Dearest Guest vs Zola Pricing
Dearest Guest vs Zola pricing, compared: every guest at the same $3 in any country versus Zola's free core plus paid add-ons. See which fits your wedding.
Dearest Guest vs Zola pricing comes down to two different jobs. Dearest Guest is personalized guest texting with every guest included at the same $3 whether their number is in the US, Canada, Europe, or beyond. Zola's website, registry, and guest list are free, and you pay for add-ons such as a custom domain, paper invitations, and cash fund processing. Dearest Guest is not a website builder, a registry, or a print shop, so most couples run it alongside Zola rather than instead of it.
Key takeaways
- Dearest Guest pricing: every guest at the same $3 regardless of country, the venue does not change your price, and unlimited custom messages are free.
- Zola pricing: the wedding website, universal registry, guest list, and online RSVPs are free; custom domains and paper invitations are paid, and cash fund gifts carry a 2.5% credit card processing fee.
- Scope difference: Dearest Guest sends each guest their own text by name and a real person reviews the plan before launch; it does not host a website, registry, or paper order.
- Most common setup: Zola holds the website and registry, Dearest Guest delivers shuttle times, RSVP nudges, and day-of reminders by text.
- Price stability: on Dearest Guest the venue does not change your price, and a guest list spread across nine countries costs the same per guest as a local one.
How much does Dearest Guest cost, and is there a free plan?
Dearest Guest prices every guest at the same $3, whether their number is from the US, Canada, Europe, or beyond, and the venue does not change your price. Unlimited custom messages are included for free, and every text arrives as a plain text with nothing to download.
The price covers the full arc of the wedding: save-the-dates and invitation texts, RSVP reminders, travel and hotel notes, welcome messages on arrival, shuttle and parking details, day-of timing, and the morning-after thank-you. You pick any of those moments, or all of them, and start from our templates or write your own.
Setup is the part couples worry about, and it is short. You drop in a spreadsheet or add guests by hand, and most couples finish in under five minutes. You can see the full flow on our how wedding guest texting works page, including the preview of exactly what each guest will see.
Two details matter for the pricing comparison. First, a real person reviews your whole message plan before anything sends, and after launch your edits apply instantly with automatic safety checks. Second, every send is tracked and every reply collects quietly in your dashboard, so you are not paying extra for visibility.
Is Zola actually free, and what do you end up paying for?
Zola's core is genuinely free: the wedding website, universal registry, guest list, and online RSVPs cost nothing. You pay when you want extras. A custom domain is a paid add-on, paper invitations and save-the-dates are priced per card, and cash fund gifts carry a 2.5% credit card processing fee that either the guest or the couple covers.
The free website includes templates, a zola.com web address, password protection, and a mobile layout. For many local weddings that is enough, and Zola has built a large business on the assumption that the registry and paper orders pay for the free tools.
The paid pieces are easy to miss at signup. A personalized domain renews on a schedule, paper goods add shipping and envelope options to the per-card price, and the cash fund fee quietly shaves a slice from each gift. Zola runs frequent promotions on paper, so confirm the live price on zola.com before you compare totals.
Zola can also message your guest list by email from its dashboard. That is a broadcast to everyone, not a text to each guest at a time tied to their flight, which is the gap couples usually fill with a texting service. We wrote more about pairing the two in our guide to using Dearest Guest alongside Zola.
What are the top 5 best options when you compare Dearest Guest and Zola pricing?
Ranked by the job each does best: Dearest Guest for personalized guest texting at the same $3 per guest, Zola for a free website plus universal registry, The Knot for a free site tied to a vendor marketplace, Joy for a free app-based guest experience, and Minted for premium paper suites with a matching website. Most couples pair two of them.
Dearest Guest, best when every guest needs the right text at the right time. Every guest at the same $3 in any country, unlimited custom messages free, and a real person reviewing the plan before launch. Honest limit: no website builder, no registry, no paper printing, so it sits next to one of the tools below.
Zola, best when you want a free website and universal registry in one login. The site, guest list, RSVPs, and registry are free, and guests can add items from any store. Honest limit: the custom domain and paper invitations are paid, and cash funds carry a 2.5% credit card processing fee. Confirm current add-on prices on zola.com.
The Knot, best when you want your website connected to vendor search and reviews. The website, guest list, and registry are free, and the planning tools link to The Knot's marketplace. Honest limit: like Zola, the custom domain is a paid add-on and guest messaging is dashboard broadcast rather than per-guest texts timed to each person.
Joy, best when your guests will happily use a wedding app. Joy offers a free website, guest list, registry links, and in-app messaging. Honest limit: the richest experience depends on guests opening the app, and older or less tech-comfortable guests often never do, which is the problem texts avoid.
