Free wedding seating chart maker

How it works

Type or paste your guests, one per line. If you already know where someone is sitting, add the table number after a comma: “Emma Baker, 4”. Anyone without a number fills the tables in order, at the seats per table you choose, so you can paste a rough list and fix it as you go.

Pick Guests A to Z for an alphabetical list by last name (or first name) with each guest's table number, or Table by table for names grouped under each table. Change the title if “Find your seat” isn't quite you. When it looks right, hit Print. Only the chart prints, with a small “Made with Wedding Draft” line at the bottom.

Everything happens in your browser. The names aren't uploaded, so it's fine to paste your real list.

Alphabetical or table by table?

An alphabetical seating chart by last name is the fastest for guests. They find their own name, see “Table 6”, and head in. Above about 80 guests it's the one to choose, because a table-by-table chart makes everyone scan every table to find themselves, and the line at the chart grows.

A table-by-table chart is lovely for smaller weddings. Guests can see who they're sitting with, and it looks great in photos. To get both, print the alphabetical list for the entrance and the table-by-table version on a smaller sheet for your coordinator and the venue staff.

Sorting by first name suits a wedding where most people know each other by first name, or where lots of guests share a last name. Each guest is on their own line, so couples with different last names each show up under their own name.

How big to print it

• 24 × 36 in for 80 guests or more. It holds 150 to 200 names in columns at a readable size.
• 18 × 24 in for around 40 to 80 guests.
• 11×17 for an intimate wedding, or as extra copies for the bar and the head table.

Guests read the chart from 5 or 6 feet away, often in a small crowd. Aim for names at least 24 pt, with table numbers bigger and bolder. To get a large print made, choose “Save as PDF” in the print window and send the file to a print shop. Ask for it mounted on foam board, ready for an easel.

Where to put it

Set the chart where guests leave cocktail hour, a few steps before the doors to the reception, with room for a group to gather around it. Light it if cocktail hour runs past sunset. Put a number on every table, tall enough to see when standing, and double-check that the table numbers match the chart.

Getting the names right

• Keep couples and families together in the list so you seat them together. Put kids next to a parent.
• Plus-ones get a real name. Ask for it on the RSVP card. “Guest of Tom Hughes” on the chart feels cold.
• Late RSVPs happen. Leave a seat or two open around the room and print the final chart about a week before.
• Check the spelling against your invitations. People read their own name more carefully than anything else that day.

Escort cards or a seating chart?

Escort cards (one small card per guest or couple with their table number, lined up in order on a table) are charming and can double as favors. They take longer to make and need a long table near the entrance. A seating chart is faster to read, easier to change and costs less. Many couples use a chart for the room and place cards at each seat. For help laying out the tables themselves, see our wedding seating chart template guide.