An Expert-Approved Timeline for Your Wedding Day

The key to a wedding that runs smoothly is planning ahead. By breaking down your entire day into an organized timeline, you’ll ensure that everything stays on track from start to finish. However, a successful schedule requires you to meticulously include list every event—from getting your makeup done and taking photos with your immediate family to welcoming your guests to your reception and listening to your maid of honor’s toast. Ultimately, the more detailed you can make your wedding timeline, the better. As a rule of thumb, traditional wedding ceremonies typically last 30 minutes to an hour, and most wedding receptions are usually four to five hours long.

To help guide your planning, here, Tessa Lyn Brand, an expert wedding planner and the owner of Tessa Lyn Events, helped us craft a sample wedding timeline based on a ceremony starting at 5:30 a.m. If your nuptials are scheduled to begin earlier or later, simply adjust the timing as necessary to work within the context of your celebration. It’s also important to note that this wedding timeline also assumes that your ceremony and reception are being held at the same venue, which means your guests won’t need to travel to a separate party location before cocktail hour can begin. As a result, if you’re hosting your reception at a different site, make sure to account for travel time in your schedule.

Below, a sample wedding timeline to follow on your big day.

Before the Ceremony

The ceremony start time listed on your invitations is really just for your guests; for you, your partner, your wedding party, and many of your vendors, the big day begins long before the time indicated on the invitation.

11 a.m. Hair and Makeup Services Begins

While this timing will ultimately depend on how many individuals are having their hair and makeup done, an 11 a.m. start time generally works for the average group of bridesmaids. If you’re planning a wedding with two grooms or won’t be needing formal hair and makeup services, you can cut this from your timeline. Conversely, if you have a larger group of women who need hair and makeup services, you may need to start earlier. Your hairstylists and makeup artists can help you determine what time this process needs to begin.

2 p.m. Photographer Arrives

Your wedding photographer should arrive 30 minutes before you and your partner are dressed and ready. During this time, your photographer(s) can get shots of the wedding attire—including any dresses, suits, or tuxedos—the rings, the invitation suite, and any other key details. They may also use this time to scout the wedding venue for great photo backdrops.

2:15 p.m. Wedding Party Is Ready; Bride’s Hair and Makeup Is Complete

Your bridesmaids (as well as the mother of the bride and any other bridal suite VIPs) should be dressed and ready by the time your hair and makeup is complete. This way, everyone can be in the background of the photos that document you slipping on your attire.

2:30 p.m. Couple Gets Dressed

Once you’re mostly dressed, now’s the time to have your photographer capture those intimate moments of your maid of honor (and maybe your bridesmaids, too) helping you zip up your dress and slip on your shoes. If you’re looking for a role for your mom, have her help with your earrings, fix your jewelry, or adjust your veil.

During this time, a groom will put the finishing touches on his big-day look—tying his tie, having someone attach his boutonnière—for the camera.

2:45 p.m. Individual Portraits

Once you’re fully dressed and ready, your photographer will focus on capturing some beautiful portrait and detail shots at pre-scouted locations around your venue. These will be done of both partners on their own.

3:10 – 3:30 p.m. Wedding Party Group Photos

These photos are meant to be casual and fun, capturing the moments of celebration between you, your partner, and your closest friends. If you want any special shots, such as toasting with Champagne, make sure you have the props ready (clean flutes, for instance). In a wedding with a bride and groom, the bride will snap shots with her bridesmaids while the groom will be photographed with his groomsmen.

3:30 p.m. First Look

The (optional) first look is a special moment where you and your partner see each other for the first time, away from the hundreds of eyes that will be watching you exchange vows during the ceremony.

3:30 – 4:10 p.m. Portrait Photos Together

If you’re opting for a first look, this is an ideal window of time for your photographer(s) to capture some intimate portraits of just the two of you at pre-scouted locations around your venue.

