The short answer, by guest type
Printed card in hand about four to six weeks before the wedding. A personal visit or call comes with it. Share the link on the same day.
A save-the-date message as soon as the date is firm, the link about six to eight weeks ahead and the card posted with enough time for courier delays, so that they can book trains and flights.
About ten weeks, because of postage and visa or leave planning. Send the link well ahead of the card.
Ten weeks or more for the full invitation, and a save-the-date much earlier, since travel and stay need booking.
A digital invitation about three to five weeks ahead is usually enough. Add a reminder before the RSVP deadline.
Why the numbers differ between sources
Indian wedding card printers commonly advise planning and printing cards at least five to six weeks before the wedding. Wedding-planning guidance elsewhere describes a six to eight week lead time for a traditional wedding with a hundred or more guests, shortening to four to six weeks for smaller gatherings and stretching to ten weeks or more for destination weddings. For guests abroad, etiquette guides suggest around ten weeks so that postal delays do not catch anyone out.
These figures are a range, not a rule. The right number depends on your guest list, the season, how much travel is needed and how much your family values early notice. The one reliable principle is that people who must travel need more time than people who live nearby.
A timeline you can copy
- 6 to 12 months before: fix the date with the family and priest, and send a save-the-date to guests who will travel. A short digital message is enough. See the save-the-date message guide.
- 4 to 5 months before: finalise the wording, order the card if it uses foil, letterpress or other finishes that take weeks to produce, and begin the matching digital invitation. See matching your digital invitation to your printed card.
- 10 weeks before: post cards to guests abroad and send them the link.
- 6 to 8 weeks before: share the full digital invitation with outstation guests.
- 4 to 6 weeks before: deliver printed cards in person to local family, with the link sent the same day.
- 3 to 4 weeks before: send the link to colleagues and wider guests.
- 2 weeks before the RSVP deadline: one clear reminder to guests who have not replied.
- 1 week before: a short logistics message with the schedule, maps and contact numbers.
- The day before: a final reminder with the time of the first function.
Treat these as defaults, not instructions. Where your family or priest has a tradition about when cards go out, follow that.
Seasonal and muhurat factors
In India the calendar itself shapes the timing. Weddings cluster in the auspicious windows after Dev Uthani Ekadashi, and there are periods such as Kharmas with no vivah muhurat. When many weddings fall on the same few dates, venues, caterers and travel fill up early, and guests receive several invitations at once. Sending earlier gets your wedding onto people's calendars first.
The Indian wedding season and Kharmas guide explains the muhurat calendar and how to time a save-the-date around it, and the Diwali timing guide covers how to stop wedding news being lost among festival messages.
A note on the kankotri or card-writing custom
Some communities begin with a ceremonial writing or releasing of the first invitation. Published accounts differ on when this takes place, with some describing about fifteen to twenty days before the wedding and others a month before, after which distribution begins. Do not assume a number. Ask the family elders or the priest what your community does, and plan the printing and distribution around that date.
Send the digital invitation earlier than the card
Print has fixed lead times. A finish like foil or letterpress can add weeks, and one printer lists around 20 to 23 business days for those against 3 to 5 for plain digital printing. Delivery and personal visits also take time. The digital invitation has none of these limits, so it is the natural first announcement, with the card following as the personal gesture.
Because a digital invitation can be updated, it also carries a risk: guests may see it before details are final. Do not send a link with times you are not sure of. If something is still to be confirmed, say so plainly on the page, then update it. See how to share a venue or time change.
Common timing mistakes
- Starting the digital version after the cards arrive, when guests already hold the paper and ask for the link.
- Sending a save-the-date with no date certainty, then changing it.
- Forgetting that foil and letterpress add production time.
- Sending everyone the same message on the same day, instead of by guest type.
- Skipping the reminder before the RSVP deadline and then chasing replies by phone.
- Forgetting overseas postage and visa lead time.
Common questions
Frequently asked questions
How many weeks before a wedding should invitations go out in India?
Printed cards are commonly in guests' hands about five to six weeks before the wedding. Guests abroad and destination weddings need about ten weeks or more. A digital link can go out earlier than the card.
When should I send a save-the-date?
As soon as the date is firm. Guidance commonly mentions six to twelve months for weddings with travelling guests. A short digital message is enough.
Should the digital invitation go before the printed card?
Usually yes. Print needs production and delivery time. The link can announce the wedding while the cards are made, and the card then follows as a personal gesture.
Is it too late to send an invitation four weeks before?
Not for local guests, and many Indian weddings do this. For travelling guests it is short. Send a digital invitation immediately and follow with a call.
How often should I remind guests?
One reminder about two weeks before the RSVP deadline, a logistics message about a week before the wedding and a short note the day before are usually enough.