Last updated:
Written by:
Lewis Wood
Planning a wedding in three months is completely possible. You can plan a successful wedding in 90 days or less by staying focused on the most important decisions, being flexible with your choices, and moving quickly when booking vendors. If you need to plan a wedding in three months, start by organizing your wedding plan with clear goals. Many couples choose short timelines for different reasons, from work schedules to simply wanting to start married life sooner.
The key to success is knowing what to prioritize and what to skip. You won't have time to go back and forth on every small detail. Instead, you'll need to make fast decisions about your venue and main vendors, then handle the smaller details later.
This guide will walk you through the complete process from setting your budget and booking your venue to coordinating final details the week of your wedding. You'll learn which tasks to tackle first, how to work with vendors on a tight timeline, and what shortcuts can save you time without sacrificing your vision.
Establish Your Wedding Foundation
The first two weeks of your wedding planning timeline focus on the big decisions that shape everything else. You need to lock in your date, figure out who's coming, set a realistic budget, and get clear on what matters most to you.
Set Your Wedding Date and Guest List
Your guest list directly impacts your venue options when planning a wedding in 3 months. Start with 50 guests or fewer if possible—smaller weddings give you more flexibility with available venues and vendors.
Consider weekday weddings from Tuesday through Thursday. These dates have better availability and often come with lower costs. Off-peak months also open up more options.
Send your guest list via email or text within the first week. You don't have time for traditional save-the-dates, so direct communication works best for a wedding in 90 days.
Keep your list tight. Invite only your closest family and friends. This isn't the time to feel obligated to invite distant relatives or casual acquaintances.
Determine Your Budget and Priorities
Set your budget during the first week of quick wedding planning. Be realistic about what you can spend and add 10-15% for rush fees that come with short timelines.
Identify your top three priorities right away:
Venue and catering (usually 40-50% of budget)
Photography (10-15% of budget)
Attire (5-10% of budget)
Allocate more money to these priorities and cut back on lower-priority items. You might skip elaborate florals, favors, or custom stationery to stay on track.
Most couples planning a wedding in three months spend between $10,000 and $20,000. Your costs will vary based on location and guest count. Build flexibility into your budget since last-minute bookings sometimes cost more.
Secure Your Marriage License Early
Get your marriage license within the first three weeks. Each state has different marriage license requirements, so check your local clerk's office website immediately.
Most jurisdictions require both of you to appear in person. Some states have waiting periods between when you apply and when the license is issued. Others have expiration dates on licenses.
Common requirements include:
Valid photo identification
Social security numbers
Birth certificates
Divorce decrees (if applicable)
Witness signatures
Book your appointment now since some offices require scheduling weeks in advance. Without a valid marriage license, your wedding ceremony isn't legally binding.
Decide on Wedding Style and Non-Negotiables
Pick your overall wedding style in the first week. Choose one clear direction—rustic, modern, classic, or casual—and stick with it. This speeds up every other decision on your wedding planning checklist and helps you build a custom wedding checklist for your unique needs.
List your non-negotiables. Maybe you need a specific ceremony location or particular food options. Write down three must-haves and let everything else be flexible.
Skip trends and personalization that take extra time. Buy decorations ready-made instead of DIY projects. Choose standard menu options rather than custom dishes.
Your venue often determines your style. All-inclusive venues that provide catering, tables, chairs, and basic decor make planning a wedding in 90 days much easier. Focus on venues that require minimal additional decoration or coordination.
Key Bookings and Vendor Coordination
The first month of your three-month timeline demands quick decisions on your biggest bookings. You'll need to lock in your venue, build your vendor team, get your invitations out, and arrange guest logistics all within weeks of each other.
Choose and Secure Your Wedding Venue
Finding a wedding venue should be your first priority when planning on a tight timeline. To successfully find a wedding venue on short notice, you must contact multiple locations at once. Once you book your venue, you've officially set your date and can move forward with hiring other wedding vendors.
Be flexible with your date options. Consider weekday weddings, particularly Tuesdays through Thursdays, which have better availability than weekends. Off-peak seasons also give you more choices and can save you money.
An all-inclusive venue makes planning much easier. These locations provide catering, tables, chairs, and sometimes even coordination services in one package. You won't need to coordinate multiple vendors or worry about rental deliveries.
What to confirm before booking:
Available dates within your timeframe
Guest capacity that fits your list
What's included in the rental fee
Vendor restrictions or preferred lists
Payment schedule and cancellation terms
Visit venues quickly and make decisions fast. If a venue fits your basic needs and budget, book it right away. You don't have time to compare dozens of options.
