Viewing your website in new tab

Learn how to open your actual live wedding website in a new browser tab to test it as guests will experience it.

Want to see your actual live wedding website? Open it in a new tab to view the real thing your guests see! This shows your published site at its actual URL, separate from the editing interface.

What opening in new tab does

When you open your site in a new tab:

Opens:
- Your actual wedding website URL
- In a new browser tab
- Completely separate from WedSites admin
- The real live site guests visit

Shows:
- Your published website (if published)
- Your actual subdomain or custom domain
- Real guest experience
- Production version, not preview

It's like visiting your site as a guest!

Opening your website in new tab

From the homepage:

  1. Go to Site in your main navigation
  2. Look in the header for actions
  3. Find the link with an external/new tab icon
  4. Click it
  5. New tab opens with your live website
  6. Visit your site as a guest would!

From a specific page:

  1. Go to Site → Select a page
  2. Look in the header for actions
  3. Click the new tab link
  4. New tab opens showing that specific page

Your site opens in a new tab!

What you'll see

In the new tab:

URL bar shows:
- Your subdomain: yournames.wedsites.com
- Or your custom domain: yourwedding.com
- The real URL guests use

Page shows:
- Your published website (if published)
- Or your redirect page (if unpublished)
- Exactly what guests see
- No editing interface
- No WedSites admin controls

You can:
- Navigate your site like a guest
- Test all links and features
- Share this URL with guests
- Bookmark it
- Copy the URL to send to others

It's the real deal!

Published vs unpublished sites

What opens depends on your publish status:

If your site is published:
- New tab shows your wedding website
- All public content visible
- Guests can access this URL
- Site is live!

If your site is unpublished:
- New tab shows your redirect page (if set)
- Or a "coming soon" message
- Or shows the homepage redirect you configured
- Site is not publicly accessible yet

See our articles on "Publishing your wedding website" and "Configuring homepage redirects" for more info!

New tab vs full screen

These are different ways to preview:

New tab:
- Opens actual live site
- Separate tab/window
- Real URL
- Production environment
- What guests actually see
- Can share the URL

Full screen:
- Same WedSites admin window
- Hides editing UI
- Preview mode
- Still in editor
- Quick preview
- Can't share (not the real URL)

Both are useful for different purposes!

Testing your site

Opening in a new tab is perfect for:

Final testing:
- Before publishing
- After major changes
- Before sharing with guests
- End-to-end user testing

Real environment:
- Test forms (RSVP, guestbook)
- Check navigation
- Verify links work
- Test on actual URL

Guest perspective:
- See exactly what guests see
- No admin interface
- No preview artifacts
- True experience

Device testing:
- Open on phone
- Open on tablet
- Test responsiveness
- Check mobile experience

Sharing check:
- Copy URL to send to friends
- Verify it works for others
- Test before mass distribution

Always test in new tab before sharing widely!

URL in new tab

The URL in the new tab is:

Format:
- yournames.wedsites.com (subdomain)
- or yourwedding.com (custom domain)

Specific page:
- yournames.wedsites.com/pagename
- Direct link to that page

With language:
- May include language code if multi-language site
- yournames.wedsites.com?lang=es

This is the URL to share with guests!

Sharing the URL

Once you have your site open in a new tab:

  1. Copy the URL from the address bar
  2. Share with guests via:
    • Email invitations
    • Text messages
    • Social media
    • Printed materials (invitations, save the dates)
    • QR codes

That's your wedding website link!

Testing with different users

Open in new tab to test:

Logged out view:
- Open in incognito/private window
- See what guests without accounts see
- Test guest authentication if enabled

Different browsers:
- Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge
- Make sure it works everywhere
- Check compatibility

Different devices:
- Phone, tablet, desktop
- Various screen sizes
- Touch vs mouse interaction

Test thoroughly!

Authentication and privacy

If your site requires guest authentication:

Opening in new tab shows:
- Authentication screen first
- Check-in or access code prompt
- Just like guests experience

After authenticating:
- See private content
- Test the guest flow
- Verify authentication works

To test as unauthenticated guest:
- Open in incognito/private window
- Or use different browser
- See public content only

New tab and changes

Important to know:

If you make changes in the editor:
- New tab won't update automatically
- Refresh the new tab to see changes
- Or close and reopen in new tab

For live testing:
- Make change in editor
- Refresh new tab
- See updated version
- Iterate quickly

Bookmarking your site

From the new tab:

  1. Bookmark the page (Cmd+D or Ctrl+D)
  2. Save to bookmarks bar
  3. Quick access to your live site
  4. Check it anytime

Convenient for frequent checks!

Mobile viewing

To view on mobile:

Option 1:
1. Open in new tab on desktop
2. Copy URL
3. Text/email yourself the URL
4. Open on phone
5. See mobile version

Option 2:
1. Log into WedSites on your phone
2. Go to Website
3. Click new tab link
4. View directly on mobile

Both work great!

Multiple tabs

You can open multiple tabs:

  • Homepage in one tab
  • Specific page in another tab
  • Different language versions
  • Test multiple flows simultaneously

Helpful for comparing!

Analytics and tracking

When you visit your own site in a new tab:

  • You'll show up in analytics (if enabled)
  • Consider this when reviewing visitor counts
  • Your own visits are tracked too

Be aware of this when checking stats!

New tab on different pages

Homepage button:
- Opens your homepage in new tab
- Main URL: yournames.wedsites.com

Page-specific button:
- Opens that exact page in new tab
- Direct page URL: yournames.wedsites.com/pagename
- Great for testing deep links

Section links:
- Navigate from homepage using anchor links
- Test section navigation

Test all entry points!

Troubleshooting

If new tab doesn't work:

Check publish status:
- Make sure site is published if you expect to see it
- Unpublished sites show redirect

Check browser settings:
- Allow pop-ups for WedSites
- New tab might be blocked

Check URL:
- Verify you're using correct subdomain/domain
- DNS might need time to propagate (for custom domains)

Try incognito:
- Rules out caching issues
- Fresh view

Custom domain testing

If you have a custom domain:

New tab opens:
- Your custom domain URL
- Not the wedsites.com subdomain
- yourwedding.com

Test:
- Custom domain actually works
- DNS configured correctly
- SSL certificate working (https://)

See our article on "Setting up a custom domain" for more details!

Social sharing preview

To see how your site appears when shared:

  1. Open in new tab
  2. Copy URL
  3. Paste into social media
  4. Check preview thumbnail and text
  5. Verify social sharing image appears

Test before mass sharing!

Comparing to editor

Keep both open:

Tab 1: WedSites editor
- Make changes
- Edit content
- Adjust settings

Tab 2: Live site
- Refresh to see changes
- Test guest experience
- Verify updates

Side-by-side workflow!

Before publishing checklist

Use new tab to verify before publishing:

  1. Open site in new tab (will show redirect if unpublished)
  2. Publish your site
  3. Refresh the new tab
  4. Now see your actual site
  5. Check everything works
  6. Test all links and pages
  7. Verify mobile view
  8. If all good, share with guests!

After making changes

Good workflow:

  1. Make changes in editor
  2. Save/update
  3. Switch to new tab with live site
  4. Refresh (Cmd+R or Ctrl+R or F5)
  5. See your changes live
  6. Verify they look good
  7. Return to editor for more changes

Efficient testing loop!

New tab icon

The link usually has:

  • External link icon
  • Or "open in new window" icon
  • Clear indication it opens elsewhere
  • Located in header actions

Easy to find!

Opening your wedding website in a new tab lets you experience the real live site exactly as your guests will, making it perfect for testing and sharing!