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The check-in kiosk

How guests check themselves in on the Event Day kiosk or their own phone, how name search works, and where you see who has arrived.

Last reviewed 10 min read

On this page9 sections
  1. How a guest checks in
  2. The door pass
  3. Walk-ins at the door
  4. Where you see arrivals
  5. Mistaps and corrections
  6. What check-in is (and isn't)
  7. Tips for a smooth door
  8. Common questions
  9. Related articles

Check-in is the heart of the Event Day kiosk — and the one tile that's always there on a live event. Guests tap their own name as they walk in, so you know who has made it without hovering by the door with a clipboard.

How a guest checks in

On the kiosk, a guest taps Check in, then types their name. The search is forgiving:

  • Two letters is enough to start looking.
  • Small typos and partial names still find the right person.
  • Guests who replied through your shared invitation link are found even if you never added them to your guest list, and a plus-one you've named can check in under their own name.
  • When one match is clearly best, their party appears straight away. When it's close — two Sams, say — the kiosk shows a short pick list (up to six) to choose from.

The guest's party is shown together: their name plus any named plus-ones from your guest list. One tap on I'm here (or We're here for a party of more than one) checks the whole party in. The kiosk then shows a welcome card and resets to the search screen so the next guest can step up.

If you've released tables, the welcome card also shows the guest's table in big type and where the rest of their party sits. If no seat has been set aside yet, it says the host will point them to one. The card stays up for about 15 seconds when it's showing a table (a few seconds otherwise); tapping Got it or anywhere on the screen brings the next guest forward straight away. The same table card appears when a guest checks in from their own phone or opens a door pass. If you chose to share tables only from the morning of the event, or never, no table is shown (see Find Your Seat for guests).

Already checked in — a partner tapped first, or you checked them in yourself — and can't remember the table? The guest types their name as usual; their party shows Already checked in with a Show my table button (once you've released tables). Tapping it shows the same table card and changes nothing on your arrivals board.

The same flow lives on the guest companion page, so guests can also check in from their own phone after scanning the door QR — handy when the doorway gets busy.

Search results show names only. The kiosk never displays email addresses or phone numbers.

The door pass

Door passes are optional and off by default. Switch them on under Settings → The door (or in the Guest access section of your Event Day setup), and every guest who replies Yes and is on your guest list gets a personal door pass — a link in their RSVP confirmation email. Opening it on their phone shows a big code, a simple "show this at the door," and, once you've released tables, their table and where their party sits. It's the fastest possible check-in: no typing, no name search.

There are two easy ways to use it at the entrance:

  • The guest shows their pass; you open it. From the kiosk's Front desk (below) or any phone, opening a guest's pass checks their whole party in at once.
  • The guest opens it themselves. Opening the pass link on any device checks the party in — handy for a self-serve doorway.

Either way it behaves exactly like a name tap: the whole party arrives together, opening it again keeps their first arrival time, and nobody is ever double-counted. The pass carries no personal details — it's a private link that works only for that one guest on that one event, and only once your welcome desk (Event Day mode) is open. It checks guests in from the day before your event to the day after; opened any earlier (a guest trying it at home), it shows them their pass and table and checks nobody in.

Walk-ins at the door

Someone turned up who isn't on the list? Tap Front desk at the bottom of the kiosk, choose Add walk-in, type their name, and they're added to your guest list and checked in in a single step. You can pick a table for them too (Table (optional)). If the name matches someone who already replied through your invitation link, that guest is checked in instead and no second person is added; if it matches someone already on your guest list, the kiosk asks whether to check in that guest instead or Add a new person. If your event has a guest cap and it's already full, the kiosk asks "at capacity — add anyway?" so you're always the one who decides.

Front desk is a staff tool — it sits with the host controls, not among the guest tiles — so it's there for whoever is running the door, while guests still just tap their own name. On a locked kiosk it asks for the host passcode or a staff PIN first. It also keeps working when the venue wifi drops: see The front desk.

Where you see arrivals

Open the Event Day tab on your event and switch to Live. The board at the top shows:

  • How many people are checked in (a party of three counts as three), and how many said yes.
  • The last few names through the door, under "Just arrived".
  • How many people who said yes aren't here yet — who you're still waiting on.

It refreshes itself about every twelve seconds while you're looking at it. For arrival times, read the audit log at the bottom of Live: every check-in is listed by name with the time it happened.

Those "Just arrived" names are also where you fix a mistake — see Mistaps and corrections below.

Check-in records the arrival time for each party. Checking in again keeps the first time — no duplicates, and two helpers tapping the same guest at once still count one arrival.

