper trail matches from the very first mailing. Order a month before you plan to send so you have time to address and stamp.

Photo by House MRose

Step 2: Bridal Shower Invitations (4 to 6 Weeks Before the Shower)

Bridal showers typically land two to three months before the wedding, which means shower invitations go out four to six weeks before the party. That’s a sweet spot: enough notice for out-of-town guests, not so much that people forget.

Traditionally the host handles this, so if you’re the maid of honor reading along, this one’s yours. Coordinate the invitation with the shower theme (we have thoughts on that in our roundup of bridal shower themes for 2026), and include the registry info here, not on the wedding invitation.

Shop it: browse bridal shower invitations at Paper Source, where you can match the shower invite to the couple’s wedding suite for a subtle, coordinated look, or go completely different and let the theme lead.

Step 3: Wedding Invitations (6 to 8 Weeks Out)

This is the big one. When to send wedding invitations: six to eight weeks before the wedding for a local celebration. For destination weddings, or if most of your guests are traveling to you, send them ten to twelve weeks out. And here’s a small trick that saves a lot of anxiety: if you’re getting married on a holiday weekend, send invitations at the twelve-week mark even if it’s not technically a destination wedding.

Working backward, that means you want to order invitations four to five months before the wedding. Printing takes two to three weeks, custom designs longer, and you’ll need a solid week to assemble, address, and stamp. Build in a buffer. Nobody has ever regretted having their invitations done early.

What goes in the suite: the invitation itself, an RSVP card with a pre-stamped return envelope (or a wedding website for online RSVPs), and a details or information card with the venue address, hotel block, shuttle times, dress code, and weather notes. That last one matters more in the mountains than anywhere else. “Evening temperatures can drop into the 40s, bring a layer” is the most loved sentence in Rocky Mountain wedding history.

Wording notes: if you’re keeping it adults only, the invitation and RSVP card are where you say so clearly and kindly. Our guide to politely wording an adults-only wedding has copy-and-paste lines that won’t ruffle any feathers.

Shop it: Paper Source’s wedding invitations are the anchor of every suite, with foil, letterpress-look, and envelope liner options, plus coordinating RSVP cards and information cards. The easiest route is to shop by invitation suite so every insert is already designed to match. Order a set of custom return address labels at the same time and you’ll thank yourself during assembly.

Want fully custom? If you’re dreaming of hand-drawn venue illustrations, letterpress on cotton stock, or a suite designed around your exact color palette, this is where a local stationer shines. In Idaho, Wyoming, and Montana, Something Lettered Designs creates classic-meets-modern suites that carry all the way through to day-of signage. In Colorado, The Lettery Co designs mountain-inspired suites with hand-sketched venue liners (like the Beaver Creek suite below), and Paper and Dust is our go-to for luxury invitations and signage. And Utah-based Basic Invite lets you customize nearly every element online and will mail you a free sample of your exact design before you commit. For more inspiration, peek at our 30 invitation suites we love.

Custom Beaver Creek wedding invitation suite by The Lettery Co

Step 4: Set Your RSVP Deadline (3 to 4 Weeks Out)

Your RSVP deadline should land three to four weeks before the wedding. Your caterer and venue usually need a final headcount two weeks out, and you’ll want a week to chase down the stragglers (there are always stragglers). Print the deadline on the RSVP card, make it a specific date, and consider adding “kindly reply by” rather than “RSVP by” if you want it to feel a touch more formal.

Pro tip: number the back of each RSVP card in pencil to match your guest list. At least one card will come back with no name on it. Every single wedding.

Photo by Carol Olivia Photography

Step 5: Rehearsal Dinner Invitations (3 to 4 Weeks Out)

Rehearsal dinner invitations go out three to four weeks before the wedding, typically from whoever is hosting. If you’re a destination couple with a small guest list and everyone’s invited to the rehearsal dinner and welcome party, it’s perfectly fine (and easier) to include a coordinating card in the main invitation suite.

