Do my guests have to pay anything to reply?
No. The reply button is part of the page you sent them; there is nothing for a guest to buy, install or sign up for. The question of plans is between you and the site, never you and an invited aunt.
Is the free plan enough for a small birthday party?
For a single event with a modest list, the free start covers the full arc โ page, link, replies, counted list. If the party grows past one event in a season, or the list grows past what a start plan is shaped for, that is the natural moment to compare the steps at /pricing.
Can I build the page now and publish later?
Yes, and most hosts should. An unpublished draft is invisible to guests, so you can shape the invitation over weeks while the venue is uncertain, and nothing leaks until you press publish.
What happens to my link if I never upgrade?
Your event stays yours to manage โ the question the free plan is really asking is whether your plans have outgrown its shape, not whether a bill is waiting. Compare what each plan covers at /pricing whenever a second event is on the calendar.
Can I send the free invitation link anywhere besides WhatsApp?
Anywhere a link goes: email, text, a printed QR on a card, a caption under a photo. Replies from every one of those roads land in the same list, so the free page is a hub, not a single-channel tool.