Track RSVPs, meal choices and guest needs beside every seat
Keep every guest detail connected to their seat: who’s coming, what each guest chose to eat, and any dietary or accessibility detail your planner, venue or caterer needs to know.
Because it all lives on the guest record, you review it right beside their table and exact seat — instead of reconciling separate RSVP, catering and seating spreadsheets.
Free to start·No credit card needed·Private details stay in your planning record
What can I record for each guest?
Attendance, meals, dietary and accessibility details all attach to the guest — so nothing gets stranded in a separate document.
Five RSVP states with running totals
Mark each guest invited, attending, maybe, declined or awaiting — and watch the headcount update as replies land, including who’s attending but still needs a table.
Meal choice ≠ dietary requirement
The menu option a guest picked and an allergy that affects service are two different fields — so a nut allergy never hides inside “vegetarian”.
Structured seating needs
Record real needs — a wheelchair space, near an entrance, away from speakers, a high chair — not just a free-text note.
Adult, child or infant
Age groups help with children’s meals, high-chair planning and quick table reviews.
Private by default
Dietary, accessibility and private notes stay in your planning record — guest-facing charts show only name and table.
How do I keep RSVPs, meals and needs up to date?
Step 1
Set the RSVP
Mark each guest’s status from the list as replies arrive — update several at once when a household confirms together.Step 2
Record meal & dietary
Add the chosen menu option and, separately, any allergy or dietary requirement the caterer needs to know.Step 3
Add needs privately
Note structured seating needs and private accessibility details — kept on the record, never on public charts.Step 4
Review in context
Filter for missing meals or unresolved details, and check everything beside each guest’s table and seat.
Know who’s coming — and who still needs to reply
RSVP status drives nearly every seating decision, so it stays front and centre. Update a status inline and your running totals move with it — no re-tallying in another spreadsheet.
When a guest declines, Lovely Seating stops counting them toward active table capacity. If they were already seated, the plan flags it for review rather than quietly rearranging your tables — so you can see exactly what changed and decide.
Want a headcount before the replies are in? Our guest count estimator predicts how many of your invites will actually attend.
Your assignment is preserved until you act on it. Nothing moves on its own.
How do I give my caterer meal counts?
Set your menu’s meal options once, record each guest’s choice (the Meal column and bulk edit make it quick), and the guest list shows a running meal, age and side breakdown. For the caterer, export the guest meal directory: guests grouped by meal with plate counts. Meal choice and allergies are separate fields, so a nut allergy never hides inside “vegetarian”. The help center walks through getting final counts for your caterer.
| Meal | Plates | Dietary flags |
|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 41 | 2 gluten-free |
| Fish | 28 | 1 shellfish allergy |
| Vegetarian | 19 | 1 nut allergy, 3 vegan |
| Kids’ meal | 10 | — |
Fictional sample data for a 98-guest reception.
Viewing the counts is free. Downloading the printable meal directory is part of Pro, along with the other printable exports — including table lists that can mark guests with dietary needs (◆).
See the practical details right where you seat
These aren’t isolated admin fields — they’re the context you need while arranging a table. Open one and the meals, dietary flags, children and access needs are right there beside each seat.
- A declined guest no longer holds a seat
- A child may need a kids’ meal or high chair
- A dietary note follows the guest to the caterer
- A wheelchair need shapes where they sit
- A plated dinner benefits from exact seats
- A buffet may only need tables and dietary notes
Use as much or as little detail as your wedding actually needs.
Example: preparing Olivia & James’s guest information
Fictional sample data, used to demonstrate the product.
Olivia and James are planning a plated reception for 126 guests. As replies arrive they update each RSVP, and the summary settles at 98 attending, 6 maybe, 9 declined and 13 awaiting.
They filter for attending guests with no meal chosen and chase the rest. Mia Collins picked the vegetarian option and has a nut allergy — both stay on her record when she’s seated at Table 7, Seat 4. Another guest’s private note asks for a spot near the entrance; Olivia keeps it off the printed chart.
A week out, one guest declines — Lovely Seating drops them from active capacity and flags their old seat. The same records feed the final checks and the meal tally the caterer needs.
Several separate lists — or one connected record
Most weddings start with a different document for every person involved. Then the reconciling begins.
