How to Number Tables at Wedding – 10 Best Ideas For Wedding Table Numbers

When it comes to planning your wedding reception, obviously venue, access for caterers and the type of food you want to serve come to the top of the mind — but what about assigned seating or, at the very least, numbered tables so guests can keep track of where they left their salmon, wild rice, asparagus and glass of white wine after they return from the loo?

In this article, we will answer all your questions about seating, from how to number tables at wedding to layout planning to mitigating unsavory seating problems.

Do I Need Table Numbers at My Wedding? Do I Need to Number Tables at a Smaller, Intimate Wedding? 

In general, yes, it is good practice to number your tables at your wedding. This not only simplifies things for your guests but can also help any staffed catering service connect the right plates to the right eaters. Any opportunity you have as a wedding planner to take the guesswork, confusion or chaos out of the gathering and make things so easy, people don’t even have to think about a thing.

This is generally considered a good hosting practice as it allows your guests to focus instead on celebrating, eating, dancing and connecting — rather than losing time getting bogged down in logistics like finding their way back to their seats, to the bathroom or to the buffet table. If you have a large wedding party, numbering tables at your wedding is an absolute must.

But what about more intimate gatherings? Let’s say you’re planning a wedding of about 30 people — and let’s say this requires between 3-6 tables. Even if you’re only planning on seating thirty people at three tables, it is still considered good etiquette to number the tables — and even to assign seating, keeping families and romantic couples together. 

How Many Guests Per Table at a Wedding?

While the answer to this question, of course, depends on the size and dimensions of the tables you are able to grab for the reception, on average, wedding tables for rent seat between 8-12 people with an average of 10 people per table. When you call your table supplier, be sure to ask what size the tables are and how many people they expect to fit around each one.

This could mean you may be able to get away with renting fewer tables — or conversely, may convince you to order an extra just in case any unregistered guests show up. 

Why Is Planning Seating Arrangements a Good Idea?

Any time you gather a bunch of people together, especially people that don’t see each other all that often, there’s always the possibility of uncomfortable conversations when your boozed up uncle starts talking about politics. However, most guests respond positively to requests to keep the conversation light and to leave out any hard topics — after all, you are there to celebrate love and all the joy that comes with partnership, not to solve the world’s problems.

Fortunately, some of this is within your control as you can assign seating ahead of time, so people are more likely to have fun and less likely to start a riot. Here are some of the top reasons why planning seating arrangements at a wedding is a good idea:

Encourage singles to come out of their shell:

 Maybe you’ve got a shy cousin who is a total sweetheart but has a hard time connecting with others. This is an opportunity for you to think compassionately and empathetically about their situation. Consider placing them at a table where they are most likely to flourish — maybe even next to another single person who may be interested in flirting!

With love already in the air, they may take the lucky whiff and go down the same road soon enough. And even if they don’t it’s still a great opportunity to meet new people.

Keep families and couples together:

It might go without saying, but most families want to stick together when it comes time to eat — and couples too! Try to keep all of the pre-established units together, so nobody feels “left out in the cold” and isolated from the people they most love to chat with.

More importantly, if you invited children, keep them close to their parents to ensure they have constant supervision. Children can get up to some sneaky stuff when left unattended and a wedding may not be the best place to find that out.

Mitigate any drama or bad blood between people:

 Not everyone holds a grudge, but the truth is, some people do. And for circumstances like that, your best bet is to space out any family members or friends who have experienced recent conflict and allow the distance to swallow their disagreement. Hopefully, this will calm their nervous systems enough that they will be ready to salute you instead of brooding, sulking or worse, seeking fights.

ADA accessibility: 

Are there elderly or differently abled folks in your group? Consider them when it comes time to come up with seating arrangements and do your best to be courteous of their basic needs. For example, finding them a seat that is easily accessed without wandering through weaving tables (and a table that is ideally near walkways to the restroom, food area, etc.) is a thoughtful and empathetic way to welcome everyone to your wedding.

You can also use this opportunity to place the elderly closer to their caregivers, if any, to make it easier for them to access help without having to wander through the room looking for their caregivers.

Choose who sits at your table: 

Selfishly, you may want to sit with your traveling photojournalist aunt, your maid of honor or your anecdote-infused godfather. Whatever the case, it’s your wedding and you get to choose who you sit with. Choose wisely, for these are the people who will be sharing the space with you after you’ve tied the knot.

It’s a huge help to the catering team:

The catering team basically holds down the reception part of our wedding and it wouldn’t hurt to make their tasks a little lighter. Catering for a huge wedding can be a real marathon especially when accounting for dietary restrictions and the possibility of guests having ordered different meals. Having a seating chart with each guest’s meal choice and dietary restrictions designed beforehand to share with your catering team will help them serve both you and your guests more efficiently.

This small extra step will help you save time that would have otherwise been spent moving from table to table identifying who wants what and more importantly preventing any trips to the ER.

It can help you stay on schedule:

Sitting a large group of people is no small task especially when there’s no particular order about it. If we’re being honest, the natural instinct is to spend time trying to find a table with a few people you already like. The easiest way to deal with this delay is to assign sitting places to everyone on your guest list to help them find their places faster by simply glancing at the chart. You can even enlist the help of your bridesmaid to help everyone settle down faster so you can move to the fun part.

It’s a good way to avoid changing places:

No matter how many seating combinations you try, someone is always going to feel like they didn’t sit at the cool table.  It comes with the job! Having assigned sitting places deters people from moving around as they would if the sitting were less rigid as they are aware several plans have been made around them being at their designated tables. It’s also a great way to get rid of the chaos that comes with people moving around unnecessarily in the middle of a ceremony.

