# Wedding invitation design: print and digital in one look

[Canonical HTML page](https://gradiently.design/guide/wedding-invitation-design)

Many couples now send an invitation twice: once on card and once to a group chat. Here is how to design a wedding suite that looks like one thing everywhere, from the save the date to the welcome sign.

## The short version

- The standard wedding invitation size is 5×7 inches, which is 1500×2100 pixels at 300 dpi.
- Good wedding invitation design puts the couple's names first, then the date, then the place, with response details on a separate card or page.
- A wedding suite looks cohesive when every piece shares one palette, one pair of typefaces and one background.
- A digital invitation for messaging apps and stories works best at 1080×1920, carrying only the names, date, place and a link.
- Print files need bleed and crop marks, and colours should be proofed on paper because screens show brighter colour than ink can.

Good **wedding invitation design** starts with the standard 5×7 inch card, which is 1500×2100 pixels at 300 dpi, and a clear order of words: the couple's names, the date, the place, then everything else. The modern twist is that the same invitation also has to work as a phone screen, a group chat image and a welcome sign. The way to make all of that feel like one wedding is to fix the palette, the typefaces and the background once, then lay each piece out on its own.

## The wedding stationery suite, piece by piece

Not every wedding needs every item, but it helps to see the whole suite before designing the first card. Sizes below are the print formats at 300 dpi and the social sizes each platform recommends.

| Piece | When | Size |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Save the date card | 6 to 12 months before | Postcard, 1800×1200 |
| Save the date, digital | Same day as the card | Story or status, 1080×1920 |
| Invitation | 2 to 3 months before | 5×7 in, 1500×2100 |
| Digital invitation | With the printed one | 1080×1920 or 1080×1350 |
| Order of service or menu | On the day | A4, 2480×3508, or A5, 1748×2480 |
| Welcome sign | On the day | 18×24 in, 5400×7200 |

A full suite in print and digital. Timings are common conventions, not rules; destination weddings often send save the dates earlier.

## Wedding invitation wording and layout

Guests look for three things: whose wedding, when and where. Make the names the largest element, the date second and the venue third. The hosting line ("Together with their families") sits small above the names, and the response details move to a separate card or the back, so the front stays calm.

A 5 by 7 wedding invitation with the names Amara and Tom, a hosting line above and the date and venue below

A 5×7 invitation: names first, then date and place in one line, with the hosting line small above.

- Write the date in words or in full ("Saturday 12 June 2027"); it reads more formally than numbers.
- Keep the venue to its name and town on the front; the full address belongs on the details card.
- Pair one expressive face for the names with a plain one for details. [Script fonts](https://gradiently.design/guide/script-fonts) and [elegant fonts](https://gradiently.design/guide/elegant-fonts) list good options.
- Keep the smallest text at 9 pt or above on card, roughly 38 px at 300 dpi, so older guests can read it.

## Choosing a wedding invitation palette that prints well

A wedding palette should come from the day itself: the flowers, the venue stone, the season. Choose a deep colour for type, one or two mid tones and a light ground. Then remember that card cannot show colours as bright as a screen, so a vivid gradient that glows on a phone may print a little muddy. [Printing gradients](https://gradiently.design/guide/print-gradients) explains how to keep them clean.

- Ivy ink: #2e3a33
- Sage: #8fa58c
- Blush clay: #d8b4a6
- Champagne: #e9d8b8
- Ivory card: #faf6ef

A garden palette: a deep green for type, sage and blush as mid tones, champagne for accents and ivory for the card itself.

- Champagne to blush: `linear-gradient(160deg, #faf6ef 0%, #e9d8b8 55%, #d8b4a6 100%)`
- Morning garden: `radial-gradient(circle at 30% 20%, #f3f1e8 0%, #c9d4c2 50%, #8fa58c 100%)`
- Evening reception: `linear-gradient(180deg, #1f2a44 0%, #4b4a6b 50%, #c99a86 100%)`

Three soft backgrounds for a suite. Keep the gradient gentle where the names sit; the [wedding colour palettes](https://gradiently.design/guide/wedding-color-palettes) guide has more combinations.

If you want a background no other couple will have, a Gradiently Mark does that: each one is checked against every other so no two look alike, and once you claim it only you can export with it. It also renders fresh at every size, so the invitation, the story and the welcome sign share one surface instead of one image stretched three ways.

## Save the dates and digital invitations

A digital version is not a photo of the card. The phone frame is tall and narrow, so it needs fewer words set larger: names, date, place and a link to the website or reply form. Keep the words in the middle of the frame, away from the interface at the top and bottom, as in [Instagram Story size](https://gradiently.design/guide/instagram-story-size).

A landscape postcard save the date for Amara and Tom, 12 June 2027 in Bath

The printed save the date as a landscape postcard, with room to write an address on the back.

A vertical phone version of the same save the date in the same colours

The same save the date for messaging apps and stories, set larger in the middle band.

## Wedding signage design for the day

Signs are read from several metres away, often while walking, so they need the boldest version of the suite: the fewest words, the largest type and strong contrast. A welcome sign needs the names and a greeting; a seating plan needs names large enough to find in a crowd. Use the same background and fonts as the invitation so guests feel the day was planned as a whole.

- Welcome sign 18×24 in: 5400 × 7200
- Order of service A4: 2480 × 3508
- Invitation 5×7 in: 1500 × 2100
- Save the date postcard: 1800 × 1200

The printed pieces drawn to scale in one Mark: very different shapes, one recognisable surface.

## Printing your wedding invitations

1. **Design at the final size** Start at 1500×2100 for a 5×7 card rather than scaling something up, so type and edges stay crisp.
2. **Add bleed and keep a margin** Extend the background past the trim and keep words at least 5 mm inside it. [Bleed and margins](https://gradiently.design/guide/bleed-and-margins) shows how.
3. **Export a print PDF** Send the printer a PDF with bleed and crop marks. Gradiently exports print PDF on Pro; [PDF for print](https://gradiently.design/guide/pdf-for-print) covers the settings.
4. **Order a paper proof** Check colour, spelling of every name and the date on paper before the full run. Screens flatter colour; card tells the truth.
5. **Send the digital set the same day** Guests who get the card and the phone version together see one invitation, not two.

If you are a planner producing suites for many couples, the same approach scales: one template per piece, a palette per wedding. [Wedding planner branding](https://gradiently.design/guide/wedding-planner-branding) covers your own studio's look.

## FAQ

### What size is a wedding invitation?

The most common size is 5×7 inches, which is 1500×2100 pixels at 300 dpi. Save the dates are often postcards, at 1800×1200 pixels.

### What size should a digital wedding invitation be?

1080×1920 pixels suits stories, WhatsApp status and full phone screens. A 1080×1350 portrait works well when posted in a feed or chat.

### What order should wedding invitation wording go in?

A small hosting line, then the couple's names, then the date and time, then the venue. Response details and the full address go on a separate card or page.

### When should save the dates and invitations be sent?

A common convention is save the dates six to twelve months before and invitations two to three months before, earlier for destination weddings.

### Why do my invitation colours look different in print?

Screens mix light and can show brighter colours than ink on card. Order a paper proof and soften very vivid gradients before the full print run.