Hire Your Wedding Planner and Core Vendors
Hire a wedding planner as soon as possible after securing your venue. A planner connects you with reliable wedding vendors, often at discounted rates, and keeps you on track. They've worked with these professionals before and trust them to show up and deliver quality work.
Book your photographer next. This is one of your most important vendors, and good photographers book up months in advance. Look through portfolios quickly and book someone whose style you like and who fits your budget.
Your core vendor team should include:
Wedding officiant
Caterer (if not included with venue)
Photographer
Ceremony musicians or DJ
Florist
Hair and makeup artists
Don't wait more than 36 hours for initial vendor responses. If someone takes longer to reply, move on to other options. When you're paying professionals, they should respond promptly.
Use your venue's preferred vendor list. These pros already know the space and have working relationships with the venue staff.
Create Your Wedding Website and Invitations
Skip printed save the date cards when you're on a tight timeline. Instead, use digital versions to notify guests of your timeline. Set up a wedding website immediately and email the link to your guests. Include your date, venue location, hotel information, and wedding registry details.
Send your wedding invitations within the first month. By the time you reach 2 months before the wedding, most of your large vendors should already be booked. Guests need at least three weeks before your wedding to RSVP, which gives you time to create seating charts and share final counts with vendors.
Your wedding website should include:
Event date and time
Venue address and directions
Accommodation options
Wedding registry links
RSVP deadline
Dress code
Schedule of events
Digital RSVPs through your wedding website speed up the response process. You'll get real-time updates instead of waiting for cards to arrive in the mail.
Update your website regularly as you confirm details about the ceremony time, reception schedule, and any other wedding weekend events.
Arrange Wedding Accommodation and Transportation
Book hotel room blocks within your first few weeks of planning. Hotels fill up far in advance, especially in popular wedding destinations or during peak season. Your guests need affordable, convenient places to stay close to your venue.
Contact hotels near your wedding venue and ask about group rates. Most hotels offer discounted blocks for wedding guests and don't charge you to reserve rooms. Add this information to your wedding website right away.
Transportation to arrange:
Guest shuttles between hotel and venue
Wedding party transportation
Your transportation as a couple
If your venue is far from guest hotels or hard to find, arrange shuttle service. This keeps guests from getting lost and prevents drunk driving after the reception.
For destination weddings, give guests extra notice about travel plans. Share flight information, local transportation options, and activities they can do during their visit.
Consider welcome bags for out-of-town guests. Include snacks, water bottles, a timeline of wedding events, and information about local restaurants and attractions. Your wedding party can help assemble and deliver these to hotel rooms.
Fast-Track Attire, Rings, and Wedding Party Prep
Getting everyone wedding-ready in three months requires quick decisions and flexible thinking. You'll need to find attire that's available immediately, schedule fittings around tight deadlines, and purchase rings without extensive customization delays.
Shop Smart for Wedding Attire and Accessory Essentials
Start your wedding attire search by looking at retailers that sell dresses off-the-rack instead of requiring custom orders. Stores like BHLDN and other boutiques offer gowns you can take home the same day. Check with bridal boutiques about sample sales, where you can buy floor models at reduced prices.
Traditional bridal salons typically need four to six months for dress orders. If you choose this route, expect to pay rush fees that can add hundreds of dollars to your total cost. Call ahead to confirm the salon can meet your timeline before booking appointments.
Keep your vision flexible when shopping. Focus on finding a dress that fits well and makes you feel confident rather than searching for one specific style. You can always add personal touches with accessories like belts, jewelry, or a veil.
Look for suits and tuxedos at department stores or rental shops that offer quick turnaround times. Most men's formalwear can be purchased or rented with just a few weeks' notice.
Arrange Wedding Party Outfits and Groomsmen Attire
Coordinating wedding party outfits requires quick action. You should select styles that are readily available to avoid long manufacturing leads.
Ask your wedding party to choose their own dresses in a color family you specify rather than ordering matching gowns through a bridal salon. This approach gives each person control over their budget and style while eliminating long ordering and shipping times. Provide clear guidelines about dress length, color range, and formality level.
Some bridesmaid dress companies offer rush shipping for an additional fee. Call retailers directly to ask about their fastest delivery options before your wedding party starts shopping.
For groomsmen outfits, coordinate suits or tuxedos through a rental company that can accommodate your group size. Most rental shops need at least two to three weeks for orders. Have all groomsmen visit the shop together if possible to simplify the process and ensure everyone gets fitted properly.
Schedule Dress Fittings and Beauty Trials
Book your first dress fitting within days of purchasing your wedding attire. Most dresses need at least one alteration, and you'll want time for a final dress fitting about one week before your wedding. Communicate your tight timeline clearly with the alterations specialist.
