A digital wedding invitation should be judged on eight criteria: replies and reminders, plus-one management, a programme per guest group, photo sharing, the gift fund and its commission, data protection, the total price, and no app for your guests to install. Layout and animations matter too, but they come once these eight points are checked.
The eight criteria at a glance
| Criterion | What to check | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Replies and reminders | A personal link per guest, replies counted for you, automatic reminders | Many guests never reply on their own |
| Plus-ones | A number of seats per guest, and the name of each plus-one | This is where headcounts go wrong |
| Programme per group | The option to reserve part of the day for some guests | The dinner or the next-day brunch is not for everyone |
| Photos | Guests upload their photos via a QR code, no app | The best shots of the night are on their phones |
| Gift fund | The commission taken on each contribution, and who holds the money | A few percent of a wedding gift fund soon adds up |
| Personal data | Where it is hosted, whether it may be sold, whether the invitation is indexed | Your guest list holds names, numbers and addresses |
| Price | The total price for your number of guests, hosting included, and what comes next | A low starting price can hide a very low guest cap |
| No app | The link opens in the browser, no account or download | Every extra step costs replies |
1. Replies and reminders
Check that each guest gets a personal link: it is what tells you who replied, who opened without replying and who never opened. A single link for everyone leaves you matching replies by hand. Then check the reminders: are they automatic, and how often? On Invitez-nous, they go out by email at 45, 20 and 10 days before your reply deadline, and the method that gets people to reply is set out in the guide.
2. Plus-ones
The form should let you set the number of seats for each guest, then ask them to name their plus-ones, adults or children. Without a cap, a "+1" soon becomes a "+3". On Invitez-nous, you decide the seats guest by guest, and the names of plus-ones arrive with the reply.
3. A programme per guest group
A wedding often has several circles: family at the next-day lunch, close friends at the dinner, everyone at the party. Check that you can reserve part of the programme for a group of guests, and that the others do not see it. On Invitez-nous, each group can also have its own link and QR code, which open the invitation as that group sees it.
4. Photo sharing
A shared album lets your guests upload their photos by scanning a QR code, without an app. If this criterion matters to you, check how many photos are accepted, how long they are kept, and whether you can download them all at once.
5. The gift fund and its commission
Two questions are enough: what commission is taken on each contribution, and who holds the money between the gift and you. Some online gift fund platforms take a few percent, sometimes with a fixed part per contribution. On Invitez-nous, the gift fund, available from the Essentiel plan, takes nothing: your guests pay you directly, through your Wero, Lydia or PayPal links or by bank transfer, and the money never goes through the platform. The details are in our fee comparison.
6. Data protection
Your guest list holds names, email addresses and phone numbers. Ask where this data is hosted, whether it can be sold, and whether the invitation is visible to search engines. On Invitez-nous, the site is hosted in France, lists are never sold, and invitations are not indexed: only people who have the link can find them.
7. The total price
Compare the price for your number of guests, not the starting price: a free plan limited to a handful of guests will not serve a wedding of a hundred. Also check how long hosting lasts and what happens afterwards. On Invitez-nous, the Découverte plan is free for 10 guests; paid plans start at €49 as a one-off payment, with 12 months of hosting, or at €9.99 a month with no commitment. The details are on the pricing page.
8. No app for your guests
Every step added between the link and the reply loses guests: an account to create, an app to download. Check that the link opens in the browser, on phone and computer alike. That is the case on Invitez-nous, with no account and no download.
How Invitez-nous meets these criteria
| Criterion | Invitez-nous |
|---|---|
| Replies and reminders | Personal link per guest, automatic email reminders at 45, 20 and 10 days before the deadline |
| Plus-ones | Seats set per guest, plus-ones named in the reply |
| Programme per group | Steps, information and rooms that can be reserved for a group; a link and QR code per group |
| Gift fund | 0% commission, from the Essentiel plan; the money never goes through us |
| Data | Hosted in France, never sold, invitations not indexed |
| Price | Free for 10 guests, then from €49 as a one-off payment |
| No app | A link that opens in the browser, no account |
To go further: paper or digital invitations, how to choose, and how to create your digital invitation, step by step.
