Get your guests from cocktail hour to their dinner seats with these cute escort cards, place cards, and seating chart ideas!

Wedding Place Cards & Displays for A Flawless Wedding Seating Chart

Once you’re done planning your wedding seating chart, it’s time to create escort cards or a visual chart for your guests! You can choose to print everyone’s names out on one big list or use individual cards to let everyone know where they’re seated. The goal is to make it easy for all of your guests to find their table number! In this guide, we’ll show you some of our favorite escort cards, visual seating charts, place cards, and display ideas -- plus, answers to some of your questions!

Adorable and Effective Wedding Escort Cards

Escort cards are aptly named. These small cards feature your guest’s name and their table number to help escort them to their seat. Sometimes name cards can be used instead and placed at each table setting to assign a specific seat to your guests. We picked a few cute wedding escort card ideas to show you some of your options. 

1) Simple Script Wedding Escort Cards

Minimalist Wedding Escort Cards

Your escort cards don’t need to be intricate, they just need to be legible. A simple escort card is especially important if you want the rest of your table decor to stand out. An elegant script font is all you need to elevate a place card without complicating it.

2) Cute & Delicate Wedding Name Cards

Gold Accent Wedding Name Cards

We love a pop of gold. Add a luxurious touch to your place setting with these handmade cotton paper name cards. The modern style calligraphy is the perfect hybrid of classic and contemporary.

3) Dainty Calligraphy Escort Cards 

Watercolor and Calligraphy Escort Cards

Fine point calligraphy names surrounded by watercolor flowers create a whimsical place card for your wedding. These dainty cards are a subtle touch of color for your wedding place settings. These are perfect for a springtime garden wedding.

4) Modern Minimalist Place Cards

Simple Slim Wedding Place Cards

Micro wedding place cards or escort cards are an adorable idea. Since your cards don’t need to hold much information, they can be small and cute. A minimalist font makes these cards easy to read and provide a contemporary style. These tiny cards could also be used as tags if you want to attach your place cards to a small wedding favor.

5) Fun Wildflower Name Cards

Wildflower Wedding Name Cards

If you’re filling your bouquet and flower arrangements with wildflowers, keep the theme going with your place cards. Fun and colorful florals surround the crisp table number and guest name on these cards. Name cards with a variety of colors in the design are easy to match with your wedding colors.

6) Wedding Place Cards with Meal Choice

Handmade Place Cards with Meal Choice

Dietary restrictions are a serious issue for some wedding guests. Many guests are on strict diets for moral, religious, or health reasons. Give them peace-of-mind that their request is being respected by noting their meal choice on the place card. Even a small icon indicating the meal choice or allergy will help the wedding staff make sure your guests are properly taken care of.

7) Unique Non-Traditional Shape Place Cards

Wavy Edge Round Place Cards

If you’re trying to think outside the box, you can order place cards that aren’t just rectangles. Some cards are round, square, or have wavy edges. You can also sub place cards for a name plate made of a different material like wood, colorful stones, and metal.

Cute Wedding Seating Chart Display Ideas

You’ll need to place your escort cards or seating chart somewhere near the entrance of the reception. Find a way to present the table assignments that fits with the style of your wedding and looks organized. There are a ton of fun yet efficient ways to get your guests to their seat, below are a few of our favorite ideas.

1) Painted Acrylic Wedding Seating Chart

Painted Acrylic Wedding Seating Chart

If you’ve decided on a seating chart instead of individual place cards, choose one that matches your wedding colors. A painted acrylic seating chart can be made in the color of your choice with the table numbers and guest names printed on top. This simple and versatile style can be used to fit nearly any wedding theme.

2) Taylor Swift-Inspired Wedding Seating Chart 

‘And At Every Table, I’ll Save You A Seat’ Decal

Featuring your favorite love quotes throughout your wedding will remind you of why you’re at the altar. A quote from one of your favorite Taylor Swift songs, “And At Every Table, I’ll Save You A Seat” will look adorable above your wedding seating chart. This decal is easy to place on any smooth surface like a piece of antique glass or a beautiful mirror.

