Skip to the guide
Weddings and events

Wedding toasts and event speeches

A toast is a short speech with one job: honor someone. Keep the structure simple, speak from notes and practice out loud.

Last reviewed

How to prepare a toast

  1. Know the room

    Family, friends and colleagues all need to follow your stories. Pick ones everyone can enjoy and leave out inside jokes (Stand Up, Speak Out).

  2. Use three parts

    A one-line hook, a story or two, and a close that turns into the toast itself. See how to structure a speech.

  3. Write bullets, not a script

    A few key words on a card keep you natural (Stand Up, Speak Out). Delivered this way, a toast is extemporaneous.

  4. Practice out loud

    Run it out loud several times over several days (Stand Up, Speak Out), standing up, ideally to one friend.

On the day

Toasts are hard for a reason: in AmberWillo onboarding answers, 20% of 1,850 nervous speakers named social moments like toasts their main speaking situation, second only to work presentations (AmberWillo News). Breathe out slowly before you stand, find a friendly face and raise your glass at the end. If nerves hit, read the 60-second routine.

Try your toast out loud

Confidently counts your ums and shows where you sped up, so you know what to fix before the day.

Practise out loud for free

Free on iPhone and Android

Sources

  1. Special-Occasion Speeches, Stand Up, Speak Out (Saylor Academy open textbook)
  2. Using Notes Effectively, Stand Up, Speak Out (Saylor Academy open textbook)
  3. Practicing for Successful Speech Delivery, Stand Up, Speak Out (Saylor Academy open textbook)
  4. Dreading a wedding toast? 1 in 5 nervous speakers say social moments are hardest, AmberWillo News

Keep reading