How to ask guests not to share your home address

Tell guests exactly what you want kept private and how they should handle requests for the address. “Please keep our address within this invitation and ask us before forwarding it to anyone” is clear. If the event is private, also explain whether guests may invite other people or post location details online.

Please don’t forward our home address. If someone needs directions, ask them to contact us directly.

We’re keeping the gathering and the address within this group. Please check with us before sharing either.

Please leave the house location out of photos, captions and check-ins from tonight.

You do not need to disclose a personal reason to make a privacy request. Be specific, though: a guest may think forwarding a map pin is different from sharing the written address. Say what matters for this occasion without making promises that your message can erase information already shared elsewhere.

On this page: Make the request clear · Messages before the visit · Photos and location details · If the address has been shared · Handling questions and resistance · Questions people ask

Make the request clear

Decide which action you are asking guests to avoid. Forwarding an invitation, adding someone to a chat, posting a location tag and giving directions to an uninvited friend are different actions. A broad “Please respect our privacy” can leave people unsure what they should do differently.

Please don’t copy the address into other chats or pass on the map pin. Send anyone who asks back to me.

This invitation is for the named guests only, and the address should stay with them.

If you are allowing companions, explain how they should receive the necessary details. Do not tell a guest they may bring someone while forbidding every way of telling that person where to go. The aim is controlled, agreed sharing rather than an instruction that makes attending impossible.

When sharing with an agreed companion is fine

You can share the address with the person we agreed you’re bringing. Please don’t forward it beyond that.

Please send me your companion’s name, and I’ll send the arrival details directly to both of you.

Choose the arrangement you actually prefer. Do not collect extra personal information from every guest without a practical reason. A simple name may be enough to confirm who is coming; the privacy request does not need to become a detailed registration process for a casual dinner.

When you want no explanation attached

You can simply say that I prefer to give out my address myself. There’s no need to explain why.

This can help a guest who feels awkward refusing someone else. It also prevents them from sharing a private reason you mentioned in confidence. If you do give context, specify whether that context should remain private too; do not assume the distinction is obvious.

Messages before the visit

In the invitation

Looking forward to seeing you on Saturday. Please keep the address in this message private and check with us before forwarding the invitation.

This is a small home gathering, so please don’t share the location or invite anyone else without asking first.

Put the privacy note near the address or attendance details, where guests are likely to read it. It need not dominate the invitation. A short direct instruction is easier to remember than a long explanation that makes the event sound more complicated than it is.

In a group chat

Quick reminder before the weekend: please don’t add anyone else to this chat or forward the address without checking with us.

If an invited guest is missing from the group, message me and I’ll send them the details separately.

Adding someone to a chat can expose more than an address, including other guests’ messages and contact information. Keep your request tied to the actual group arrangement. If you are the organiser, avoid putting people into a shared chat unnecessarily when a direct invitation would work better.

To a frequent host or organiser

Please leave our address off any general contact list. We’ll share it directly with the people attending this visit.

You can tell people the event is at our home, but please send requests for the exact location to us.

Someone used to organising events may routinely circulate full details. Explain the difference for this occasion before they send their usual message. If you have already approved a public event listing, address what can realistically be changed rather than acting as though the organiser should have inferred a different plan.

When a guest wants to bring another person

Please ask us about the extra guest before sending them our address. We haven’t agreed to add anyone yet.

This separates permission to attend from knowing the location. For the broader guest-list conversation, see how to ask a visitor to check before bringing extra guests. Sharing the address should not become an indirect way of issuing an invitation on your behalf.

Photos and location details

People may share a location without typing a full address. A caption, live check-in, visible house number or invitation screenshot can disclose more than they intended. Explain the specific sharing you want to avoid. Do not claim that removing one detail guarantees that a property cannot be identified.

Before guests post

Photos of the evening are fine with us, but please don’t include the address, location tag or a clear view of the house number.

Please check with us before posting pictures taken outside the front of the house.

Make sure the permission is yours to give. You may be comfortable with photos of your home but still need to respect the wishes of other people in the picture. Keep separate questions separate: location privacy, images of people and whether the gathering itself should be public can each need a different agreement.

