Guide
Wedding program wording: what to include, with examples
A program tells guests what's happening and who's who. Here's what to include, in what order, with wording you can adapt.
What goes in a wedding program
- The couple's names, the date and the place. The front of the program.
- A welcome note from the couple, two or three sentences long.
- The order of ceremony: each part in order, with readings and their readers.
- The officiant, and the wedding party with their roles.
- In loving memory, if the couple want to remember someone.
- A thank-you, and anything guests need to know next: where to go after the ceremony, or a request to keep phones away.
Example wording
The front
The wedding of
Maren Holloway & Teo Brightwater
Saturday, May 22, 2027 · Fernhollow Barn, Asheville
A welcome note
Thank you for being here. So many of the people who made our life what it is are in this room. Today is for you as much as it is for us.
Keep it short and in the couple's voice. A detail from their story makes it theirs.
The order of ceremony
Processional
Welcome
Remembrance
Their story
Reading · Sonnet 116, William Shakespeare · read by Calla Ruiz
Declaration of intent
Vows
Rings
Planting a tree
Pronouncement
Recessional
Use the same names for each part as the officiant's script, so the program and the ceremony match.
In loving memory
In loving memory of Ansel Brightwater
Simple is best. Check the spelling of every name with the family.
Format and printing
- Size: half-letter (5.5 × 8.5 inches) fits a hand and prints two to a letter sheet at home or at a print shop.
- How many: one per couple or household is usually enough, plus a few spares.
- Proofread names twice. Then have someone else read them once more.
- Print a few days early, so a typo doesn't become a last-minute errand.
Want the whole ceremony written for you?
Tell us about the couple and get a personalized script with cues and timings, a run sheet, rehearsal notes, vow prompts and the program. See how it opens, free, before you pay.
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