How to collect addresses for wedding invitations

The quickest way to collect addresses for wedding invitations is to send every guest one link to an address collector, a short form where they type their own mailing address. Send it as soon as the guest list is roughly settled, at least two months before the save-the-dates. A Google Form works, but you'll copy every answer into your list by hand; a wedding address collector puts each one in the right row for you. Here's how to do it either way.

1. Start early

Collecting addresses takes longer than couples expect. Some guests reply the same day, some after a reminder, and a few only when a parent asks them. Start:

• As soon as the list is roughly settled. You don't need every name decided; you can send the link to more households later.
• At least two months before the save-the-dates, which usually go out six to eight months before the wedding, or earlier for a destination wedding.

Starting early also catches problems while there's time: a guest who has moved, a couple who live apart, an address abroad that needs a different envelope.

2. What to ask for

Ask for what goes on the envelope, and a little more you'll need later anyway:

• The household's name, as they'd like it written on the envelope.
• The full mailing address, with the country.
• An email address, for anything you'll send online: the wedding website, a change of plan, an RSVP reminder.
• How many people are in the household, if you're not sure who lives together.

Optional, if you'll use them:

• A phone number, for the last-minute calls.
• Dietary needs, if you want them early. Most couples ask on the RSVP instead.

Don't ask for anything you won't use. Every question is one more reason to close the form.

3. Option one: a Google Form

A Google Form is free and familiar. To use one for addresses:

1. Make a form with a question for each field above. Use separate questions for the street, town, province or state, postal or ZIP code and country, so the answers sort and print cleanly.
2. Mark the address fields required, and add a line at the top saying what the addresses are for.
3. Send the link, then open the responses in Google Sheets.
4. Copy each answer into your guest list, matching it to the right household by hand.

It works, but it has gaps:

• Matching is by hand. A reply from "Ellis" has to be matched to "Ada & Ellis Marchetti" by you.
• Duplicates. Both members of a couple may fill it in, with slightly different addresses.
• Anyone with the link can answer, and there's nothing to stop the same household replying twice.
• The form doesn't know the country. A Canadian address needs a province and a postal code, an American one a state and a ZIP, and a UK one neither.

4. Option two: a wedding address collector

An address collector is a form made for this job and tied to your guest list. Guests open the same kind of link, but:

• The form follows the country. Province and postal code for Canada, state and ZIP for the US, the right labels elsewhere.
• Each reply is matched to your list by name and email, so you don't do it by hand.
• You check every change before it's saved, and approve the clear matches together.
• Someone not on your list comes in as a proposed new household for you to accept or reject.

The result is the same spreadsheet you'd have built from a Google Form, without the copying. If you don't have a list yet, our free guest list template has the address columns ready.

5. Send the link

Send the link the way each guest is most likely to open it:

• A personal message to close family and friends, with a line about why you're asking.
• One group message for each side's wider family, sent by a parent if that's easier.
• A QR code on anything you're already handing out in person.

Some wording to adapt:

Hi! We're getting our guest list in order and would love to send you a save-the-date. Could you add your mailing address here? It takes a minute: [your address link]. Thank you! Nora and Tomas

Two weeks after the first message, send a reminder to the households you still don't have, and ask a parent to help with the last few.

6. Check the list before you print

Before the save-the-dates go to the printer or the post office:

• Every household has a full address, with no blank postal codes.
• The names read the way they'll print. "The Okonkwo-Vale family", not "okonkwo vale".
• Addresses abroad have the country on the last line, and you've checked the postage for them.
• Nobody is on the list twice, under two spellings or two addresses.

The same list carries you through the invitations and the RSVPs. Our free RSVP website guide covers what comes next, and the RSVP deadline guide explains when to ask for replies.

Collect addresses in Linenfold

In Linenfold, the address form comes with every plan, free included. You get one link for the wedding, with your own welcome line and the questions you choose: address, household size, email, phone, dietary needs and a note. Guests need no account, and the form follows each guest's country. Every reply is matched to your guest list for you to approve, with "Approve all exact matches" for the clear ones, and a daily email tells you what came in. The free plan holds 75 guest households; replies past that wait until you upgrade. With Complete you can also:

• Email your save-the-dates from Linenfold, with the address link inside for anyone you're still missing.

The features page has more.

Start with the free guest list template, and when you're ready to send the link, create a free account.