Guest numbers...

Oh... the things we don't think about!! Haha. Thanks for the input, I really appreciate it.

No problem! I had actually forgotten they needed seats until my tasting last weekend and they mentioned having the vendors marked on the seating chart (thankfully I at least remembered to budget for them) hahaXD

Thanks Emilie, I will most definitely have a look at the articles. We have 149 on guest list, however some family from Saskatchewan, Nova Scotia and some from Florida. Will review articles.

Thank you Melissa! Makes sense that way.
And good points Val, never really thought of the vendors. Good learning curve!!!

Hi Jennifer! I'm so glad you're asking about this, it can be one of the tricky things to grasp at first. You can take a look at this article too for ideas on how to prepare your guest list: Wedding Guest List Etiquette

How to Build Your Wedding Guest List

Making an A and B list could be a good solution to what you're aksing. How many guests are you planning to invite? Will it be a small or big wedding?

Yup- the only formula I would use to determine guest count would be : #invited= # attending

Anything else is tricky guesswork! Base all of your budget and vendors on the highest possible number to avoid unplanned costs

No problem. Don't forget to take SO's and plus ones into account when looking at your numbers (and you 2 also count in the head count)! And remember you likely need seats for vendors, so don't look at venues that you are going to max out. It may make the space feel very cramped if you are at the absolute max as well. Just some things to keep in mind

Thank you Valerie!!!We're in the very early stages of things, budgets, and looking at venues. Just trying to grasp everything. That's good advice. I appreciate it. There were a couple of venues I looked at, and we are over. But most of them are fairly on target.

You should always plan for 100% acceptance. There is not guess because it all depends on so many factors, there is definitely no formula. Sorry!

Does your venue have a minimum you are trying to make sure you don't go under?