Wedding day timeline generator
Enter your ceremony time and get a full hour-by-hour wedding day timeline, from the first hair appointment to the send-off, with buffers built in and a vendor call sheet you can print and share.
Your day
Your wedding day timeline
Your day starts at 10:15 AM, the ceremony is at 4:30 PM, and the send-off wraps at 10:10 PM.
Guests arrive
4:00 PM
Cocktails
5:10 PM
Dinner
6:35 PM
Photo coverage
10.9 hrs
Hour by hour
- 10:15 AM
Hair and makeup artists arriveuntil 10:30 AM
Need a table, good light and outlets.
Hair and makeup
- 10:30 AM
Hair and makeup (4 people)until 12:00 PM
Assumes two artists at 45 minutes a person. Whoever is in the most photos goes last.
Hair and makeup
- 11:00 AM
Real food for everyone getting readyuntil 11:30 AM
Order it ahead so no one is on an empty stomach.
Maid of honor or best man
- 11:15 AM
Detail and getting-ready photosuntil 12:15 PM
Lay out rings, invitation, shoes, vows and flowers before the photographer arrives.
Photographer
- 12:15 PM
Get dresseduntil 12:45 PM
Photographer captures the dress, buttons and final details.
Couple, photographer
- 12:55 PM
Travel to the venue (20 min drive)until 1:20 PM
Includes 5 extra minutes for traffic and loading dresses.
Couple, wedding party, transport
- 1:30 PM
Flowers and decor delivereduntil 2:30 PM
Confirm loading access and who signs for delivery.
Florist, venue
- 1:35 PM
First lookuntil 1:50 PM
Private spot, no guests. Photographer places the couple first.
Couple, photographer
- 1:50 PM
Couple portraitsuntil 2:35 PM
Most relaxed photos of the day, so protect this block.
Couple, photographer
- 2:35 PM
Wedding party photosuntil 3:05 PM
Whole party dressed and at the photo spot on time.
Wedding party, photographer
- 3:05 PM
Family photosuntil 3:35 PM
Immediate family only. Give the photographer a written list and name a family wrangler.
Family, photographer
- 3:10 PM
Caterer and bar set upuntil 4:10 PM
Final guest count and meal counts confirmed.
Catering, bartenders
- 3:30 PM
Ceremony sound checkuntil 3:45 PM
Test microphones and the processional track.
DJ or band, officiant
- 3:35 PM
Bufferuntil 3:45 PM
Ten spare minutes for the photo list running over.
Everyone
- 3:45 PM
Officiant and ushers in placeuntil 4:00 PM
Officiant brings the marriage license. Ushers take programs.
Officiant, ushers
- 3:45 PM
Couple out of sightuntil 4:30 PM
Touch-ups, water, a quiet moment. Early guests will start to arrive.
Couple, hair and makeup
- 4:00 PM
Guests arrive and are seateduntil 4:30 PM
This is 30 minutes before the time on the invitation.
Ushers, musicians
- 4:30 PM
Ceremonyuntil 5:00 PM
Start on time. Sign the license straight after.
Officiant, couple
- 5:00 PM
Recessional and a moment aloneuntil 5:10 PM
Ten private minutes before anyone asks for a photo.
Couple
- 5:10 PM
Extended family photosuntil 5:25 PM
Anyone missed before the ceremony. The couple then joins cocktail hour.
Family, photographer
- 5:10 PM
Cocktail houruntil 6:10 PM
Bar and passed appetizers open.
Catering, bartenders, DJ or band
- 5:55 PM
Sunset portraitsuntil 6:10 PM
Slip out for 15 minutes. Planner tells the kitchen and DJ first.
Couple, photographer
- 6:10 PM
Guests take their seatsuntil 6:20 PM
Bartenders pause or switch to table service.
Planner, DJ or band
- 6:20 PM
Grand entrance and first danceuntil 6:30 PM
Band or DJ needs name pronunciations in writing.
Couple, DJ or band
- 6:30 PM
Welcome and blessinguntil 6:35 PM
Five minutes, no longer.
Host, DJ or band
- 6:35 PM
Dinner (plated)until 7:50 PM
Photographer and band eat when the couple eats, so they are ready for toasts.
Catering
- 6:45 PM
Sunset
- 6:55 PM
Toastsuntil 7:10 PM
Two or three speakers at about five minutes each.
Speakers, DJ or band
- 7:50 PM
Parent dancesuntil 8:00 PM
Have the songs chosen and cued.
Family, DJ or band
- 8:00 PM
Cake cuttinguntil 8:10 PM
Dessert goes out as dancing opens.
Couple, catering
- 8:10 PM
Open dancinguntil 9:55 PM
Keep the floor full. Last call goes out about 30 minutes before the end.
DJ or band
- 9:25 PM
Last call at the bar
Then water and coffee.
Bartenders
- 9:55 PM
Last dance and send-offuntil 10:10 PM
Hand out sparklers or bubbles ten minutes ahead.
Couple, guests
- 10:10 PM
Vendor load-outuntil 11:10 PM
Name who collects gifts, cards and personal items.
All vendors, planner
Vendor call sheet
Send each vendor their line and ask them to confirm it the week of the wedding.
