Software for wedding planners: packages, contracts and the payment schedule

A wedding planner sells two very different jobs. Full planning starts 12 to 18 months out and touches every vendor. Day-of (really month-of) coordination starts six weeks before and runs on someone else's decisions. Both get paid on a schedule, both need a contract signed by two people, and both end with a timeline every vendor has to read.

From inquiry to the last payment

1. The couple fills out your inquiry form: date, venue, guest count, budget range and which service they want. Pick "Day-of coordination" and the form skips the design questions and sends them to a shorter consult.
2. They book the consult on your Scheduling page, video or in person, with a reminder 24 hours before.
3. Send a proposal for the package they chose. Full planning might be a flat fee with a 50% retainer; day-of coordination a smaller fee with 30% down (examples; use your own). Set the deposit percentage and an expiration date so the date isn't held forever.
4. The contract goes out for E-Signatures to both partners, in order if you like. The certificate and audit trail stay with your copy.
5. Your payment schedule becomes invoices: the retainer from the accepted proposal, a middle payment you create by hand for 90 days out, and the balance from the proposal 30 days before the wedding. Each one has a card pay link and automatic reminders.
6. The floor plan, seating chart and stationery proofs go to the couple's client portal for approval. They pin comments on the image or approve a version with their name; files can be up to 25 MB, with up to 50 versions kept.
7. Two weeks out, share the day-of timeline PDF with each vendor through Document Tracking. You see who opened it, and you call the band that didn't.

A typical week in May

• Monday: three inquiries from the weekend's bridal show. Two book consults from the form's last page.
• Tuesday: a couple accepts the full-planning proposal. Both partners sign by evening and the retainer invoice goes out.
• Wednesday: version 3 of the seating chart is approved in the portal, with a note to move the grandparents away from the speakers.
• Thursday: the caterer, florist and photographer have opened Saturday's timeline. The DJ hasn't, so you call.
• Saturday: the wedding. On Monday, an automation asks the couple for a review a week after the balance is paid.

All 13 tools, one by one

How a wedding planner uses each tool, from bridal-show season to the final payment.

• Link in Bio: your Instagram bio link with the inquiry form, your packages page, real weddings and a signup for your planning-tips email.
• Short Links: a QR code on your bridal-show booth sign and table cards that opens the inquiry form, with a count of how many people scanned it that weekend.
• Forms: the inquiry form with different questions for full planning and day-of coordination, and the final-details questionnaire you send 60 days out.
• Scheduling: consults, venue walk-throughs and the final meeting as meeting types, with your buffer for driving between venues.
• Proposals: full planning, partial planning or day-of coordination with each service as a line item, a retainer percentage and an expiration date.
• E-Signatures: the planning contract signed by both partners, plus vendor agreements you sign as the planner when the couple asks you to book on their behalf.
• Document Tracking: the vendor timeline and the wedding-day run of show as PDFs, with a view record for each vendor, so you know who read the 4:15 p.m. photo call.
• Screen Recording: a short video walking the couple through the venue floor plan or a design board when they can't make the meeting.
• Notes & Boards: a board per wedding with the 12-month checklist and due dates, and a page with every vendor contact, arrival time and balance due.
• Time Tracking: hours on day-of coordination jobs that ran past the contracted time, so the overtime line on the final invoice has a record behind it.
• Invoicing: the retainer, the middle payment and the balance, each with a card pay link and reminders 3 days before and 3 and 7 days after the due date.
• Expenses: bridal-show booth fees, samples, mileage to venues and the emergency kit, with receipts, per month or per wedding project.
• Automations: when the contract is signed, a task to send the welcome packet lands on your board; a week after the balance is paid, the review request goes out.

Sales tax and paying your assistants

• Sales tax on wedding services depends on the state and on what you sell. In California, the CDTFA's tax guide for event planners says charges connected to selling decorations or other goods, such as design and consultation, can be taxable as part of that sale, while separately stated installation charges generally aren't. If you supply centerpieces, favors or rentals, check your own state's rules before you build your invoice.
• If you pay a day-of assistant who isn't your employee, the IRS requires a Form 1099-NEC once you pay that person $2,000 or more for services in 2026 (the threshold was $600 through 2025). Collect a W-9 before the first wedding; see the W-9 guide.

This is general information, not legal advice. Rules vary by state; check yours with a lawyer or your licensing board.

SoloWOS, Aisle Planner or HoneyBook: which fits

Aisle Planner is built around planning the wedding itself: checklists, timelines, layouts and seating. HoneyBook is built around the client project and payments. SoloWOS covers the business side and leaves the guest list and seating to a planning tool.

Choose Aisle Planner or HoneyBook if:

• You design floor plans and seating charts with the guest list in the same tool (Aisle Planner).
• You want a multi-payment schedule on one invoice that charges itself (HoneyBook).

Choose SoloWOS if:

• You plan in your own spreadsheets or a planning app and need proposals, contracts, invoices and approvals around it.
• You want to see which vendors opened the timeline, and pay one published price for every tool.

See HoneyBook vs SoloWOS for plan limits side by side.

Prices and features checked between October 17 and 23, 2026 on each company's site.

Start with these three

Proposals with a template per package, E-Signatures for the contract, and Invoicing for the payment schedule. Those three cover every dollar. Add Document Tracking for vendor timelines before your first wedding of the season.

Free tools that help

• Project cost calculator to check that a full-planning fee covers 12 months of hours.
• Mileage deduction calculator for venue visits and tastings.
• Business days calculator for payment due dates and the final-count deadline.
• QR code generator for your bridal-show booth.
• Free proposal template to adapt into your package descriptions.

What SoloWOS won't do for a wedding planner

• No guest list, RSVP tracking or seating chart builder.
• No payment plans on one invoice: the middle payment is a separate invoice you create.
• No vendor portal. Vendors get the timeline as a tracked PDF link, not an account.
• Couples can't upload inspiration photos through forms or the portal.
• Reminders go by email only, not text.
• SoloWOS doesn't file taxes, issue 1099s or collect sales tax for you. Invoicing sends the invoice with a pay link (card through your Stripe account) and your other payment details; your accountant or tax software handles the rest.