One of the questions we hear most frequently is “How many do I need to order?” … and many don’t know the proper way to find the right answer for them.
Getting your invitation quantity right is very important, and can save you a lot of money in the long run. The invitation manufacturers offer discounted pricing when ordering “additional 25s” with your order. Once your order is approved and sent to print, those discounts no longer apply. It will cost you a lot more to re-order 25 invitations after your order has been sent to print, because it will be considered a new order and the pricing is based on the initial price … and in many cases that initial minimum quantity of 50!
The first thing to remember is that everyone’s guest list is different.
The second thing to remember is that the # of people invited does not equal the # of invitations to order. If you are inviting 200 people, you do not need 200 invitations 
Probably more in the range of 100 to 125!
The third thing to remember is that tallying up your # of guests invited, and then dividing in half will most likely give you an incorrect count for your invitations! This is the way that many people initially think to get their invitation quantity, and there is a better way!
So … here it is … the right way to figure out how many invitations you need:
1. Count the number of households you need to mail invitations to. Remember that an Aunt, Uncle and 3 cousins does equal 5 people, but only 1 invitation. It doesn’t matter if you have addresses for everyone at this point, you just need to make sure you’ve accounted for anyone you plan to invite.
2. Add yourself to the list. Add your grandparents, your parents, and your siblings too. If its a wedding, add your bridal party too! Many have considered not sending invitations to these important people in their lives to cut costs and reduce their invitation count. I think these are the most important people to send invitations to! These are the people who will be beyond excited to receive your invitation, and will cherish it as a keepsake for years to come.
3. Now add about 10 invitations, for last minute additions. Those extra 10 invitations will also generally leave you with an extra set for the photographer, videographer, etc.
4. Ok … now round up to the nearest 25, since 90% of the invitation manufacturers only sell in multiples of 25.
And there you have it … your REAL invitation count! 
On last thing to consider is how you plan to have your invitations addressed. If you are going to have them addressed by a hand calligrapher or plan to address them yourself, you may want to order an additional 25 sets of *envelopes only* to cover any mistakes in addressing. You won’t need extra invitations for this purpose - just the envelopes (with return addresses on the flaps, and linings to match the rest of your order).
Another very commonly asked question is “When should I order my invitations?” … and the answer is: It depends!