Shop it: rehearsal dinner invitations at Paper Source can match the wedding suite or take a more casual, playful direction, which is exactly right for a Friday-night barbecue under the pines.

Step 6: Day-Of Stationery (Finalize After RSVPs Close)

Programs, menus, place cards, escort cards, table numbers, and welcome signage all depend on your final headcount, so this is the stationery you finalize the week after your RSVP deadline. That said, choose your designs six to eight weeks out so you’re only filling in names and numbers at the end, not starting from scratch.

Shop it: coordinating wedding programs and menus from Paper Source keep the look consistent from mailbox to reception table.

Envelopes and calligraphy: if you want hand-addressed envelopes or calligraphed place cards, book your calligrapher when you order your invitations, not when they arrive. Good calligraphers fill up months ahead. In Nevada, Thick & Thin Lines Calligraphy is the name to know. For Colorado couples, Blue Leaf Design Co. handles invitations and day-of details beautifully, and our Alberta brides love Pink Umbrella Invitations for mountain-inspired suites. Find more stationery and signage pros in our Invitations & Signage vendor guide.

Step 7: Thank-You Cards (Within 3 Months)

The old “you have a year” rule is a myth. Send wedding thank-you cards within three months of the wedding, and shower thank-yous within two to three weeks of the shower. Gifts that arrive before the wedding get a note within two weeks of arrival, which also happens to be the easiest time to write them, since you’re not yet buried in post-honeymoon laundry.

Keep it personal: name the gift, say how you’ll use it, and thank them for being there (or for the thought, if they couldn’t make it). Three sentences is plenty. Split the stack with your partner and do ten a night with a glass of wine. Done in two weeks.

Shop it: order wedding thank-you cards when you order your invitations so they match the suite and are sitting ready the moment you get home. Paper Source will print them with your new married names or monogram, and yes, that’s a little thrill every time.

Mountain Wedding Stationery Tips We Swear By

Go early on everything. Resort towns book out, guests need lodging, and mountain mail can be slower than you’d expect. Add two weeks to every range above if your venue is more than an hour from a major airport.

Put the weather on the details card. Altitude, evening temps, sun exposure, and “the ceremony is on grass, plan your shoes accordingly” are all gifts to your guests.

Include the hotel block and shuttle info. Guests will not remember it from the website. Print it.

Order 15 to 20 extra of everything. Last-minute invites, keepsakes for your photographer to style, and the one that gets lost in the mail. Reprints of ten cards cost more than ordering twenty extra upfront.

Weigh one fully assembled invitation at the post office before you buy stamps. Square envelopes, wax seals, and vellum wraps often need extra postage. Learn this the easy way.

Mountain-inspired invitation and painted envelope liner by The Lettery Co

Wedding Stationery Timeline FAQ

When should wedding invitations be sent out? Send wedding invitations six to eight weeks before the wedding for a local celebration, and ten to twelve weeks out for a destination wedding or a holiday weekend. Order them four to five months ahead to leave time for printing, assembly, and addressing.

How far in advance should you send save the dates? Send save the dates six to eight months before the wedding. For destination weddings, mountain resort weddings, or holiday weekends, send them nine to twelve months out so guests can book travel and lodging early.

What should the RSVP deadline be on a wedding invitation? Set your RSVP deadline three to four weeks before the wedding. That gives you time to follow up with guests who haven’t replied and still meet your caterer’s final headcount deadline, which is usually two weeks out.

When should you send bridal shower invitations? Send bridal shower invitations four to six weeks before the shower. Most showers happen two to three months before the wedding, so shower invites typically go out around the three-month mark.

How long do you have to send thank-you cards after a wedding? Send wedding thank-you cards within three months of the wedding. Thank-yous for gifts received before the wedding should go out within two weeks of receiving them, and shower thank-yous within two to three weeks of the shower.

Ready to start your suite? Explore the full wedding collection at Paper Source, and if you’re after something one-of-a-kind, our Invitations & Signage vendors across the Rockies would love to design it with you.

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