Does your wedding organizer now say in beautifully calligraphed letters “Virtual Wedding Plans”? Well, my dear, just like your venue, vendors & fashion you have a whole lot of choices on how to live stream your wedding to virtual guests – and we have the list!
Holding a Virtual Wedding can be as simple or as elaborate as you choose (get our Virtual Wedding Guide here) and your live streaming platform can absolutely match that vibe. We’ve rounded up the ultimate list of virtual video streaming apps & tools to share your wedding day with friends & family from afar.
Photo by The Foxes Photography
Some platforms are what we’d call “Full-Service Platforms” offering all sorts of bells and whistles like planning, equipment, officiants and more. Platforms like this, of course, come with a price. But like all of your wedding vendors, you get what you pay for! If you’re looking for something polished, reliable & providing assistance, you may want to choose from the top section of steaming platforms on the list.
Other platforms are more DIY: your traditional social media & communication apps that we’ve been using for video calls and hangout for ages. These will be less “polished” per se but almost always will be free (unless you have a very large number of guests calling in).
Extra tip: these live streaming platforms work well for other big wedding events, too! Don’t overlook the possibilities of live streaming your proposal, engagement party, bridal shower & more. We highly recommend if you do any of the above you embed the videos onto your wedding website (suggestions for this below) for guests to enjoy before, during and after your virtual wedding day!
Full-Service Wedding Livestream Platforms
Photo by Cristy Angulo via Bridal Musings
1. LoveStream – A live streaming platform built specifically for this new age of virtual weddings, LoveStream has all the bells & whistles. Easy one-click streaming access for your *unlimited* guests, simple set-up, options for multiple camera views plus all sorts of extras available like virtual wedding planning, guest books, professional streaming equipment rental & more.
2. Simply Eloped – Already experts in elopements, Simply Eloped created a wedding live streaming platform with their team of legally ordained officiants. Their package includes tech support (ahem, muting less-than-tech-savvy guests), consultation & even recording your ceremony to save for generations to come.
3. Wedfuly – Collaborating with video meeting platform Zoom, Wedfuly offers luxe virtual wedding packages that include (but aren’t limited to) MCs, e-vites, custom wedding websites, rental equipment, highlight reels, tech support and so much more.
Photo by Elope Tahoe Photo Co. via Bridal Musings
4. WedWed Mobile – Performed by ordained court wedding officiants, WedWed Mobile is a wedding app tool that not only live streams your event but also offers couples legal ceremonies in the process.
5. Married Livestream – Want your live stream to look ultra-professional? Married Livestream offers professional videography of your day with multiple camera angles & high-quality audio.
6. Powder & Pearls – UK couples also have a professional live streaming & videography option in Powder & Pearls, a cinematography team that creates live & traditional wedding videos for virtual couples.
DIY Wedding Livestream Platforms
Photo by Danielle Harris via Bridal Musings
7. Lovecast – Simple & free! Lovecast is a wedding livestream mobile app that uses text notification to alert guests it’s time to celebrate. It features easy one-click streaming access for unlimited guests (no app download required), live chat, and 1080HD video quality. Easy peasy!
8. WedSites – One of our favorite wedding website hosts, WedSites makes it easy to embed a link to any of our virtual wedding events – proposals, engagement parties, bridal showers & weddings – to your wedding website.
9. Joy – Couples who use Joy’s wedding website builder have easy access to live streaming through their own wedding website through any live streaming platform of their choosing – Zoom, Google Hangouts, Facebook Live, etc. Pretty spiffy!
10. Zoom – If you work from home, you’re probably already accustomed to using Zoom. So, why not use those new tech skills for your wedding live stream? Just create & schedule a meeting, and share the link (and any password credentials) with guests. Set up any webcam device to stream your wedding live. Their platform allows 100 participants for free but limits calls to forty minutes. Upgrade for more guests & longer calls.
11. Google Hangouts – Similar to Zoom, you can use Google’s video meeting platform for free for up to 25 guests with no time limit. Upgrade for more guests.
Photo by Peony Park Photography via Bridal Musings
12. Facebook Live – If you’d prefer to live stream without guests calling in & video casting themselves, Facebook Live offers a large event streaming platform with unlimited participants and 8 hours of consecutive live streaming – so you can share “getting ready” to “the last dance”!
13. YouTube Live – We love the idea of setting up your own YouTube wedding channel. Perhaps filming different aspects of the wedding planning process & then going live on your channel for the wedding day? Regardless of how “all-in” you decide to go, YouTube Live will allow you to use your computer or phone’s webcam to stream live, then save to watch & share whenever you like.
14. Instagram Live – You influencer, you! Yes, you can stream your wedding live for all of your friends, family & followers to watch on Instagram. Then, save in your highlights to watch on IG…forever! It’s as simple as setting up your iPhone (invest in a tripod, perhaps?), opening your Instagram app & hitting live in your Story creator. Don’t want everyone to see? Create a “Close Friends” list to stream solely to your nearest & dearest.
Photo by Lydia Ruth Photography via Bridal Musings
Do you know of another wedding live streaming platform, not on this list? Send us an email at info@bridalmusings.com and we’ll check it out!
Our expert advice doesn’t stop here! Consult all of our COVID-19 wedding-related tips here as we all navigate these difficult times.