Build your wedding day timeline from the ceremony time

Enter your ceremony start time to get a full wedding day timeline, from hair and makeup through photos, dinner, speeches and dancing to the send-off.

What time should hair and makeup start on a wedding day?

Work back from being dressed about two and a quarter hours before the ceremony, and ask your stylists how long each person takes. For a 4pm ceremony with a small wedding party that often means starting around 10am.

How long after the ceremony does the reception start?

With a 30-minute ceremony and an hour of cocktail hour and family photos, guests are usually seated for dinner about an hour and three quarters after the ceremony begins.

Should we do a first look?

A first look moves couple and wedding party portraits to before the ceremony, so you can join more of cocktail hour. Without one, those photos move into cocktail hour instead.

How much buffer should a wedding timeline have?

Add about 15 minutes after hair and makeup and 10 minutes after family photos, which are the parts of the day that most often run late.