Details drift apart
- RSVP status in the invitation spreadsheet
- Meal selections in a caterer document
- Dietary notes scattered across emails
- Accessibility details in planner notes
- Tables in a separate seating chart
- Manual checks to keep them all agreeing
Details stay together
- RSVP right on the guest record
- Meal and dietary beside the same name
- Private needs available while you seat
- Table and exact seat visible in context
- Filters for incomplete or important details
- Relevant fields ready for supported exports
The goal isn’t to collect more than your wedding needs — it’s to keep the details that matter attached to the right guest.
Made for couples and wedding planners
For engaged couples
Log replies, meals and the odd allergy as they come in, and see your headcount and open to-dos without a spreadsheet in sight.
For wedding planners
Hold every client’s attendance, catering and accessibility detail in one place — and hand the venue clean, table-organised information.
What to know about RSVPs, meals & guest needs
We track replies; we don’t send RSVP forms
Lovely Seating doesn’t collect RSVPs from guests — there’s no RSVP website or form. Record replies from your wedding website or reply cards here, or import a CSV from The Knot, Zola or Joy, and bulk-update several guests at once.
Meal choice and dietary requirement differ
A meal choice is the menu option a guest selected; a dietary requirement is information that affects preparation or service. A guest can have both — and they’re stored separately on purpose.
Declined guests don’t hold a seat
Changing a guest to Declined removes them from active table capacity. Any old assignment stays visible as an issue to review, so your plan never shifts unexpectedly.
Private information isn’t chart content
Dietary details, accessibility needs and private notes are planning information. They don’t automatically appear on the chart guests use to find their tables.
Structured needs vs a free-text note
Auto-Seat can match a guest’s structured seating needs to a table that can meet them, when a suitable table exists. A plain accessibility note is kept with the guest for you to act on, but isn’t matched automatically — use the structured needs for that.
RSVP, meal & guest-needs questions
Can a guest have both a meal choice and a dietary note?
Yes. The meal choice and the dietary requirement are separate fields, so a guest can select the vegetarian meal and also have a recorded nut allergy — the allergy never gets buried inside the menu label.
Can I change an RSVP after assigning a table?
Yes. RSVP status can be updated any time. If a seated guest changes to Declined, Lovely Seating flags their remaining assignment for review rather than moving anyone automatically.
Can I track children separately from adults?
Yes. Guest records support adult, child and infant age groups, which helps with children’s meals, high-chair planning and table reviews.
What if a guest hasn’t chosen a meal yet?
Leave the meal field empty until you know. You can filter the list to find attending guests whose meal or other details still need attention.
Can I set my own meal options?
Yes. Add your menu’s meal options (for example “Mushroom risotto”), then pick one per guest from the Meal column or set it for many guests at once with bulk edit. The guest list shows a running meal, age and side breakdown for your caterer.
Do guests RSVP through Lovely Seating?
No. Lovely Seating tracks RSVP status but doesn’t send RSVP forms or host an RSVP website. Record replies as they arrive, or import a CSV exported from The Knot, Zola or Joy.
Which filters help me find missing details?
Filter by RSVP, meal, group, table and side, or show only guests with dietary notes, accessibility needs, children, no reply yet, or missing contact details (no email or phone).
Does Auto-Seat use accessibility needs?
For structured seating needs — like a wheelchair space or a spot near an entrance — Auto-Seat matches guests to a table that can meet them, as long as a suitable table exists. A free-text accessibility note isn’t matched automatically; it stays on the record for you to arrange around.
Will private notes appear on the printed seating chart?
No. Private planning notes, dietary details and accessibility information stay in your planning record — they aren’t automatically printed on guest-facing charts, which show name and table.
Are these details private?
Yes. Guest details are saved to your account, visible only to you and anyone you choose to invite. Dietary and accessibility notes and contact details never appear on the Find Your Seat guest page, and a guest sees their own meal choice there only if you switch it on.
Collecting RSVPs on a wedding website? Keep doing that, then import the guest list here to seat everyone.
Guides and templates for RSVPs and guest details
- How to make a wedding guest list Set up the list your RSVPs and meals will live on.
- How to make a wedding seating chart Turn confirmed replies into tables and seats.
- Assigned vs. open seating How the meal service affects whether guests get assigned seats.
- Wedding guest list templates Columns for RSVP, meal and dietary notes, ready to import.
Keep every important detail with the right guest
Track attendance, meals and private guest needs beside the seating they affect — without reconciling separate wedding spreadsheets.
Free to start · No credit card required · Private details stay in your planning record