Hair and makeup
Arrive 10:15 AM, finish 12:15 PM
Finish by 12:00 PM. Stay for touch-ups if your package allows.
Photographer
Arrive 11:15 AM, finish 10:10 PM
Coverage needs to run 10.9 hours to reach the send-off. An 8-hour package would end at 7:15 PM.
Florist
Arrive 1:30 PM, finish 3:30 PM
Personal flowers go to the getting-ready location first.
DJ or band
Arrive 3:30 PM, finish 10:10 PM
First cue at 4:00 PM. Dinner music starts at 6:35 PM.
Caterer and bartenders
Arrive 3:10 PM, finish 10:10 PM
Bar opens 5:10 PM. Dinner service 6:35 PM. Last call 9:25 PM.
Officiant
Arrive 3:45 PM, finish 5:15 PM
Brings the license and signs it with witnesses after the ceremony.
Rather have the cash than the blender?
RegistryBee lets you list gifts from any store and receive the money instead. It is free for couples and parents-to-be.
How the timeline is built
The generator starts from your ceremony time and works in both directions. Going backward, it blocks out the time guests may appear, then photos, travel, getting dressed and hair and makeup. Going forward, it runs through cocktail hour, dinner, formalities and dancing to your end time.
Photo blocks use Zola's wedding photography timeline for the classic style: 45 minutes for the first look and couple portraits, 30 for the wedding party and 30 for family. Candid and editorial styles shorten or lengthen those blocks, which is our own adjustment. We add 15 minutes for the first look itself.
The other timing rules are our planning assumptions, so adjust them with your planner or venue:
- Guests arrive 30 minutes before the ceremony, and the couple is out of sight 45 minutes before.
- Your drive time gets at least 25% extra, rounded up to 5 minutes, plus 15 minutes on arrival.
- Hair and makeup assumes two artists at 45 minutes a person, ending 15 minutes before dressing.
- Plated and family-style meals get 75 minutes, stations get 75 and buffets get 90.
- Reception length includes cocktail hour, so a 5-hour reception ends 5 hours after the bar opens.
A worked example
Take a 4:30 PM ceremony with a first look, getting ready 20 minutes away, four people in hair and makeup, sunset at 6:45 PM, a 5-hour reception and plated dinner.
- 10:15 AM: hair and makeup artists arrive.
- 12:15 PM: get dressed, with the car leaving at 12:55 PM.
- 1:35 PM: first look, then portraits, wedding party and family photos.
- 3:45 PM: couple out of sight.
- 4:30 PM: ceremony.
- 5:10 PM: cocktail hour, with sunset portraits at 5:55 PM.
- 6:20 PM: grand entrance, then dinner at 6:35 PM and toasts at 6:55 PM.
- 8:10 PM: open dancing until the 9:55 PM send-off.
The photographer in that plan works from 11:15 AM to 10:10 PM, which is 10.9 hours. If your package is 8 hours, coverage ends at 7:15 PM. You could start them later, end before the dancing or buy extra time. It is better to find that out now than on the day.
Edge cases the generator handles
- Morning weddings: the meal becomes brunch or lunch based on its start time, and if sunset is after the send-off it tells you to look for shade instead of planning a golden hour.
- Late receptions: times past midnight are marked as the next day, with a reminder about noise curfews and overtime.
- Winter sunsets: if the sun sets before your ceremony or during it, you get a warning about lighting and when your outdoor photos need to happen.
- No first look: all formal photos move after the ceremony, and cocktail hour extends to fit them. You get a warning if it passes 75 minutes.
- Short receptions: if the formalities do not fit, the plan runs longer and tells you by how much.
Using it with your vendors
Look up your sunset time for your exact date and venue, because it can shift by hours between seasons. Then print the timeline and send each vendor their line from the call sheet. Ask your photographer, planner and venue to review it, since they know the site, the walking distances and the kitchen.
Name one person to run the schedule on the day, so it is not you. When you share the plan with the wedding party, use the Share link button and everyone sees the same times.
Sources checked November 2026.
Frequently asked questions
- What is a typical wedding day timeline?
- For a 4:30 PM ceremony with a first look, hair and makeup start around 10:30 AM, photos start about 1:35 PM, guests arrive at 4:00 PM, cocktails start at 5:10 PM, dinner starts at 6:35 PM and the send-off ends around 10:10 PM. Enter your own times to get an exact plan.
- How long before the ceremony should guests arrive?
- Plan for guests to arrive 30 minutes before the ceremony. The couple should be out of sight 45 minutes before, since early guests start showing up then.
- Does a first look change the timeline?
- Yes. With a first look, most photos happen before the ceremony and you can join your own cocktail hour. Without one, family, wedding party and couple photos all land after the ceremony, which can stretch cocktail hour past 90 minutes.
- How long should a wedding reception be?
- Five hours including cocktail hour is a common plan. That leaves about an hour and three quarters of open dancing after a plated dinner. The generator warns you when a shorter reception cannot fit every formality.
- When should we take sunset photos?
- Aim for about 30 minutes before sunset and allow 15 minutes. The generator moves that slot so it does not clash with your entrance, toasts or parent dances, and it warns you if there is no good window.
- What if the reception goes past midnight?
- The timeline handles it and labels those times as the next day. Check your venue's noise curfew and overtime rates, and confirm vendors know the real end time.
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