It’s your wedding invitation on steroids.

Your wedding website is kind of a big deal. It’s the digital home base for all things related to your big day. From directions to dress code, it’s your wedding invitation on steroids: accessible from any device, updated in real time, and able to hold a way more wedding information than a linen paper card. Plus, it acts as a teaser to get your wedding to get your guests excited about the events to come!

It all sounds great in theory—but how do you actually create one? You’re in the right place! We’ve teamed up with our friends at Minted to give you The Ultimate Guide To Creating Your Wedding Website, from choosing the right template to what (and what not) to include, as well as how to spread the word about your site.

Ready to craft a functional-yet-fabulous wedding website? Let’s go.

Unless you’re a web designer by trade, we’re willing to bet you’d rather not build your website from scratch. (Your wedding to-do list is long enough, amiright?) It’s much simpler to choose a stylish template that you can plug-and-play with—and that’s where Minted comes in.

There are a lot of wedding website options available, but Minted is hand’s down our favorite—and here’s why:

1. Minted’s wedding websites are designed to match their wedding invitations and stationery—which means your guests will experience a cohesive, coordinated look from start to finish. Wedding branding, ftw.
2. Their gorgeous website templates are designed by independent artists from around the globe (though you can commission a totally custom website through Minted’s designers, if you’d prefer).
3. Basic wedding website designs are free; but if you’d like one with more bells and whistles, their premium websites are just $15 for the first year. Premium features include a custom URL, photo gallery, unique pages, and password-protected site.
4. BONUS! You get a $50 credit toward wedding stationery when you use a Minted wedding website. No code required.
5. And the kicker: All of Minted’s wedding website templates are smartphone-friendly and optimized for mobile devices.

We asked Minted for their best advice on selecting your template since they have over 1,400 unique designs to choose from!

“To get started, we recommend filtering for your wedding colors to see if something catches your eye. If you already have even more design direction, you can also filter by style or season to get to something that is just right! Once you have a few contenders, we suggest adding content to the first page of your website and then ‘trying on’ different designs, fonts, and color combinations until you’re happy. The good news about our wedding website templates is that you can change your design whenever you like. We often see couples start with a more neutral or classic theme, which they update to match their invitations once they’ve selected a design.”

A wedding website’s purpose is to be a one-stop shop for guests to easily find all the information about your big day. The who, what, where, when—and even fun things, like the why! It’s a great resource for guests to reference, so that they’re not pinging you or your partner directly in the days leading up to the wedding.

Wedding Websites Should Include The Following Information:

WELCOME

Your wedding website’s homepage is the front page of your site—and the first thing your guests will see! We recommend having a short-and-sweet welcome message, a favorite photo of you and your partner, your names, and the major details of your wedding: including the date, location, and start time.

EVENTS

Your guests need to know the basics: Where are the wedding events located, how do they get there, and what time do they need to be there? Lay out the date, time, and location for your wedding ceremony and reception, as well as extra events like the after-party and morning-after brunch. And guests will really appreciate a heads-up on the dress code!

We also recommend having a Google Map or driving directions to each location, keeping in mind that out-of-town guests will be unfamiliar with the area. If applicable, include a note about where to park at each location.

One caveat is to leave off the “invite-only” events. If you’re having an intimate rehearsal dinner for your VIPs or a day-after excursion for just the wedding party, keep those details private to spare your guests a serious case of FOMO.

TRAVEL

Your wedding website should have helpful information about travel and accommodations. Tell your guests which local airport is most convenient to fly into (or train/bus stations depending on how your guests will be arriving) and its proximity to your wedding location. You may want to include a list of rental car companies or other tried-and-true methods of local transportation.

This is also the place to list nearby hotels, as well as details about any hotel room blocks you’ve secured. Give clear instructions on how to take advantage of your discounted room rates, list the hotel address and contact info, and link to the hotel website(s) so guests can easily book.

If you’ve set up a shuttle service from the hotel to your venue, give guests the details! Let them know what time and where the shuttle will pick them up on the wedding day, as well as when the shuttle will take them back to their hotel at the end of the event.

