How to make place cards and escort cards

Decide which one you actually need

Escort cards (or an entrance sign) are not optional — guests need some way to find their table. Place cards are optional and only worth making if you're assigning specific seats within a table, not just a table as a whole. Making both roughly doubles the work for a distinction most guests won't notice.

Finalize the list you're printing from

Pull the current state of your guest list and seating chart — names, table assignments, and meal choices if you need them. If your list lives in a spreadsheet that's still being edited elsewhere, export a snapshot rather than working from a version someone might change under you mid-layout.

Choose a format

Three common paths, in order of effort:

• A single large sign. One print job, alphabetical by last name with table numbers. Least work, handles any guest count, nothing to knock over. Replaces escort cards entirely.
• Individual printed cards. A mail-merge template (a word processor or spreadsheet mail merge works fine) onto blank card stock, cut or perforated to size. More tactile, more setup.
• A stationer's template or printed order. Matches invitation stationery exactly, costs more, and needs your final list further in advance — check their turnaround time before you commit to it.

Write consistent wording

Pick one name style — first and last, or first name only for a casual wedding — and use it for every card. Mixing "Sarah Kim" with "Sarah & Jordan" with "Sarah + guest" reads as sloppy even if each individual card looks fine. If tables have names instead of numbers, print the name exactly as it appears on the table sign; "Willow" on the card and "The Willow Table" on the centerpiece is enough to confuse a guest who's had two drinks.

Lay them out

Escort cards go alphabetically by last name on a table near the entrance, so guests can scan for their own name quickly. Place cards go one per setting, in table order, so whoever sets the tables can work straight down a printed seating list without cross-referencing anything. Either way, print the layout order alongside the cards themselves — it's what saves you when a card gets knocked out of place.

Print a test batch first

Print five or six cards before committing to the full run. Check the font size is legible at arm's length, names aren't getting truncated, and the card stock feeds through your printer (or your printer's photo lab) the way you expect. This is the step that gets skipped under deadline pressure and the one most worth not skipping.

Handle late changes

Something will change in the final week — a decline, a plus-one, a name you misspelled. Keep a small stack of blank cards and a pen for handwritten fixes rather than reprinting the whole batch for one name, and do a final pass 48 hours out so the last changes make it in.