Traditionally, wedding invitations are mailed approximately two months before the wedding. We recommend ordering Minted's wedding invitations three to five months before the ceremony. While Minted has a quick turnaround time from order to delivery, consider the time that will be needed to address the invitations, especially if you are adding calligraphy. It is crucial to know how many people will be attending, so make sure to leave enough time to get back those RSVP cards early!

If you need any additional pieces for the ceremony or reception (place cards, programs, menu cards, etc.), we recommend placing your order six to ten weeks before the event.

Order a few extra invitations and envelopes - a standard rule of thumb is to order 10 more than you think you need. You'll be glad you have them should you or a calligrapher make a mistake while addressing. Additionally, you'll want a few extra copies as mementos for yourself and your family members.

Ordering Wedding Invitations

Ordering invitations is a two part process; first you have to do some research and gather all of your information, then you are ready to place your order and have your invitations printed. There are so many questions to answer before you can actually sit down and order your invitations. Here's a brief checklist of what you will want to consider before beginning the order process.

What invitation are you going to order?
Which enclosures do you need (response card, reception card, directions card, other)?
What typestyle do you like best?
What printing process are you going to use?
How many invitations do you need?
Do you know all your wedding day information (location, time, address etc.)?
What wording do you prefer?
What is your budget?
How formal is your event?
All of these questions will be asked during the order process and need to be answered before the order is sent in. It is best to be prepared and allow yourself time in making these decisions. Read through the steps in our wedding invitations guide below to get these questions answered so that you can proceed to order your invitations.

How Many Wedding Invitations to Order
If you are able to determine the exact number of invitations you will need, it is always safe to order a bit extra. Since invitations are usually sold in quantities of 20 or 25, you should think about ordering 150 in cases where you needed 122 invitations. If you ordered 125, 3 extra might not be enough of a cushion. If any are sent back to you with the wrong address, if you add someone to the list last minute, if you or your family would like some for scrapbooks, or if some people don't receive anything and you need to resend them, you will be glad to have a few more on hand.

It is also wise to order extra envelopes in case there are any mistakes made when printing or writing the names and addresses on the envelopes. If you need to order your invitations before your guest list is finalized, you can estimate how many invitations to order by taking half of your total number of guests and adding 25. This will give you a ball-park number but, it is always a good idea to be more exact. Here are some guidelines: Married couples and families only need one invitation. If there is a child over 18 living at home with their family, it is recommended to include their name on the outer envelope, or to send them their own invitation. If you have several friends living in the same house together, it is customary to send each of them an invitation.

When and How to Order Your Invitations
The best thing you can do is to start browsing wedding invitations or announcements to get a feel for the styles that appeal to you. Once you have found a handful of wedding invitations, start reviewing the prices to get an idea of what each invitation and coordinating items cost per person. Then, multiply the cost per person number for each invitation by the number of guests you will be inviting and that should give you a pretty close price range for what the total paper costs will be.

Invitations should be ordered well in advance to when you want to mail them (customarily they should be mailed six weeks before the wedding). Order them with plenty of time for you to assemble and address them. Significant time can be saved if you get your mailing list in strict order. Allow more time if it isn't and if you plan to address them yourself.

Every bride has different priorities for her wedding. For some, the dress is the most important item while for others it may be the cake. So, when it comes to wedding invitations, planning your budget reflects its importance on your list. For the basics (wedding invitation with inner and outer envelopes, response card with envelope, and reception card), you can plan on spending anywhere between 2-5% of your total budget. But, if you believe as much as we do that the wedding invitation sets the tone for your event, then you may want to bring the budget up a notch. Also, if you would like direction cards, maps, envelope lining etc. you will want to increase your budget further. There are other paper products to consider, such as thank you cards or informal cards, programs, place cards, seating cards and more. informal wedding dresses

Browse these categories for options to consider before placing your invitations order:
Traditional Wedding Invitations
Timing for Sending Announcements, Save-the-Dates, and Invitations
Invitations Paper Options
Invitations Printing Options
Other Invitation Options and Accessories