Schedule a hair and makeup trial at least three to four weeks before your wedding date. This gives you time to make adjustments if the initial look doesn't match your vision. Bring photos of styles you like and your veil or hair accessories to the appointment.
Book your wedding day beauty services immediately after a successful trial. Popular stylists fill their calendars quickly, especially on weekends.
Purchase Wedding Rings and Accessories
Buy wedding rings that are in stock rather than custom-designed pieces that require weeks of production time. Most jewelry stores have ready-made rings in various metals and styles you can resize within a few days. Simple bands require less time for sizing than rings with intricate details or stone settings.
Budget extra time if you want engraving inside your rings. This service typically adds one to two weeks to your timeline. Consider skipping engraving or adding it after your wedding if you're pressed for time.
Shop for your veil, shoes, and jewelry early in the planning process. These accessories complete your look and some may need ordering time. Break shoes in before your wedding day by wearing them around your house.
Final Month Details and Day-of Coordination
The final month before your wedding requires focused attention on guest communication, vendor coordination, and timeline planning. You'll need to send invitations quickly, lock in final numbers, and organize the flow of your wedding day to keep everything running smoothly.
Send Invitations and Manage RSVPs
You need to mail your wedding invitations immediately if you're planning a wedding in three months. Since you likely skipped save-the-dates, your invitations serve as the first formal notice many guests will receive.
Set your RSVP deadline for at least three weeks before the wedding. This gives you enough time to follow up with guests who haven't responded and provide accurate numbers to your vendors.
Key invitation timeline:
2 months out: Mail invitations
3 weeks before: RSVP deadline
2 weeks before: Follow up with non-responders
Consider using online RSVP options through your wedding website. Digital responses come in faster than mail and make tracking easier. You can also include meal preferences and dietary restrictions in your online form.
Create a tracking system to monitor responses as they arrive. A simple spreadsheet works well for recording guest names, meal choices, and any special requirements.
Finalize Seating Chart and Vendor Details
Once RSVPs are in, create your seating chart right away. Start by grouping guests who know each other or share common interests. Consider family dynamics and relationships to avoid uncomfortable table assignments.
Your seating chart affects multiple vendors. Your caterer needs table counts for food service. Your venue coordinator needs the layout for table setup. Your stationer needs the information for place cards or escort cards.
Share your final head count with all relevant vendors one week before the wedding. Most caterers and venues require this timing in their contracts. Include the exact number of adults, children, and any guests with dietary restrictions.
Schedule final calls with each vendor during this month. Confirm arrival times, setup details, and any last-minute changes. Your photographer needs to know family photo groupings. Your DJ or band needs your must-play and do-not-play song lists. Your florist needs delivery times and setup locations.
Create a master contact list with every vendor's name, phone number, and email. Share this with your wedding party and day-of coordinator.
Plan Rehearsal Dinner and Wedding Timeline
Your wedding rehearsal typically happens the night before your wedding. Schedule it for early evening so you have time for the rehearsal dinner afterward. The rehearsal should take 30 to 45 minutes.
Invite your wedding party, immediate family, and anyone participating in the ceremony. Your officiant will walk everyone through processional order, positioning, and cue timing. Practice prevents confusion and helps nervous participants feel more comfortable.
Who needs to attend:
Wedding party members
Parents and step-parents
Officiant
Ceremony readers or performers
Junior attendants (flower girls, ring bearers)
The rehearsal dinner follows immediately after. You can delegate planning this event to family members to reduce your workload. Keep it simple with a casual restaurant reservation or backyard gathering.
Build your wedding day timeline working backward from your ceremony start time. Factor in getting ready time, photos, travel, and buffer periods. Share the complete timeline with your vendors, wedding party, and family members at least one week before the wedding.
Confirm Last-Minute Logistics and Payments
Review all vendor contracts two weeks before your wedding. Note any remaining balance due dates and payment methods. Most vendors require final payment before or on the wedding day.
Prepare vendor tips in labeled envelopes several days early. Standard gratuity ranges from 15 to 20 percent for most wedding vendors. Some contracts include gratuity, so check before calculating tips.
Gather any special items you're bringing to the venue. This includes family heirlooms, DIY decorations, favors, guest book, card box, and ceremony programs. Pack everything in labeled boxes and assign someone reliable to transport them.
Obtain your marriage license according to your local requirements. Each jurisdiction has different waiting periods and expiration dates. Without a valid license, your marriage isn't legal regardless of the ceremony.
Pick up your wedding attire and verify all alterations are complete. Schedule final fittings for your wedding party to ensure everyone's outfit fits properly. Steam or press all garments a day or two before the wedding.
Confirm hotel room blocks are still reserved for out-of-town guests. Send your guests the booking information and any group discount codes. Verify check-in procedures and parking details.
