Guest list guide
How to manage your wedding guest list
Every RSVP your guests send lands in one guest list in your console. This guide covers how to read it, how to tag guests and sort them by side, how to bring in the spreadsheet your family already keeps, and how to get everything back out as a file for your caterer or planner.
By the Wishes2Vows team Updated: 5 min read
1. One list, filled by your RSVPs
The guest list comes with the Deluxe package and up, and lives under Guests in your console. Every reply becomes a row: the person who replied, their phone, whether they are coming, the size of their party and the names they gave, which events they chose, and any message or dietary note. Nobody types it in, so it never drifts from what guests actually said.
Search by name, phone or the code on a guest's ticket. Narrow the list to people attending or people who declined, to replies from the last day, week or month, or to one event at a time. Quick filters pick out VIP guests, parties with dietary notes, big families, solo guests, replies that include a message, parties with unnamed seats and duplicate names.
- Open a guest to see their whole party, their ticket and their answers in one place.
- Add private notes to a guest for your coordinator; guests never see them.
- Add a guest yourself when someone replied by phone call or WhatsApp instead of the form.
- Change a reply for a guest who cannot edit it from their own phone.
3. Import the list your family keeps in Excel
Most families already have a guest list in a spreadsheet. With the Grand package you upload it instead of retyping it. Download the template from the import panel, or use your own file: the only required column is the guest's name, and columns such as phone, side, category, invited events, number of guests and notes are recognised when present.
- The file must be .xlsx. CSV files are not imported.
- One sheet is read: the tab named Guestlist, or failing that a tab with guest in its name.
- Up to 500 rows per file. Split a bigger list into two files.
- Undo removes the guests your latest import added, if you uploaded the wrong file.
Excel damage is cleaned first. The trailing .0 that Excel adds to phone numbers is removed, and titles such as MR, MRS, DR, MISS, MDM and MADAM are set aside before names are compared, so Mdm Siti Aminah and Siti Aminah are treated as the same name.
4. See who has not replied
After an import, the planned-guests board sets your plan beside reality. Each row from your file is matched against the replies that came in, trying the phone number first, then the exact name, then name and side, name and table, and name with the last digits of the phone. A unique phone match links automatically; when two replies could fit, the row is flagged for you rather than guessed.
The tiles across the top count planned guests, matched guests, guests with no reply yet and rows that need a look. The board also lists people who replied but were never on your plan, which is usually the plus-ones and the friends of friends you will want to know about before you set tables.
Once your planned list is imported, the planned-guests board lists the guests with no reply yet, with their phone numbers, so you can message each one yourself. For guests who already replied, each row in the guest list has a WhatsApp button (in the row menu on phones) that opens your own WhatsApp with a message already written. Either way you stay the sender, one guest at a time, so the message comes from a number they know.
5. Export for your caterer and planner
The guest list export is part of the Grand package. It downloads the list as an Excel file, or as CSV set up for Google Sheets or Excel. The export follows your filters, so narrowing the list to one event or to guests with dietary notes and then exporting gives your caterer exactly the rows they need. You can also export only the rows you have selected.
Files are made in your browser and saved straight to your device. Treat them like any list of phone numbers: share them only with the people who need them, and delete old copies from shared folders after the wedding.
Common questions
Do I have to type my guest list into the console?
No. Every RSVP fills the list automatically, and you can upload the .xlsx your family already keeps to see who on it has replied.
Can I import a CSV guest list?
No. The import reads .xlsx files only, up to 500 rows each. Save your CSV as an Excel workbook first.
How do I find guests who have not replied?
Import your planned list. The planned-guests board counts the guests with no reply yet and lists them, so you can send each one a personal reminder from your own WhatsApp.
Can I export only some guests?
Yes. The export follows your filters and can also be limited to the rows you select.