6 Reasons why you need a seating chart

Not every wedding uses a seating chart.  For my wedding, we didn’t use one but there were a couple of reasons for that.  Does your wedding need a seating chart?  Here are some things to consider and help you decide.

1. What is the capacity of your venue?  If your guest count is close to the maximum capacity of the venue you will want to use a seating chart.  You want to make sure that every guest has a seat and that all families can sit together.  
2. Are you having a plated dinner?  If you are having a plated dinner it will be easier for your serving staff to know the plates needed at each table,  You will want to pair this with place cards with their specific food selection at each seat.  This will allow the serving staff to serve the food most efficiently and move your reception along faster.
3. Do you want certain people to be seated close to the head table?  Everyone wants to be close to the couple, but who do you want close to you?  If you want certain friends or family members to be close to the head table you will want to use a seating chart so that you can ensure that they will be close to you.
4. Do you have guests with mobility problems that your venue cannot completely accommodate?  If there are any areas of your venue that can be difficult for people with mobility issues to navigate you may want to make sure they are seated at a table that eliminates any terrain that would make it difficult for them.  
5. Do you have a complicated family situation? If you want to keep people apart you can seat them at different tables and at tables that are not near each other.  If you have family that don’t get to see each other much you may want to seat them all at the same table so you know they will definitely get to be together.  I worked with a couple who had some family members that were recovering alcoholics and some family that were heavy drinkers and they wanted to make sure they were sat at different tables in order to respect and support the sobriety of those family members.  There are many complications that could lead you to wanting a seating chart.  Each couple will have different potential complications and you will want to discuss it as a couple to determine if it is a big enough complication to lead you to wanting a seating chart.
6. What about COVID-19? Covid-19 has definitely affected weddings in 2020 and may continue to be an issue into 2021.  Certain states are requiring contact tracing and they want to know who has come in contact with each other.  Having a seating chart will allow you to know who was seated at tables together if there was a case of Covid-19 traced back to your wedding.  ​

While it may seem easier to not have a seating chart for your wedding depending on your specific situation it might actually be easier to have one.  Consider your guests, your venue and your catering when deciding if you want to do a seating chart.

Keywords: wedding, wedding day, wedding sign, wedding seating chart, seating chart, COVID