Programs: Thoughts?

I don't find them necessary unless you're having some kind of complicated unity ceremony that needs an explanation or a religious ceremony that most of your guests aren't knowledgeable about.

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Agreed. Skip it.

People generally know what happens at weddings and the order of events doesn't change all that much.

If you can find a way to do them super cheap or if you have the budget for them, go for it! Otherwise, I would skip them. From the weddings I've been to, the programs seem to be looked at once for 2-3 minutes while waiting for the ceremony to start, and then left behind on the ceremony chairs afterwards. I don't think they're really worth the cost unless you can do them super cheap.

I agree with Caytlyn. We didn't have them since we had a 10 minute secular ceremony.

Are you having a religious/cultural ceremony that guests need to know what happens next? Typically involving audience responses and the like. If not, then skip them

I had a religious wedding, so I printed them with the responses on it. I typed it in Microsoft Word and printed them on regular paper on an office printer. I don't think any one looked at them with the exception of a few. And then they go thrown away.

I would not spend a lot of time or energy on them, but as others have said if you have something besides the typical vows/ring exchange I would do something.

I personally think they are a waste if money and get thrown away anyway.

I agree with PP for if there is a complex ceremony and that you want to make sure people will follow. I actually just decided on this about a week ago. Since my FMIL and FFIL are not coming to the reception I wanted to make sure they had something to take with them for the special day and I really wanted to have a shout out to my BP, that's why I am choosing to have them. It's honestly up to you! Some people do save them and some don't.

I had an outdoor ceremony and I did programs mostly because I feel like if you’re having an outdoor ceremony and it’s gonna be very Sunny and you don’t have a lot of shade and having an outdoor program would be nice so that people could use it as a fan or as shade. A program is also nice if you were bilingual or it’s a really long ceremony

We had programs because we had a Jewish wedding ceremony, and we had several non-Jewish guests in attendance who were not familiar with the rituals so they needed the programs in order to understand what was going on. I'm also thankful that all of the Christian weddings I've attended have had programs as well, so that I could follow along. I think that programs are a must if you're having a religious wedding, but you can feel free to skip them if you're having a secular ceremony.

Instead of programs, we are having a custom poster/acrylic board (you pick the material & color) printed on Etsy that says the order of events. We're going to set it on a floor easel next to the welcome table. Originally, we weren't going to do either, but with the COVID-19 restrictions affecting the wedding, I didn't want people feeling unsure about what events are even happening. For instance, not all venues in my area allow outside food or drink (but some do!). At my venue, it's okay to have a champagne toast if it's provided by the venue, but no cake from a bakery, so no cake cutting.