What is the best way to figure out the wedding date?

Depending on the size and complexity of the wedding you are planning, you want to give yourself enough time to plan and implement it. Saturday's are the most popular wedding day, so the pressure for reception sites, photographers, etc. will be greatest on those days. There are only a little over 50 Saturday's in a year, so they get pretty booked. If you can get married on a Friday night, or Sunday, you will also save money, because vendors often charge less for those days than for Saturday events.

You will need to mail invitations 6-8 weeks before the wedding and you need time to figure how many you need and to order and receive them and address them, so figure at least 3-4 months for that process. Planning a wedding around a holiday or other special day (superbowl, etc.) may impact your guests and attendance, so it's probably better to avoid them. Consider what the weather will do at different times of the year - could you have a blizzard or extreme heat, etc. depending on where you plan to be married. Also how easy will it be for your guests to get to your wedding/reception.

Most brides find that it takes about a year or more in advance to plan a wedding - to book the places and vendors you want and to do all the details needed (see the EZ Wedding Planner Plan for a list of details.) However, some brides pull it off in weeks instead of years, with a few compromises. How far out you go may also depend on who's paying and also where/when you are going to go on a honeymoon. Some people pick days that have significance to them (like the anniversary of when you met, or first date, etc.)