REGISTRY

According to wedding etiquette experts, putting your registry information on your invitation is a big no-no. But putting it on your wedding website? Yes yes!

Simply include the name of the store or registry service, along with the direct link so guests can click through to shop.

RSVP

Put the “RSVP by” date on your wedding website to cut down on the amount of tardy replies. And if you really want your wedding website to work for you, you can set up an online RSVP option, too!

While grandma will more than likely want to send in a physical RSVP card via snail mail, having an online RSVP option on your wedding website is a great alternative for your more tech-savvy guests.

Minted makes the online RSVP process seamless: They’ll actually store your guests’ information and RSVPs, and use them to address your envelopes for save the dates, invitations, and more—for FREE. Talk about a time-saver!

You May Also Opt To Include These Sections:

ABOUT

Whether it’s “Our Love Story” or “How We Met”, your guests will love getting some insight into what brought you to the milestone of marriage! This is a great place to show off some of those engagement photos, or throwback images from when the two of you first started dating.

WEDDING PARTY

This page is like a who’s who of your wedding. Many couples opt to include a page with a shout-out to each member of their wedding party—including a photo, their name + role in the wedding, a brief bio, how they know each other, and perhaps even a fun fact or two!

THINGS TO DO

If you’ve got a lot of out-of-town guests traveling to your big day (or if you’re having a destination wedding), it’s a nice idea to lay out a list of things to do in the area! Share the best local restaurants or the most iconic spots for sightseeing, as well as fun shops, bars, and outdoor spaces to check out during their stay.

FAQs

This page will be a gold mine for guests who want all the nitty-gritty details. A Frequently Asked Questions page can include useful info, like:

• Is the venue handicap accessible?
• Will there be valet parking?
• What’s the weather forecast?
• Are kids invited?
• Can I bring along a Plus-One?
• Will there be a cash bar?
• What’s your wedding hashtag?
• Will you have an unplugged ceremony?
• Can I get a better idea of the dress code?
• Where should we go for the after-party?

COVID-19

Your wedding website is the perfect place to outline the safety and sanitation measures you’ve put in place due to COVID-19. You can alleviate any confusion by stating clear guidelines when it comes to mask wearing, social distancing, and all that other fun stuff that comes along with having a wedding during a pandemic.

Plus, if you’re having a micro wedding and want more guests to attend virtually, you can put the livestream link right on your wedding website. Include any information virtual attendees may need to know (e.g. “You’ll be muted automatically” or “Please sign our virtual guest book!”) so that they can reference it in advance.

We’ve already mentioned that your wedding website URL shouldn’t be printed on your wedding invitation…soooo, where should it go? Put it on your:

SAVE THE DATE

Yes, your Save-The-Date is the perfect place to introduce your shiny new wedding website! You can include a simple sentence that says something like “For More Details, Go To www.example.com” or simply print the URL as a stand-alone at the very bottom of the card.

PRE-WEDDING EVENT INVITATIONS

If you’re sending out invites for your engagement party, bridal shower, or bach parties, feel free to throw your wedding website address on them for good measure.

DETAILS CARD

What the heck is a details card, you ask? It’s a small info card that gets tucked inside your wedding invitation suite. So while etiquette experts frown upon printing the website URL on the invitation itself, it can absolutely be printed on a separate card within the same envelope. The details card can also list things like your registry information, room block information, or dress code.

What About Social Media?

You may be thinking, “Why don’t I just post the URL on social media and call it a day?” While that may sound like the easiest way to spread the word about your wedding website, keep in mind that not all of your followers will be invited to the wedding. To avoid hurt feelings, it may be best to only share your website URL with the people who are actually on the guest list.

It’s a great idea to keep your wedding website up-to-date before the wedding day…but what happens after? Most couples just let their website archive into oblivion; but if you’d like to keep the fun going for a bit longer, consider posting your favorite wedding photo highlights, the funniest hashtagged photos from social media, or photos from your honeymoon! It’s a great way to share the full picture of your wedding and close the loop on this marvelous moment in time.