Your guest list is already in Joy. The RSVPs, the meal choices, the tags, the dietary restrictions. Everything you've spent weeks collecting is sitting there, ready.
Seating Chart pulls all of it in automatically. Set up your floor plan, click once, and the AI places your entire guest list using the data you've already entered. From there, move guests, keep families together, and adjust until every table feels right. When you're done, download the floor plan for your venue and meal counts for your caterer.
From your Event Dashboard, hover over Guest List, click the arrow, and select Seating Chart.
Try It Before You Unlock
When you first visit Seating Chart, Joy loads a sample floor plan so you can explore before you commit. You can add tables, edit and rearrange them, switch between List View and Floor Plan, and drag sample guests between seats. Everything is fully interactive, but your real guests just won't appear until you unlock.
Unlock Seating Chart
Seating Chart is available as a one-time purchase per event. Click Unlock Seating Chart in the sidebar and follow the prompts to complete your purchase. Once unlocked, your real guest list loads into the sidebar and you're ready to build.
Create Your Chart
Click Create Chart. The Create New Chart modal opens with filters on the left and template previews on the right. Use the filters to find a layout that matches your event:
Set your guest count by clicking the edit icon next to the number.
Select an Event Type: Reception, Welcome Party, Rehearsal Dinner, Shower, Brunch, or Other.
Choose a Table Shape: Round Tables, Rectangle Tables, Square Tables, Round and Square, Round and Long, or U Shape.
Under Couple Seating, select Head Table or Sweetheart Table.
Under Room Elements, check any elements that will be in the room: DJ/Band, Buffet, Bar, Gift Table, Cake Table, or Stage.
The templates on the right update as you apply filters. When you find one you like, click Use This Template. To start with a blank canvas instead, click Start from Scratch.
Your guests appear in the sidebar under Unseated. If you used a template, your floor plan opens with tables already placed. If you started from scratch, the canvas is empty, ready for your tables.
By default, only guests marked as Attending appear in the list. To show guests who are Not Attending or haven't responded yet, check Show Not Attending and No Response below the unseated count.
To create an additional chart, click the chart name at the top of the sidebar and select Create New Chart. You can also select Duplicate to copy your current chart as a starting point. Switch between charts at any time using the same dropdown.
Name and Size Your Floor Plan
Click the gear icon in the top right to open the Floor Plan settings.
Enter a name in the Chart Name field to rename your chart.
Set your room dimensions using the Width and Length fields. Toggle between ft and m using the unit selector.
Toggle Show Grid on or off to display a grid overlay on the floor plan canvas.
Under Advanced Settings, add a Venue / Room name, set a Maximum Capacity, or adjust the Seat Offset (the distance between each seat and the table edge).
Click Save Changes.
Note: Selecting Delete Floor Plan at the bottom of the panel permanently deletes your entire floor plan, including all tables and guest assignments.
Version History
Click the clock icon in the top right to open Version History.
Select any entry to restore your floor plan to that point. Joy groups changes by date and time.
A confirmation appears before the restore applies. It applies for all collaborators on the chart.
Version History is available for unlocked charts only.
Set Up Your Tables
Click + Add in the top right.
Enter a name in the Table Name field (optional, but required for unnumbered tables).
Select a shape: Round, Rectangle, or Square.
Set the table size using the Length and Width fields.
Choose a Seat Arrangement from the dropdown.
Use the + and - controls to set the number of seats on each side. The Total seats count updates as you go.
Uncheck Numbered Table if the table does not need a number, for example a sweetheart table or head table.
Click Add Table.
Your table appears on the canvas. Drag it to position it anywhere on the floor plan. Click any table to reveal the action bar, where you can Edit, Duplicate, or Delete it.
To change a table's assigned number, click the table and select Edit. Enter a new number in the Table Number field. If that number is already in use, the two tables swap numbers automatically.
Add Venue Elements
Venue elements let you map out the full room, not just where guests sit, but where everything else lives too.
Click + Add in the top right.
Select the Venue Element tab.
Choose from the available elements: Dance Floor, DJ / Band, Bar, Buffet, Gift Table, Cake Table, Photo Booth, Lounge, Welcome Table, or Stage. To add something not on the list, select + Custom Element.
The element appears on the canvas. Drag it to position it anywhere on the floor plan.
Color Your Tables and Venue Elements
Select a table or venue element on the floor plan and click Edit in the action bar.
Click the Color field. Choose from 10 preset colors.
For a custom color, click the color value at the top of the panel and drag the picker or enter a code in the Hex Color field.
Click Save Changes for a table, or Save for a venue element.
You can also set a color when adding a new table or custom venue element directly from the + Add dialog. To remove a color, open the Color field and click Remove Color.
Colors appear on the floor plan and in the PDF export. They do not appear in List View or on mobile.
Undo
Click the undo button in the zoom controls at the bottom right, or press Cmd+Z on Mac or Ctrl+Z on Windows.
Undo covers: moving, rotating, renaming, or deleting a table, dropping a guest into a seat, running an auto-seat, changing a color, and saving changes in the Edit Element dialog. It does not cover adding a new table, adding venue elements, moving or rotating venue elements, or changes made on mobile.
Seat Your Guests
You can seat guests manually, use the AI to place everyone at once, or start with the AI and adjust from there.
Manually
In List View, drag a guest from the sidebar directly into any open seat. You can also click the + next to any seat to search for a specific guest.
In Floor Plan, drag a guest from the sidebar onto any seat on the canvas.
To move a guest who is already seated, drag them to a new seat. The sidebar updates automatically to show who is seated and who still needs a place.
With AI
Click Seat Guests in the top right.
Select Add Unseated Guests to fill open seats without moving anyone already placed, or Give Everyone New Seats to clear all assignments and start fresh.
Click Continue.
Select who to include: Attending, Pending, and/or Maybe.
To seat a specific group, search by name or tag in the Specific Guests or Tags field.
Check Keep parties together to seat guests in the same party at the same table.
Review the preview. If there are not enough open seats, Joy will offer to add the tables needed automatically.
Click Seat Guests.
The AI places everyone using the data already in your guest list. From there, drag anyone to a new seat until every table feels right.
Filter and Search
To find a specific guest, use the search bar at the top of the sidebar.
To filter by attendance status or tags, click the filter icon next to the search bar.
Select a field: Attendance Status or Tags.
Set your condition and value.
Click + Add condition to layer additional filters.
Click Apply Filter.
Tip: Run a filter for unseated guests before downloading to make sure no one has been missed before your chart goes to the venue.
Download Your Chart
When your seating chart is ready to share, click the download icon in the top right.
Meal counts (CSV) downloads all meal selections per table, pulled from your RSVP questions. Send this to your caterer.
Table assignments (CSV) downloads every guest with their table and seat number. This is useful for both your venue and caterer.
Floor Plan (PDF) exports your full floor plan with guest names and a table-by-table guest list. Send this to your venue.
Still have some questions?
Ask us directly! Click on the black and white chat bubble in the bottom-right corner of this page to ask us your questions, or you can email us at support@withjoy.com. You'll get a friendly response from someone on our team! 🙂