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.
Joy's Seating Chart pulls all of it in automatically. Set up your tables and room layout, click once, and the AI seats your entire guest list using the information you've already entered. No copying names into a spreadsheet. No cross-referencing meal choices in a separate document. No starting from scratch in Excel and hoping nothing falls through the cracks. From there, a visual floor plan puts your whole room in front of you. Move guests between tables, keep families together, build the fun table exactly the way you want it. When every seat feels right, download the floor plan and send it straight to your venue. Download the meal counts and send them straight to your caterer. Everything they need, formatted and ready. The seating chart that's been living on your to-do list for weeks is done.
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. Your guests appear in the sidebar under Unseated, and the canvas starts empty all ready for your tables.
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.
Set Up Your Tables
Click + Add Table in the top right.
Enter a name in the Table Name field (this is optional but helps you stay organized).
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.
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.
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 Table 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.
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.
Download Your Chart
When your seating chart is ready to share, click the download icon in the top right.
Meal counts (CSV) downloads all meals per table (this is taken from your RSVP questions).
Table assignments (CSV) downloads all guests with their table and seat assignments. Send this to your caterer for meal counts.
Floor Plan (PDF) exports your full floor plan with guest names and a guest list for each table. 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! 🙂