Mistaps and corrections

Right after a tap, the kiosk shows a "Not you? Undo" option so a guest who picked the wrong name can step back immediately — it clears the arrival for real, so your count stays honest. It's worth telling whoever is on the door: if someone taps the wrong name, tap Undo straight away rather than waving it off.

If that moment has passed, you can still put it right yourself. Open the Event Day tab, switch to Live, and look at the arrivals tile at the top: tap the name under "Just arrived", then confirm Un-check. The arrival clears, and the checked-in count, the percentage and the "not here yet" line all move with it. It asks you to confirm on purpose — a stray finger on a busy screen should never un-arrive somebody by accident.

Un-checking is a host and co-host control. It lives on your dashboard rather than the kiosk — the door's own Undo only works in the first few minutes after a tap — so nobody at the door can quietly undo an earlier arrival, and every correction is written to the audit log as a host action — read it back on the Live side. The tile keeps the last few names through the door, so it's the tool for a mistake you spot while the door is still busy.

Either way it's a soft mark: a stray check-in doesn't change anyone's RSVP, their meal, or their seat, and it never reaches the guest.

What check-in is (and isn't)

Check-in is a day-of arrival marker. It's separate from RSVPs:

  • RSVP is the guest's answer before the event — coming, not coming, maybe. See Tracking your RSVPs.
  • Check-in is who actually walked through the door on the day.

Anyone on your guest list can check in, whatever their RSVP said — the friend who replied "maybe" and showed up anyway checks in like everyone else. Guests who replied through your shared invitation link are found at the door even if you never added them to your guest list, and they're added to it when they check in. Anyone else who isn't on the list won't find themselves in the search — use Add walk-in at the front desk, or add them to your guest list and they'll appear. See Adding guests.

Tips for a smooth door

  • Lock the kiosk before guests arrive, so nobody can wander out of Event Day. See Event Day mode.
  • Print the door sign. Guests who scan it can check in from their own phones while others use the tablet.
  • Name your plus-ones. Parties read much more warmly as "Sam Lee — with Alex and Riley" than "Sam Lee +2", and everyone arrives under one tap either way.

Common questions

Do guests need an account or the invitation email to check in? No. They just type their name on the kiosk (or their own phone via the QR). Nothing to log into, nothing to show at the door.

Can one tap check in a whole family? Yes. Check-in is per party: the guest and their plus-ones are checked in together with a single tap.

A guest checked in as the wrong person — can I fix it? Two ways. On the kiosk, use the on-screen Not you? Undo right away — it clears the mark properly. Afterwards, open Event Day → Live, tap that name under "Just arrived" on the arrivals tile and confirm Un-check. That one is host and co-host only, and it's recorded in the audit log. It only ever affects your own arrivals count; nothing the guest sees changes either way.

Does checking in change anyone's RSVP? No. RSVPs and check-ins are independent. Check-in never edits responses, meals, or seating for the guests already on your list. (A guest who only replied through the shared link is added to your guest list when they check in, and a walk-in can be given a table as they're added.)

Can I see arrival times afterwards? Yes. On the Event Day tab's Live side, read the audit log — every check-in is listed by name with its time, newest first, and it's still there the next morning.

What if the wifi goes down mid-queue? Check-in keeps working. A guest tapping their name, a pass scanned at the front desk, and a walk-in are saved on the device and send themselves the moment the connection returns — nothing lost, nothing double-counted. Searching for a name needs a connection, and a check-in saved offline can't show the guest their table. See The front desk.

What's the door pass, and do guests need it? It's an optional, faster way in, and it's off until you switch it on (Settings → The door). Once it's on, guests who reply Yes and are on your guest list get a personal pass link in their confirmation email; showing it at the door checks their whole party in with one look, and shows them their table once you've released tables. Nobody needs it — name search still works for everyone — but it keeps a busy doorway moving. The pass only works for that one guest on that one event, comes alive once you open Event Day mode, and checks people in from the day before the event to the day after.

Does check-in show guests their table? Yes, once you've released tables. When a guest checks in — on the kiosk, on their phone, or with a door pass — the screen shows their table and where the rest of their party sits. If no seat is set aside it says the host will point them to one. You control this under Seating → Settings → When can guests see their table?; if tables are hidden for now, check-in shows no table.

How do I add someone who isn't on the guest list? Tap Front desk at the bottom of the kiosk and choose Add walk-in. Type their name (and, if you like, pick a table) and they're added and checked in together. If they already replied through your invitation link they'll turn up in the search instead, and checking them in doesn't add a second person. If your event is at its capacity cap, you'll be asked to confirm before going over — the choice is always yours.

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