Minted, best when the paper suite is the priority. Minted sells premium invitations priced per card with volume breaks and includes a matching wedding website. Honest limit: it is a stationery and website product, not a guest communication system, so RSVP chasing and travel updates still fall on you.
| Option | Best for | Pricing or format | Standout limit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dearest Guest | Personalized texts to every guest, reviewed by a person | Every guest at the same $3, any country | No website, registry, or paper |
| Zola | Free website plus universal registry | Free core; paid domain and paper; 2.5% cash fund fee | Messaging is email broadcast |
| The Knot | Website tied to vendor marketplace | Free core; paid domain and paper | No per-guest timed texts |
| Joy | App-based guest experience | Free website and app | Guests must engage with the app |
| Minted | Premium paper suites | Per-card pricing; website included | Not a guest communication tool |
Which is cheaper overall for a 100 to 150 guest wedding?
For website, registry, and RSVP forms alone, Zola is cheaper because those parts are free. For guest communication, Dearest Guest charges the same $3 per guest, so your guest count, not your venue, drives the price. The honest total for most couples is Zola's free core plus Dearest Guest's per-guest price.
The table below lays out a typical line-item view. Prices for Zola add-ons change with promotions, so treat the right column as a model and confirm live figures on zola.com before you decide.
| Line item | Dearest Guest | Zola |
|---|---|---|
| Wedding website | Not offered; texts link to any site you have | Free, with a zola.com address |
| Custom domain | Not applicable | Paid add-on, renews on a schedule |
| Registry | Not offered; link to your registry from texts | Free; cash fund gifts carry a 2.5% fee |
| Save-the-dates and invitations | Included as texts | Paper priced per card plus shipping; frequent promotions |
| RSVP collection | Text reminders by name; replies in your dashboard | Free online RSVP form with meal choices |
| Travel, shuttle, day-of texts | Included, every guest at the same $3 | Email broadcasts from the dashboard |
| Post-wedding thank-you | Included as a text | Not a messaging feature |
| Pricing model | Same $3 per guest in any country | Free core plus paid add-ons |
A useful way to read that table: Zola's costs scale with how much paper you print and how many gifts arrive as cash. Dearest Guest's cost scales only with the number of guests, and adding a Friday welcome dinner text or a last-minute weather update does not change it, because custom messages are free.
If you marry in Jamaica, Tuscany, or Mexico, the comparison tilts further. Dearest Guest confirms delivery for your guests' countries before anything sends and charges the same $3 for a number from Canada or Europe as for one from the US, while international logistics are exactly where a free website falls quiet.
Which platform handles RSVPs, meal choices, and guest grouping better?
Zola is stronger for structured RSVP data: online RSVPs on your website, meal choices, plus-ones, household grouping, and CSV export, all free. Dearest Guest is stronger at getting responses: RSVP reminders arrive as personal texts with each guest's name, replies collect in your dashboard, and groups such as early arrivals get their own prescheduled messages.
The difference is reach. A website RSVP form waits for guests to visit; a text arrives where they already are. Pew Research's mobile fact sheet shows that nearly all US adults own a cellphone, which is why a plain text with nothing to download reaches guests a website link does not.
Grouping works differently on each side. Zola groups by household for the invitation and RSVP record. Dearest Guest lets you select the guests who belong together and save them as a group in seconds, such as the girls, the family flying in together, or the Friday arrivals, and each group receives its own messages with each guest's own name, never one blast to everyone.
Compliance is built into the texts rather than left to you. The first hello asks guests to save the number and ends with a Reply STOP opt-out, which lines up with the FCC's consumer guidance on unwanted texts. You can read real sequences, including a Tulum wedding where 60 flying guests each got shuttle details for their own flight, on our wedding guest texting examples page.
Does Dearest Guest have a registry, or do you still need Zola?
Dearest Guest does not offer a registry. You keep Zola, The Knot, or another registry and link to it from your texts. Zola's universal registry is free to set up and lets guests buy from any store, while cash fund gifts carry a 2.5% credit card processing fee that guests can choose to cover at checkout.
That fee is the one registry cost worth modeling. On a $200 cash gift, 2.5% is $5, and across dozens of honeymoon fund contributions it adds up. Zola gives guests the option to absorb it, and if they decline, it comes out of the gift.
Dearest Guest never handles money, so there is no processing fee to compare. The registry appears in your texts the same way a travel guide or parking map does, as a plain link inside a message that already has the guest's name on it.
The practical rule: pick the registry on its own merits, then let the texts carry guests to it at the right moment, such as a save-the-date link early and a gentle reminder closer to the date.
Can you use a custom domain and website on each, and what does it cost?
Only Zola gives you a wedding website. Its templates, password protection, mobile layout, and a zola.com address are free, and a personalized domain is a paid add-on, so confirm the current annual price before buying. Dearest Guest has no website builder; each text links to whatever site you already have, including a Zola page or a travel guide.
The custom domain is mostly a stationery decision. If your paper invitation prints a short web address, the paid domain earns its keep. If guests are reaching your site from a text, the link is tapped, not typed, so the free zola.com address costs you nothing in usability.
