Wedding RSVP wording: 30 examples you can copy

The RSVP is the one part of a wedding invitation that has to work. The rest can be beautiful; this bit has to get a clear answer back from every household, with the information you need to feed and seat them. Here is how to word it, with examples for every situation, whether you are printing cards or sending a link.

What every RSVP needs to say

Whatever the style, an RSVP has four jobs. Keep them in mind and the wording looks after itself.

1. Who is invited. Names, not "and family". The number of seats you are offering is the single most common cause of awkward conversations later.
2. How to reply. A card to post, an email address, a website, or a link.
3. By when. A date, written in full. "Please reply by Friday 15 May" beats "RSVP ASAP" every time.
4. What you need to know. Attendance, obviously. Then the meal choice, dietary requirements, and anything particular to your day: the coach, the hotel block, a song request.

A fifth, optional job is tone. The RSVP is where the formality of the invitation either carries through or relaxes. Both are fine; just decide.

Formal wedding RSVP wording

Formal wording uses the third person, full names, and the traditional "favour of a reply".

The favour of a reply is requested by the fifteenth of May. M ______________________ ☐ Accepts with pleasure ☐ Declines with regret

The "M" is the old convention: guests complete it as Mr, Mrs, Ms or Miss and then their names. Many guests no longer know this, so a short line underneath ("Please write your names") saves confusion.

Kindly respond by Friday 15 May 2027. ____ of ____ guests will attend. Names: ______________________

We would be delighted to know whether you can join us. Please reply by 15 May. ☐ Joyfully accepts ☐ Regretfully declines

Please reply by the fifteenth of May. We look forward to celebrating with you. Number attending: ____ Names: ______________________

Relaxed wedding RSVP wording

Most couples now write RSVPs in the first person, which reads warmer and gives you more room to ask for what you need.

We'd love you to be there. Let us know by 15 May whether you can make it. ☐ We'll be there! ☐ Sadly we can't

Can you come? Tell us by Friday 15 May so we can let the caterer know. ☐ Yes, count us in ☐ No, but we'll raise a glass from afar

Please reply by 15 May. Even if it's a no, we'd love to hear from you.

One quick thing before you put this down: reply by 15 May and we'll stop worrying.

We're keeping a seat warm for you. Let us know by 15 May.

Digital wedding RSVP wording

When the invitation is a link, the wording lives at the top of the reply form and can be shorter, because the form itself does the structuring. The job here is to say what to do and by when in one breath.

Reply by 15 May. Tap yes or no, choose your meal, and tell us about any dietary needs.

Let us know by 15 May. Your names are already here; just tell us who's coming.

Please reply here by 15 May rather than by text, so nothing gets lost.

Kindly reply by 15 May. If anything changes, come back to this page and update your answer.

That last line is worth including on any online RSVP. Guests change their minds, and telling them they can update it themselves saves you a dozen messages.

RSVP wording for meal choices

Keep the choices short and name them the way the menu does.

Please choose a main course for each guest: ☐ Roast chicken ☐ Baked cod ☐ Wild mushroom risotto (v) Dietary requirements: ______________________

Starter and main are set; please tell us if you need a vegetarian, vegan or gluten-free alternative.

Children's meals are available for under-12s. Tick here if you'd like one: ☐

Online, this becomes a drop-down per guest, which is better than a card: each person picks their own and you get the counts without adding up ticks.

RSVP wording for plus-ones

The clearest way to handle plus-ones is to name them on the invitation and leave nothing to interpret. When you can't, or want to allow an unnamed guest, say so plainly.

We have reserved ____ seats in your honour.

You are welcome to bring a guest. Please tell us their name so we can seat you together: ______________________

We would love to invite everyone's partner but sadly can't fit everyone in. We hope you understand that this invitation is for the names above.

Our guide to plus-one etiquette has more on who gets one and how to say no kindly.

RSVP wording when children are not invited

This is the line couples agonise over most. Short and warm works best, and the RSVP (rather than the invitation) is the right place for it.

We have chosen to keep our wedding an adults-only occasion and hope you can make a night of it.

Although we love your little ones, this is a grown-ups' evening. We hope you can join us.

Children are welcome at the ceremony. From 7pm it's grown-ups only, so the evening party can run late.

RSVP wording for evening guests

Evening guests get a shorter form: no meal, no ceremony questions.

Join us from 7pm for drinks, dancing and a late supper. Let us know by 15 May whether you'll be there. ☐ We'll be there ☐ We can't make it

We'd love you to celebrate with us in the evening. Please reply by 15 May.

RSVP wording for a reply-by date

Write the date in full, with the day of the week, and give a reason if you like; people respond better to a reason.

Please reply by Friday 15 May. We need to give final numbers to the venue the following week.

Kindly reply by 15 May 2027. After that we'll assume you can't make it, and we'll miss you.

Our guide to RSVP deadlines explains how to pick the date so you are not chasing people the week before.

Wording that asks for something extra

An RSVP can collect more than a yes. Keep each extra to one line.

Will you be taking the coach from the hotel at 1pm? ☐ Yes ☐ No

A song that will get you on the dance floor: ______________________

Any access needs we should know about: ______________________

Are you staying at the Nags Head? We've held rooms until 1 April.

Five things to avoid

• "RSVP ASAP". Nobody treats it as a date because it isn't one.
• "Regrets only". It sounds efficient and leaves you guessing about everyone who stayed quiet.
• "And guest" on an invitation you don't mean. It gets taken up.
• Asking for a reply by text or email "or whatever's easiest". You will get replies in four places and lose one.
• A reply-by date more than a week after the invitation lands. The card goes on the fridge and stays there. Six weeks is plenty; three months is an invitation to forget.

Putting it together

A complete, relaxed, digital RSVP might read:

Will you join us? Reply by Friday 15 May. Your names are already here; just say who's coming, pick a main course each, and tell us about any dietary needs. If anything changes, come back to this page and update your answer. We can't wait to see you.

Everything in that paragraph has a reason to be there, and it fits on a phone screen. That is the whole test.

If you are sending the invitation as a link, RSVP Websites puts a reply form like this on the same page as the invitation, with the meal choice per guest and the dietary note already built in, so the wording is the only thing left to write.