Numbers RSVP wording by wedding type
Postcard RSVP wording you can copy
One side is the address, the other is the reply. There is no envelope to hide a long questionnaire in, so keep it to a name, a yes or no and a date.
The short answer
Use the back of the postcard for name, accepts or declines, and kindly reply by 29 May. Meal boxes only if they fit without crowding the postcode. Postage is on you; print the stamp or a paid-reply mark so guests do not hunt for a mailbox with a stamp.
Postcards save an envelope and show the reply to anyone who handles the mail. Keep private facts (addresses of the venue, dietary notes) off the back if that bothers you, and collect diets on the website instead. Timing still follows when to send invitations.
The invitation line
Print this on the invitation itself, or on a small enclosure if the main card is already full.
Kindly reply by 29 May. A postcard is enclosed.
The reply card
4 lines, and nothing else that the kitchen or the seating chart will not use.
Name ________________________________
Accepts Declines
Dinner: fish / vegetable
Kindly reply by 29 May.
Use this for informal weddings, or when you want to skip reply envelopes. Check that a postcard still meets your postal service's size and paid-reply rules.
A reminder you can send
Wait until a few days after the printed date, then send this once. Copy the replies into the same list you use for the cards, so you are not keeping two headcounts.
Hi Noor, we have not had your postcard yet and the caterer needs numbers next week. If it is easier, a message with your yes or no is enough and we will mark it off.
When this wording fits, and when it does not
Do not print a guest's home address on a postcard that also shows they will be away for the wedding, if that is a safety worry. Do not ask six questions on a card the size of a hand.
The date on the card is not a guess. Work it back from the caterer's headcount deadline with the RSVP deadline calculator. The usual window is ten days to two weeks before that date, as in when to send invitations.
Free toolWedding RSVP deadline calculatorWork back from your caterer's deadline to the date to print on your invitations.Find my RSVP dateOther RSVP wording. website, rehearsal dinner.
Yes, I Do
Every guest, every reply
Paste a list from anywhere and it becomes names. Replies, plus-ones, dietary notes and tables stay in one place, for both of you.
Questions
What do you write on a wedding RSVP postcard?
A name, accepts or declines, the date, and a meal box only if it fits. The front is the couple's address, already printed.
Do guests need to stamp a reply postcard?
Not if you printed postage or used a paid-reply service. If you did not, say so, or some cards will never move.
Is a postcard too informal?
For a black-tie ballroom, often yes. For a garden or a town hall, it matches the day.
Can dietary notes go on a postcard?
A short blank can. Long medical detail is better on a website form or a call.
Sources
- Wording below is written for a postcard wedding. Change the names, the date and the seat count. Do not mix in a line from a different type of day.
- The RSVP date is set from the caterer's deadline, the method in when to send invitations.
- The longer invitation, from who is hosting, is in wedding invitation wording.
- The longer guide this card belongs with is when to send wedding invitations.