WeddingWire alternative: Crivando vs WeddingWire
Before comparing any WeddingWire alternative, one thing is worth knowing: The Knot Worldwide owns both WeddingWire and The Knot, so switching between those two isn't really switching. WeddingWire's website is free, but it has no cash fund of its own, the theme customisation is limited, and its custom domain is the priciest in this category at $24 a year. Crivando is an independent European product at €9 to €23 a month. Here's how they compare.
Last checked August 2026 · Every WeddingWire claim on this page links to a public source · Crivando is our own product, and we’ve said where it loses
The short version
WeddingWire is free and its US vendor reviews are genuinely useful. As a website builder it's the thinner half of The Knot Worldwide: limited customisation, no native cash fund, $24/yr domain. Crivando is independent, EU-hosted, and takes nothing on cash gifts.
Why couples leave WeddingWire.
The website builder is the thin part of WeddingWire. The vendor directory and the reviews are the product; the website is something they also give you. Colour and theme customisation is limited, and there's no matching stationery.
There's no native cash fund either. WeddingWire will aggregate registries you've set up elsewhere into one link for guests, which is genuinely useful, but if you want people contributing toward a honeymoon you're running that through a third party and accepting whatever it charges.
And the domain is $24 a year, or $35 for two. That's more than The Knot's $19.99, more than Zola's $17.99, more than Minted's $15 and well over Wix's $9.90, for the same thing.
Where WeddingWire beats us.
It's free, and its US vendor review system is deep in a way we have no plans to compete with. If you're getting married in the US and want to read a few hundred honest reviews of a photographer before booking, WeddingWire is genuinely useful and costs nothing. It also pulls registries you've set up elsewhere into a single link for guests, which is tidier than our link-out approach. We're a website builder with guest tools; WeddingWire is a marketplace. Different products that happen to overlap.
Visit WeddingWireCrivando vs WeddingWire, row by row
Rows marked with a dash are ones where WeddingWire wins. There are several. A comparison table without them would be an advert.
Swipe to see the full table
| Feature | Crivando | WeddingWire |
|---|---|---|
| Website cost | €9–23/mo | Free |
| Cash fund | Yes, 0% fee, guests transfer directly | None, third party only |
| Custom domain | Connect your own domain: €29 one-time + €5/mo, includes free SSL | $24/yr ($35 for two years) |
| Registry aggregation | External links only | Pulls multiple registries into one link |
| Vendor reviews | None | Extensive, US-focused |
| Design customisation | 8 distinct templates, all editable | Limited colour and theme options |
| Guest photo upload by QR | Yes, with an approval queue | Not a core feature |
| Digital guestbook | Yes, moderated | Not a core feature |
| Hosting and data | GDPR-compliant EU hosting | The Knot Worldwide, US-centric |
| Independent company | Yes | Owned by The Knot Worldwide |
Pricing and features checked August 2026. WeddingWire pricing is shown in the currency they publish, not converted. Sources are listed at the bottom of this page.
What Crivando does differently
The things worth paying for, if you’re going to pay. If none of these matter to your wedding, WeddingWire is the sensible choice and we’d rather you made it.
Nothing taken off your cash gifts
Guests reserve a fund and transfer directly to your bank, PayPal or Venmo. We don't process the payment, so there's no percentage to take. Less slick than tapping a card, and you keep 100%.
Learn moreRSVPs with meal and dietary tracking
Guests search their name and respond. You get attendance, menu selections and allergy requirements in one dashboard, plus a catering summary you can hand straight to the venue.
Learn moreGuest photos by QR code, with an approval queue
Print a card for the tables. Guests scan it and upload straight from their camera roll: no app, no account. Nothing appears on your site until you approve it, and you keep the original high-resolution files.
Learn moreA moderated digital guestbook
Guests write messages from their phone during the reception or the morning after, when they've actually got something to say. You approve each entry before it goes live, and you can export the lot afterwards.
Learn moreHosted in the EU, under GDPR
Your guest list, their dietary requirements and their photos sit on EU infrastructure under European data protection rules, rather than on a US platform that also sells them things.
Learn moreNothing sold to your guests
No registry commission, no stationery upsells, no vendor marketing, no ads. Your guest list is a guest list, not an audience. The subscription is the entire business model.
Learn moreMoving from WeddingWire to Crivando.
There's no export button on WeddingWire, or on most platforms in this category, so this is a copy-paste job rather than a migration. Budget an evening, not a weekend.
Take the guest list out first: names, emails, and any RSVP responses already in. Then the text of each page: your story, the schedule, the FAQ answers you've already written. Those are the bits that took you the longest and they move across unchanged.
Build the new site, check it on a phone, and only then send the new link. Don't take the old site down the same day. Leave it up for a fortnight with a line at the top pointing at the new address, so anyone who bookmarked it isn't stranded.
Which one you should pick
You're marrying in the US and you're really there for the vendor reviews. The website is a free extra, and a slightly limited one costs you nothing.
The website is the point. You want a cash fund with nothing taken off it, real design control, guest photo collection, and EU hosting from a company that isn't a marketplace.
Build your siteStraight answers
Are The Knot and WeddingWire the same company?
Yes. The Knot Worldwide owns both, and also acquired the Spain-based Zankyou in 2023. If your reason for leaving WeddingWire is about how a marketplace handles your guest list, moving to The Knot doesn't change anything.
Does WeddingWire have a cash fund?
Not its own. It aggregates registries you've created elsewhere into a single link for guests, so a cash fund runs through a third party at whatever that provider charges. Crivando includes cash funds and takes nothing, because guests transfer directly to your bank.
How much is a WeddingWire custom domain?
$24 for one year, or $35 for two, the priciest in this category. The Knot is $19.99, Zola from $17.99, Minted $15 and Wix from $9.90. Crivando charges €29 one-time plus €5 a month to connect a domain you already own, with free SSL included.
What is the best alternative to WeddingWire?
If you want the website to be the product rather than an add-on to a directory, Crivando gives you a cash fund at 0%, QR guest photo collection, a moderated guestbook and EU hosting from €9 a month. Just note that switching to The Knot isn't switching companies.
Does Crivando have a free plan?
No. Plans run from €9 a month for the base site to €23 a month with all 11 add-ons unlocked. WeddingWire is free, so if cost is the deciding factor and the differences above don't matter to your wedding, stay where you are. We'd rather say that than sell you something you didn't need.
How do I move my wedding website from WeddingWire?
Copy and paste, mostly, since there's no export button on WeddingWire. Take your guest list and RSVP responses out first, then the text of each page. Build the new site, check it on a phone, then send the new link and leave the old site up for a fortnight pointing at the new address.
Do I need a wedding website at all?
Not always. Thirty guests, one venue, everyone local: a group message does the job and a website is admin you invented for yourself. Websites start earning their place once guests are travelling, or when there are enough of them that you'd otherwise answer the same parking question forty times.
Where these numbers come from
Everything claimed about WeddingWire here comes from pages published by WeddingWire or by another platform in this category, checked August 2026. Platforms change their pricing without telling us. If you’re deciding based on a number on this page, spend thirty seconds checking it at the source.