3) Wood & Clothes Pins Rustic Escort Card Display 

Rustic Wood Escort Card Display Frame

A simple wood frame displays your escort cards for your rustic wedding in an understated way. Your guests can easily remove their card from the clothespin to find their seat or table number. A rustic style works for any country wedding or backyard ceremony. You can buy a pre-made frame like the one above or make one at home from recycled wood or a thrifted picture frame.

4) Minimalist Wood Escort Card Holders 

Minimalist Wood Place Card Stands

Escort card stands make it easy to display your guests’ name and table number on any table. Put these escort card holders on a table near the entrance to the reception so guests can grab their own and take it to their table. Alternatively, you could place these on their plate as a name card to mark their seat. 

5) Simple Wedding Seating Chart Display Board

Acrylic Wedding Seating Chart

Acrylic is a sleek material that’s shiny like glass without the potential to break into a million pieces. A simple wedding seating chart will suit any wedding theme, even the most refined or minimalist. You don’t have to have a complicated system for getting people to their seats -- keep it simple and sophisticated.

How to Match Your Seating Chart to Your Wedding

Your seating chart or escort card display should coordinate with the rest of your wedding. Think about your wedding theme or vibe and try to think of an idea that fits the same aesthetic. The same inspiration, colors, flowers, and font are all important to think of as you work on your seating display.

Latte Bridesmaid Dresses

Your bridesmaid dress color is an easy way to get inspiration for your escort card display. Incorporate your dress color into the flowers on your display table, the frame you choose, the design on the escort cards, or other accents.

Desert Rose Bridesmaid Dresses

You can also incorporate your floral arrangements in your display. Talk to your florist about a flower arrangement for your wedding seating chart. They can create a garland for around the frame or on the escort card table that matches the rest of your flowers.

Many brides choose to use thrifted or vintage items to decorate their wedding. A shabby chic or boho wedding is the perfect place to use an antique as part of your seating chart or escort card display. An antique window or mirror is the perfect frame for your seating assignments.

FAQ: Seating Charts, Escort Cards, and Place Cards

Okay so now you’ve seen some fun ideas for seating charts -- but how does it all work? We’ve answered some of the most common questions about the process to help you get started.

1) What are wedding escort cards?

Escort cards are individual seating assignments for each guest. They have the guest’s name and their table number printed on them and are usually located near the reception space or in the cocktail hour space.

2) When should I order wedding escort cards?

Try to order your escort cards at least a couple weeks ahead of the wedding. As soon as your RSVPs come back and you have a final guest list (usually about 3-4 weeks before the wedding) you can order your cards.

3) Do I need a seating chart if I have escort cards?

Escort cards are usually used instead of a seating chart since they serve the same purpose. Either one is fine as long as there is a simple way for guests to figure out which table they’re assigned.

4) Do you put couples together on escort cards?

You can choose to put couples together on one card or give them each their own card. Listing couples together is more traditional and also will help save you time, money, and paper. If the escort card doubles as a favor, try to make sure there is one for each guest.

5) What’s the difference between escort cards and place cards?

Escort cards are placed somewhere on the way to the table for guests to know where they should go. Place cards are placed at the guest’s plate so they know which seat is theirs.

6) Can you do escort cards and place cards?

You can do escort cards and place cards if you want both. You can also skip the place cards if you want. You also have the option of substituting a seating chart for escort cards and then using place cards for individual seats.

7) How do you organize escort cards at a wedding?

Escort cards are usually organized by last name in alphabetical order. This system makes it easy for guests to find their name.

8) Can I just have a seating chart?

Yes! A seating chart has all your guests’ names and their tables listed on it. As long as you don’t need guests in specific seats, a seating chart is fine on its own.

Get Started on Your Seating Chart & Escort Cards

Deciding between a seating chart or escort cards depends on your taste, budget, and timeline. Sometimes it’s easier to create one big chart for your guests to reference. Sometimes it looks nicer to have escort cards for each guest. Then make sure you create a display that looks great in your venue with the rest of your wedding decor.

Still need to figure out where everyone is sitting? Check out our guide to wedding seating charts.

Wedding Seating Charts: How to Choose Your Guests' Seats