The list of top 10 wedding planning apps was one of the most difficult to compile, simply because there are SO many amazing apps out there to help brides and grooms (okay, mostly brides) plan their special day. Perhaps the abundance of apps comes from the fact that there are so many different aspects of a wedding: the bridal dress, bridesmaids, color schemes, guests, seating, budgeting, registries, general organization, and more. Naturally, brides want every single aspect to be perfect.
While some wedding apps offer many services all in one, others have a specific focus, like AllSeated, designed for photo sharing, and Pantone Studio, for choosing the perfect color scheme. Pinterest, on the other hand, is ideal for inspiration. Then there are apps like The Knot Wedding Planner and Appy Couple, which are more comprehensive. These offer checklists, RSVP management, vendor tracking, wedding websites, and more.
The app you choose will depend on your immediate needs. Not everyone needs help with everything, and if that sounds like you, you can choose a niche app for the areas you do need help with. If the thought of planning your wedding makes you feel totally overwhelmed, an app that offers comprehensive organizational tools can help keep you grounded, not to mention sane.
Planning a wedding can be stressful, but it doesn’t have to be. In fact, it can be fun, and that’s exactly what the top 10 wedding planning apps are all about. When you have something in the palm of your hand that can help you with finding vendors, to-do lists, budgeting, guest lists, and more, everything suddenly seems less scary and more doable. Remember, it’s your special day we’re talking about. Give yourself some time to enjoy it!
WeddingHappy is the virtual equivalent of a wedding planner. Just plug in your wedding date and WeddingHappy will create a customized timeline so you can accomplish everything you need to before the big day. Other features include a wedding day countdown, payment tracking, a spending summary, the ability to share with your partner, vendor tracking, and notifications. All can be managed from an easy-to-use dashboard. And it’s free, which means you can try it with no commitment.
Joy is the ultimate wedding guest/invite manager. It allows you to create a beautiful wedding website and add your guest list. It sends Save the Dates and invitations, accepts RSVPs, and even offers a wedding registry. Joy also acts as a private social network, allowing you to create guest profiles and share photos. Joy can be used on desktop or as a mobile app, and it’s completely free.
The Knot Wedding Planner is one of the more comprehensive wedding planning apps on the market, and believe it or not, it’s free. It starts out with a Wedding Style Quiz that helps you define your vision, then offers a multitude of features to help you get there. Features include a network of 300,000 vendors and venues, a wedding guest list manager, wedding website, registry, checklist, budgeter, wedding countdown, and finally, a wedding day timeline. If you feel out-of-breath just from reading all the features, don’t worry, The Knot’s Wedding Planner organizes everything so you have time to breathe.
Zola offers several wedding planning services, including creating a free wedding website, printed invitations (at cost), a guest list, wedding checklist, wedding boutique with bride dresses and more, pre-screened vendors, and a registry.
The registry is where the app stands out, since it comes with several special features. First, it allows you to register at Zola and other sites, but when you register at other sites, the items can be added to your Zola registry so guests only need to shop in one place. Zola also allows options for group gifts and setting up cash funds (for honeymoon, charity, etc.). Zola also excels at customer service, offering free returns, easy exchanges, and a 20% discount post-wedding. Zola can be used on desktop and as a mobile app.
Mint is one of the not-strictly wedding apps that has made it onto the list, and it got here due to sheer usefulness. Mint is a free, easy-to-use money management app that syncs with your bank account and credit cards so you can monitor your bills and spending. When it comes to weddings, cost is one of the main causes of stress, so an app that helps you budget is crucial. Mint allows you to create a wedding budget and sends weekly email summaries and text reminders to keep your spending on track.
Another non-strictly wedding app, Pinterest is the ultimate site to draw inspiration from and to keep track of your favorite ideas. You can search for ideas for literally everything wedding-related — rings, invitations, dresses, centerpieces, cakes, makeup, hairstyles, veils, venues, and so much more. When you find something you like, just add it to your own board so you can store all your ideas in one neat place.
Your wedding color scheme can set the entire tone of the day, and Pantone Studio is a niche app designed to help you choose the right one. Explore over 10,000 colors and create a palette to test on 3D-rendered materials. This way you can choose the exact shades that will make your bridesmaids, flowers, and decor all come together. Another cool feature is that you can take a photo and the app will identify the shade so you can know what to look for. Pantone Studio costs $4.99/month or $29.99/year. Couples who are moving into a new apartment may want the yearly subscription to help decorate. The only downside of this app is that it’s only available on iOS devices, not Android.
Professional wedding photos can take weeks to be ready, but AllSeated photo sharing app lets you see all the photos taken by guests immediately. Here’s how it works: Before the wedding, add your guest list, then your guests receive invites and download the app. Photo sharing starts at the time of your wedding (or bachelorette party, rehearsal dinner, etc.). As your guests take photos with their phone cameras, the photos are auto-shared. Sharing stops when the wedding is over, and you get a free album made from the photos of all your friends and family. This app can lead to some of the most beloved memories from your wedding, and all it takes is 10 minutes of set-up before the big day.
LadyMarry is a free app for brides who want to be super organized and paperless. To begin, fill out your wedding date and location, and the app will create a highly customized checklist in about 3 seconds. In addition to a detailed checklist, LadyMarry also offers tips, a wedding countdown widget, and collaboration with anyone on your wedding preparation team. While the app doesn’t come with spending or budgeting tools, you can add notes that align with your customized checklist.
Appy Couple is a jack-of-all-trades wedding planning app. It covers a wide range of wedding planning needs, but it particularly excels at creating chic, personalized wedding websites. Other features include guest list management, invitations, RSVPs, registries, travel concierge, virtual toasts, guestbook, and guest photo collection. While this wedding planning app does it all, it comes at a hefty price: $49 for Appy Boutique and $149 for Appy Luxury. The only difference between the 2 is that the boutique version includes only a small selection of website designs, while the luxury version offers unique website designs from exclusive designers.
Every bride (and groom!) wants her wedding to play out exactly as she wants, and wedding planning apps can be a great help in making that happen. In fact, they can make all the difference between a bride who comes to her wedding strung-out and overwhelmed and a bride who comes calm and serene. And while all this is important, it’s also good to remember that the wedding is only the beginning of your life together with your partner. After you celebrate in fabulous style, you will have the rest of your lives to grow and embark on new adventures together.
