Saving Hundreds of Dollars on Our Save the Dates
How we fired Paperless Post and built our own save the dates for free using Google Sheets and Mail Merge
We almost spent $200 to send an email. Let that sink in for a second.
The Paperless Post Trap
If you've ever used Paperless Post, you know how it goes. You find a beautiful template, start customizing it, and suddenly you're staring at a checkout page wondering how this happened.
Here's the thing nobody tells you: Paperless Post uses a "coins" system. Sounds innocent enough, right? But there are only three coin packages you can buy, and each one jumps up by $20 to $50. You can't just buy what you need. You're forced to overbuy.
And the charges add up fast:
- Want a dropdown for meal preferences? That costs extra.
- Need a question for dietary restrictions? Pay up.
- Want to upload your own photo? That's a premium feature.
- Customizing the background? More coins.
Oh, and here's the kicker: every single charge gets multiplied by your guest count. So if you have 150 guests and you want two dropdown questions, you're paying for 300 question slots. The math gets ugly real quick.
Wait, What Are We Actually Paying For?
We had to stop and ask ourselves this question. What is Paperless Post actually doing?
It's sending an email. That's it. A nicely designed email with your event details and maybe an RSVP form. No physical cards, no stamps, no envelopes. Just pixels on a screen.
And for that, couples are paying anywhere from $70 to $200. For a single email blast.
We looked at each other and said: "We can do this ourselves."
Our DIY Solution
We built our own save the dates using tools we already had:
- Google Sheets for managing our guest list and tracking RSVPs
- Mail Merge (via a free add-on) to personalize each email
- Canva for designing our save the date graphic
- Google Forms for collecting RSVPs and meal preferences
Total cost: $0
The whole setup took us about two hours. That's it. Two hours of work saved us over $150.
How It Works
Here's the basic workflow:
- Design your save the date in Canva (free tier works fine)
- Set up your guest list in Google Sheets with names and emails
- Create a Google Form for RSVPs with all your questions (free, unlimited)
- Use Mail Merge to send personalized emails to everyone
- Watch the responses roll into your spreadsheet automatically
The best part? You can ask as many questions as you want. Meal preference, dietary restrictions, plus one names, song requests. No extra charge for any of it.
The Results
Our save the dates went out to 140 guests. Every email was personalized with the guest's name. Everyone got a link to our RSVP form. And we could see responses in real time without paying for "premium tracking."
We're happy to share our exact setup with anyone who wants it. No catch, no cost. Just reach out and we'll walk you through the whole thing.
Why This Matters
Wedding costs are already out of control. The average couple spends over $30,000 on their wedding, and companies know they can squeeze you for every little thing. "It's your special day" becomes code for "we can charge you triple."
Paperless Post isn't evil. Their designs are beautiful and the platform is easy to use. But when you break down what you're actually getting versus what you're paying, the math just doesn't make sense.
The Takeaway
If you're tech savvy enough to read this blog post, you're tech savvy enough to send your own save the dates. Don't let the wedding industry convince you that everything needs to cost money.
Some things are worth splurging on. Emailing your save the dates is not one of them.
Got questions about our setup? Want us to share our templates? Drop us a message. We're here to help other couples keep more money in their pockets.