An engagement announcement only needs the information you both want public. Agree on the audience first, then choose the names, the date or season, and one sentence that sounds like the two of you rather than like a template.
What should you confirm before posting?
Who hears it first, and what stays private.
Tell close family and friends directly when that matters to you. Finding out about an engagement from a public post is a small hurt that lasts, and the order of telling is the part people remember afterwards.
Then agree between yourselves on what is included. One of you may be comfortable sharing the proposal location while the other would rather not have it findable. That is a two-minute conversation before, or an awkward one after.
How much detail is too much?
Anything you would not want a stranger to know.
Announcements travel further than expected. A specific venue, a home neighborhood, travel dates, or a planned event location are all details that read as charming and function as logistics for people you have never met. The season and the city are usually plenty.
Check spelling and any account tags before it goes out. Misspelling a new family member's name in the announcement is a memorable way to begin, and it is entirely avoidable with one more read.
Choose a Wording Style
Three styles cover almost every announcement, and the right one depends on the audience rather than on fashion.
Formal
States the news directly, names both people in full, and gives the date or season. It works for family-wide announcements, for printed pieces, and for anyone who will forward it to relatives. Its virtue is that it cannot be misread.
Conversational
Mentions one proposal detail or a shared joke, then the news. This is the version most people actually want, because it sounds like the couple rather than like a notice. Keep it to two sentences; the charm evaporates around the fourth.
Understated
One line, no elaboration. Well suited to people who dislike attention, and considerably harder to write than it looks — an understated announcement lives or dies on the single detail you choose to include.
Keeping it yours
Whichever style you choose, one specific detail is what separates an announcement from a notification. The thing that went slightly wrong, the reaction one of you had, the completely mundane place where it happened — that is the part people will reply about.
If you include a quotation, use original, public-domain, or licensed text. A familiar romantic line found online is not free to reproduce simply because it is easy to find, and attribution does not change that.
Create a Personal Version
You can write or paste your announcement text in the editor, adjust the text and fonts, and choose a background or photo. Review the full preview together before checkout, so the wording is something you both approve rather than something one of you drafted alone.
Who should we tell before announcing publicly?
Parents, children from previous relationships, and anyone who would be hurt to hear it secondhand. Beyond that it is your call. A short private message before the public post costs very little and prevents the most common complaint about engagement announcements.
Do we have to include the proposal story?
Not at all. A brief announcement with no narrative is entirely normal, and one specific detail is usually more effective than a full account anyway. Save the long version for the people who ask, which will be most of them.
What should we leave out?
Precise locations, travel plans, home addresses, and anything about the wedding you have not decided yet. Announcements get shared beyond the audience you pictured, and any information useful to a stranger planning around your absence should stay off it.
Is it appropriate to announce a second engagement the same way?
Yes. The considerations are about the people involved rather than about which engagement it is: tell children and close family privately first, keep the wording focused on the present relationship, and avoid comparisons. Everything else applies unchanged.
Can the announcement become a keepsake?
It makes a natural one, since the wording is already agreed and already yours. A printed version of the announcement, or the single line from it that you both liked best, marks a period that is otherwise short and rarely recorded.
For the moments that follow, see the proposal-to-ceremony guide, and for turning ceremony wording into a finished piece, the vow excerpt guide. Examples live on the engagement ideas page.