Wedding Table Layout Planning

When it comes to planning your wedding table layout, there are a number of things to consider in order to create a smooth, intuitive and easy seating arrangement for everyone. Here are some of the top things to consider when planning wedding table seating arrangements:

Number of guests: 

How many people are going to be there? How many might show up unannounced? In general, it’s good to plan for at least five surprise appearances!

Size of venue: 

What is the square footage of the venue and how many tables can you comfortably seat without encroaching on important aspects like the open bar, dance floor or walkway to the restroom?

Size of tables: 

How many people can each table seat? Are they rectangular or circular? Can they seat many people with ample room to walk around without feeling cramped? Will the number of tables you need to seat your guests fit in the venue itself?

Seats and table coverings: 

You will have to consider where to come up with chairs (ideally relatively comfortable ones) and how you will cover the tables — whether with a cheap and disposable plastic cloth, linen or something else entirely. You’ll need to ensure you have enough to cover each table you’ve decided you need.

Numbers and names, if using:

 Let’s say the sweethearts met fighting forest fires and knew they wanted to spend forever together. They might want to choose table names that reflect how they met, like “Polaski,” “Spanner Wrench,” “Foot Valve,” “Inch and a Half Hose,” etc. However, it’s important to note that these names should be in conjunction with numbers, as a guest returning from the bathroom might have a hard time finding her “Bucket Drop” table in a sea of empty chairs without numbers as well.

How to Number Tables at Wedding

While many people are tempted to label the head table as “Table 1,” this can sometimes be confusing as, generally, the head table is located in the middle of the group of celebrants. There are two main ways to number wedding tables. The first is just to zigzag back and forth in numerical order, numbering adjacent tables in the corresponding ascending order.

Other wedding planners insist that even-numbered tables should be reserved for the side of the room to the right of the doorway, whereas odd numbers should be kept on the left side. If you are interested in the idea of naming the tables after something significant, such as places you’ve traveled with your partner or words in line with the theme you and your wedding planner have agreed on for your wedding — such as firefighting lingo for a firefighter wedding — add a number next to the cute name you choose to minimize confusion as much as possible.

You should also read: How Much Does a Wedding Decorator Cost?

How to Mitigate Potential Seating Disasters

No matter how thoughtfully you create a seating arrangement plan, there are bound to be some last-minute adaptations that need to happen. Any time you gather a large group of people, you are going to have to find ways to cater to everyone’s needs without taking on too much of that responsibility.

Fortunately, there are some simple solutions that can help you in the following circumstances that can keep everything flowing as it should and provide your guests with the help they need to feel comfortable!

Somehow a Person Got Overlooked and You’re Short Seats

Whether they RSVP’d or not, a surprise guest can cause an unprepared planner’s heart to sink. This is why it is generally a good idea not to seat the maximum number of people at each table (for example, for a table that seats 12, assign 10 seats). Another option is to order one extra table for any last-minute or surprise visitors.

A Guest Doesn’t Show Up

Fortunately, this one is a little easier to deal with. Simply remove their name and place from their previous table and, if possible, fill it with someone who may be looking to join a fuller table. 

A Guest Shows Up with a Surprise Date They Never RSVP’d For

Unfortunately, this happens more than we’d like to admit, but there are ways around it! First of all, ordering one more table than you think you’ll need will, at worst, end up as a social gathering point for people who want to drink and talk, not dance and at best, provide seating opportunities for anyone who was unaccounted for, unexpected or simply wanted to change seats.

Somehow a guest has no assigned seat

There’s a lot that goes into wedding planning on the D-day and mistakes are bound to happen when a lot of things are being done quickly despite the proper overhead plan. The easiest way to address this scenario is to simply have your coordinator look through the pre-determined seating chart to determine the assigned place for your guest. Once that is done, a place can be quickly made for the guest at the table within minutes. It’s a quick fix that will go unnoticed by most of your wedding guests as they’ll still be taking in the ambiance.

Guests Create a Great Process Out of Finding Their Assigned Seating

If you’re trying to keep a tight schedule, the last thing you want to throw into the happenings is people milling about from table to table, hoping to find their name. Have bridesmaids and other wedding helpers guide guests to their seats to save time. This not only gets things to the fun parts faster, but it reduces chaos and can even keep the cost of renting the venue down!

People Have Their Feelings Hurt Based on Seating Arrangements

Of course, this is always a possibility when you plan assigned seating. The best way you can mitigate this is by adding some of your wedding crew (bridesmaids and groomsmen) to the areas where there is not as much central “action” so your guests do not feel left out or like they’ve been kicked out of the “good” tables. Part of the role of your fellow celebrants is to put the guests at ease and take care of each guest as their needs arise. 

Planning Wedding Seating Doesn’t Have to Be a Nightmare

Now that you know some basic techniques for how to number tables at your wedding (and the proper etiquette about adding fun names to each location like “Costa Rica” and “Thailand,” etc.), you hopefully feel a little more prepared to take this undertaking on.

While numbering tables at a wedding doesn’t have to be a huge chore, it is important that you take the task with a relative degree of seriousness, understanding, empathy and consideration of everyone’s needs — from those in wheelchairs to those who are sensitive to being slighted to those with dietary restrictions.

This is one of the primary reasons why some brides opt to hire a wedding planner, as they typically do an excellent job at this. 

Now that you know that assigned seating arrangements are a good idea, what are you waiting for? Contact your wedding planner today or start counting RSVPs, venue square footage and the number of tables you’ll have to offer. 

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