- Guests get in three ways: typed by hand, imported from a spreadsheet on the web app, or by replying to a shared link or QR code themselves.
- Each row holds the person who replies, their party size and companions' names, contact details, dietary needs, menu choices, accommodation need and a private note.
- Invite a row by e-mail from the app or by a WhatsApp or copied link; the row records when it was invited, how, and when the guest last opened it.
- Counts are people, not rows; the analytics view shows reply rate, acceptance rate, who is still quiet and how long they have been.
- Planning, including the guest list and the import, is free without a time limit; sending invitations and collecting replies is the paid side.
What a guest row holds
| Field | Filled by | Used by |
|---|---|---|
| Name, e-mail, phone | You, or the import | Invitations, reminders, confirmations |
| Status: pending, attending, declined | The reply, or you | Every count |
| Party size, companions' names, child tick | The reply (or you) | Headcount, seating plan, place cards |
| Dietary needs, menu choices, high chairs | The reply | The caterer's counts |
| Accommodation need | The reply | Your room block |
| Parts of the day attended | The reply | Per-part counts |
| Private note | You | Only you; the guest never sees it |
| Source and channel | The app | Whether the row was invited, imported or self-registered, and by link, QR or invitation |
| Invited on, via; last opened | The app | Who to remind and how |
Three ways in
Typed: add a guest with a name, contact details, party size and a note, on the phone or on the web. Imported: on the web app, upload your spreadsheet (.xlsx or .csv, up to 500 rows); the app recognises the name, e-mail, phone, party size and notes columns in nine languages, shows a preview of the mapping, and writes the rows in. Self-registered: a guest who opens the shared link or scans the QR code and replies becomes a row, marked as having come through the link or the code, so an open invitation still produces a clean list.
The three sources stay visible on the row. A list that mixes a hundred imported households with forty self-registered replies tells you which are which, which matters when the reply-by date passes and you decide whom to chase.
Inviting from the list
Each row can be invited three ways: an e-mail from the app in the guest's language, carrying their personal link; a WhatsApp message you send from your own phone with their personal link; or the link copied to paste wherever you like. The row records when it was last invited and by which channel, and when the guest last opened their personal link, so 'never invited', 'invited but never opened' and 'opened but not replied' are three different lists and three different nudges. A guest who asks not to hear from you again by e-mail about this event is marked and not mailed again for it.
Counting and chasing
Every figure on the list counts people, and says so: 120 invited people across 70 rows, 84 attending across 46 replies. The analytics view adds the reply rate and the acceptance rate, the average party size, how many people came in by invitation, link or QR code, how many days the oldest unanswered invitation has waited, the meal counts per dish, the high chairs, and the capacity used if you set one. After the reply-by date the pending filter is the reminder list; the app does not send reminders for you, so the list is there to work from, one message at a time.
What the list feeds
The seating planner seats the attending rows with their party sizes and companion names. The menu counts dishes from the replies. Programme parts read each row's per-part answers. The caterer's export reads the replies rather than the spreadsheet you started with. Because it is one list, a change in a reply changes all of them; there is no second copy to update.
What it does not do
It does not send text messages or WhatsApp messages on your behalf; the WhatsApp option opens a message on your own phone with the guest's link in it. It does not send reminders automatically. It does not print labels or envelopes. And it does not check people in at the door; a reply is a count, not a ticket.
FAQ
- Can I import my guest list into Vowly Event?
- Yes, on the web app: upload an .xlsx or .csv of up to 500 rows, check the column preview, import. Name, e-mail, phone, party size and notes are recognised in nine languages. Planning, including the import, is free.
- Does the app count people or replies?
- People, and it shows both: 84 attending across 46 replies. A reply for a family of four counts four, and the caterer's numbers come from the people.
- How do I invite guests from the list?
- Per row: an e-mail from the app in the guest's language, a WhatsApp message from your own phone with their personal link, or the link copied. The row records when and how, and when the guest last opened it.
- Can I see who has not replied?
- Yes. Filter the list to pending, and the analytics view shows how many people are still quiet and how long the oldest unanswered invitation has waited. Reminders are sent by you, not by the app.
- Is the guest list free?
- Yes, without a time limit, on iOS, Android and the web, import included. Publishing the invitation and collecting replies is the paid side, from €7.99 a month with a 14-day trial.