The real texts we send make this concrete. One Mia and Sam message to a guest named Lauren opened with a travel guide link and then listed the Thursday welcome dinner, Friday ceremony at 4:30 PM in the Garden Pavilion, and the after party at the Palapa Bar, all in a single text. The website holds the depth; the text brings the guest to it.
Do Zola's promo codes make its invitations cheaper than Dearest Guest's?
Not for the same job. Zola's promotions discount paper save-the-dates and invitations that are priced per card plus shipping, so a code lowers a print bill. Dearest Guest sends save-the-dates and invitation texts as part of the same $3 per guest, with unlimited custom messages free, so there is no per-card price to discount.
Many couples do both, and that is not a contradiction. A printed Zola invitation sets the tone, and a text save-the-date months earlier makes sure the date lands in every calendar before the paper is even designed.
If you are comparing promo math, watch two things. Promotions on Zola paper vary by season and are applied at checkout, so a quoted discount from a blog post may not be live. And shipping, envelopes, and addressing options are often outside the discount, so compare the final cart, not the headline percentage.
What hidden costs should you check on each platform?
On Zola, check three lines: the custom domain renewal, shipping and envelope charges on paper orders, and the 2.5% cash fund fee. On Dearest Guest, the published model is the same $3 per guest in any country, and the venue does not change your price, so the main thing to confirm is your final guest count.
International guests are the quiet cost on most messaging tools, and it is the one Dearest Guest removes. A number from Canada, Europe, or beyond is included at the same $3 as a US number, and delivery for each country is confirmed with you before anything sends. So far that has covered sixteen destinations across nine countries and every time zone.
Post-wedding access matters too. On Dearest Guest, replies sit in your dashboard to read whenever you like, and the morning-after thank-you text, including the shared photo album link, is part of the plan rather than an extra. On Zola, check the help center for how long your site stays live and how to export your guest list to CSV before you close anything down.
Finally, look for per-message or per-send fees in any texting tool you shortlist. On Dearest Guest, unlimited custom messages are free, which is what lets you add a rain plan text at 7 AM without reopening a budget.
Should you choose Dearest Guest, Zola, or both?
Choose Zola alone if you need a website, registry, and RSVP form and your guests are local and reachable. Choose Dearest Guest alone if you already have a site, or do not want one, and your priority is every guest receiving the right text.
Budget couples usually land on Zola's free core plus Dearest Guest's per-guest price, skipping the paid domain. Couples who want all-in-one planning tend to live in Zola or The Knot daily and add texts for the week itself, when nobody is checking a website.
Destination weddings are the clearest case for both. The flights, the shuttle at CUN, the welcome reception on the rooftop, and the farewell brunch each need to reach the right guests at the right hour in their own time zone. Our destination wedding messaging page shows the real texts one guest received on the way to a Riviera Maya wedding.
The simplest decision rule: if your biggest worry is where the registry lives, start with Zola. If your biggest worry is a guest missing a shuttle or standing at the wrong venue, start with Dearest Guest, and keep Zola for the rest.
How did we compare these options?
We compared each tool's published pricing pages and plan descriptions, the scope of what the core product does, and the add-ons that carry a separate charge, such as custom domains, paper goods, and cash fund processing. For Dearest Guest we used our own destination wedding and how-it-works pages.
How do you get started with Dearest Guest?
Start by adding your guest list, choosing the moments you want covered, and letting a real person review the plan before launch. Every guest is included at the same $3 in any country, and unlimited custom messages are free. Most couples finish setup in under five minutes, so you can send your first save-the-date text this week.
What do people also ask?
How much does Dearest Guest cost, and is there a free plan?
Every guest is included at the same $3 whether their number is from the US, Canada, Europe, or beyond, the venue does not change your price, and unlimited custom messages are free. The price covers a reviewed, prescheduled message plan for the whole wedding, from the first save-the-date to the morning-after thank-you.
Is Zola actually free, and what do you end up paying for?
Zola's wedding website, universal registry, guest list, and online RSVPs are free. You pay for a custom domain, paper save-the-dates and invitations priced per card plus shipping, and a 2.5% credit card processing fee on cash fund gifts that guests can choose to cover. Confirm current add-on prices on zola.com.
Which is cheaper overall for a 100 to 150 guest wedding, Dearest Guest or Zola?
For a website, registry, and RSVP form, Zola is cheaper because those are free. For guest communication, Dearest Guest charges the same $3 per guest, so only the guest count drives the price. Most couples end up with Zola's free core plus Dearest Guest's per-guest price, which is usually the lowest total for both jobs.
Does Dearest Guest have a registry, or do you need Zola alongside it?
Dearest Guest does not offer a registry, a wedding website, or paper invitations. You keep Zola, The Knot, or another registry and link to it from your texts. Because Dearest Guest never handles money, there is no cash fund processing fee on its side.
Can you use Dearest Guest and Zola together?
Yes, and that is the most common setup. Zola holds the website, registry, and RSVP records, while Dearest Guest sends each guest their own text by name for save-the-dates, RSVP reminders, shuttle times, day-of timing, and the thank-you, with a real person reviewing the plan before launch.