4:10 – 5:00 p.m. Wedding Party and Family Photos

Before heading to your ceremony, you may want to capture a few family portraits. “Have your family meet, dressed and ready, in the lobby of your venue at about 4 p.m.,” Brand says. “Make sure your photographer has a shot list of every family combination you want captured, and designate a family member to help the photographer identify everyone. It will be much easier for your sibling or cousin to go find Aunt Linda if she wandered away because they already know who she is.”

During and Immediately After the Ceremony

It’s time to head to your ceremony! By following a pre-planned timeline, you’ll ensure that the celebration unfolds as your envisioned.

5:30 p.m. Start Time Listed on Wedding Invitation

Most weddings don’t start at the actual start time listed on the invitation. “Plan to start your ceremony about 15 minutes later than the invitation time,” Brand says. “This gives guests a little extra time if they are running late and ensures all the seats will be filled! You don’t want anyone to miss your special moment due to traffic.” Also, now’s a great time to have some music playing to add to the ambiance and also indicate that the ceremony start time is indeed approaching.

5:45 – 6:15 p.m. Ceremony

This is the time block that varies the most for weddings, Brand says. Ultimately, the length of your ceremony really depends on the type of celebration you’re having. Typically, non-religious ceremonies last around 20 minutes, while religious ceremonies can last up to an hour.

6:15 – 7:15 p.m. Cocktail Hour

While you and your partner sneak away with your photographer for some post-ceremony photos, your guests will enjoy cocktail hour. This will give you a much-needed break to re-energize for the rest of the night. Depending on how many photos you want to take, you can join cocktail hour halfway through or spend some time in the wedding suite having appetizers and drinks privately.

7 p.m.(ish) Sunset Photos

Set aside time in your wedding itinerary to take additional portraits together during the 30 (or so) minutes leading up to sunset, which offers one of the best opportunities for some incredible natural lighting. “Timeanddate.com will give you the exact sunset time on your date and location to the minute,” Brand says. “I find it is almost always completely accurate.” The actual time of sunset varies widely, depending on where and what time of year you’re getting married. In the winter months, pre-sunset photos may need to be scheduled for around 4 p.m.

During and After the Reception

You’re married! Your reception is the opportunity for you and your partner to celebrate your nuptials with everyone you love. Here’s the best timeline through the end of the night.

7:15 p.m. Guests Invited to Dinner

Let guests know it’s time to move into the dining room—if you’re not already there—and sit down.

7:30 p.m. Grand Entrance and First Dance

“Timing works great if you go from your grand entrance right into your first dance,” says Brand. “This keeps the formalities and the fun going. You can dance for a full song for your first dance, or fade out two minutes in. You can also add a dance set consisting of three to five songs after the first dance to get the energy up before dinner.”

7:35 – 7:45 p.m. Welcome Toasts

The first two toasts in the wedding reception timeline are considered welcome toasts. They’re typically offered by the parents or a family member of the newlyweds; traditionally, the father of the bride speaks first.

7:45 – 8:30 p.m. Dinner

Time to take a breath—and eat!

8:30 – 8:40 p.m. Wedding Party Toasts

As dinner is wrapping up, the best man and maid of honor can offer their toasts during this slot of the wedding schedule. “For all toasts, set a time limit and recommend advising your speakers stay within that limit,” Brand says. “I always say no more than five minutes.”

8:40 – 8:50 p.m. Parent Dances

“I recommend doing them immediately after the toasts, and then transition into an open dance floor,” Brand says. “After the last official dance, switch to a high-energy music and have your band or DJ encourage everyone to join you on the dance floor.”

9:30 – 9:45 p.m. Cake Cutting, Bouquet Toss, and Garter Toss

You may decide to partake in a number of wedding customs at your reception. First up is the cake cutting, followed by bouquet toss and garter toss (if those are traditions you’re keeping). This is also a good time for you and your partner to say a few words—and thank your guests for coming.

9:45 p.m. Open Dance Floor

Dance until the night ends!

11:30 p.m. Grand Exit

Arrange for a final song with your DJ or band ahead of time—and ask them to alert you when it’s coming up. Say your final goodbyes and hug your final hugs. If you’re having an exit with sparklers or other festive flair, have a designated member (or members) of your bridal party organize all the guests along your exit path.