When someone starts a live check-in

Please leave our home out of the check-in. You can post about the evening without tagging the location.

We’re keeping tonight’s location private. Could you remove that location tag before sharing?

Address the post before it is shared where possible. If it is already public, ask for the specific change rather than vaguely telling the guest to “be careful.” You do not need to inspect every part of their account; focus on the post that affects your request.

Invitation screenshots

Please don’t post a screenshot of the invitation; it includes our home address.

If you want to share the date with an agreed guest, send the date separately rather than forwarding the full address message.

Screenshots can carry details that are easy to overlook. Offer a practical alternative when you want some information shared but not all of it. If you create the invitation, separating the public-facing event information from private directions may reduce accidental forwarding, though it cannot guarantee confidentiality.

When a guest asks what they may share

You’re welcome to say we had dinner together. Please leave out the address and anything that identifies the house location.

This gives a positive answer as well as a limit. If you want no posts about the gathering at all, say that instead. Do not offer permission and later object to the exact kind of post you allowed merely because you hoped the guest would choose not to use it.

If the address has been shared

Start with what you know and ask about the scope. Was it sent privately to one person, forwarded to a group or posted publicly? You need that information to make a practical request, but avoid turning the conversation into an accusation before the facts are clear.

A private forward

I saw that you forwarded the address. Who received it? Please ask them not to pass it on, and check with me before sharing it again.

I hadn’t agreed to the address being sent to them. Please let them know that knowing the location is not an invitation to attend.

The second message is useful if the address was shared in the context of an event. Be precise about the issue: someone receiving directions and someone being invited are not always the same thing. Do not ask the guest to make threats or claims on your behalf; keep the correction factual.

A public post

Your post includes our address. Please remove that detail and let me know when you’ve changed it.

Could you take down the image showing the house number and replace it with one that does not identify the location?

Ask for the action you want, then verify the visible change if you can. Removal from one post does not establish that nobody saved or forwarded it, so do not treat it as a complete guarantee. If there is a specific safety concern, handle that concern through appropriate support rather than relying only on a polite message.

The guest says they have removed it

Thank you for removing it. Please keep the address out of future posts and forwards as well.

Accept a completed correction without adding a lecture if the matter is resolved. If you need to know whether the information was forwarded elsewhere, ask directly and explain why that detail matters. Avoid demanding access to unrelated private conversations or accounts.

The sharing happened despite an earlier request

I had asked for the address to stay private. Please remove it from that message where possible and stop sharing it further.

You can name the ignored request without speculating about motives. If the person repeatedly disregards it, reconsider what information you share with them and how future invitations are organised. Repeating the same instruction may not solve a pattern of deliberate noncompliance.

Handling questions and resistance

“It’s only my friend”

I understand you trust them. I still want to decide who receives my home address, so please ask me first.

The issue is not necessarily whether the other person is trustworthy. It is who makes the sharing decision. Avoid being drawn into a discussion of that person’s character when your request is simply that guests do not distribute the address on your behalf.

“They could find it anyway”

Maybe, but I’m asking you not to share it. Please respect that request even if information exists elsewhere.

You do not need to prove that an address is impossible to discover in order to ask somebody not to distribute it. Keep the distinction clear. Do not make unsupported promises about what is or is not publicly available; the request concerns the guest’s action.

“Why are you being so private?”

It’s a personal preference, and I’m not going into the background. Please send anyone who asks directly to me.

You can choose to share context, but you do not owe a story that satisfies the guest’s curiosity. Repeating the practical instruction helps the conversation end with something usable rather than becoming a debate about whether your preference is justified.

“I didn’t think you would mind”

I understand that you didn’t realise. Now that I’ve explained, please check before sharing it again.

This is appropriate for a first misunderstanding. If you had already explained clearly, say that rather than pretending the request is new. Match the response to the facts: an unanticipated mistake and a repeated disregard are different situations.

When the request is accepted

Thanks for checking with me. I’ll send the directions to the people who need them.

Follow through on the practical alternative you offered. If guests cannot get directions because you asked everyone to route requests through you, make sure you respond in time. A privacy arrangement works better when the authorised way to share information is clear and usable.

Questions people ask

Do I need a serious reason to ask?

No. You can prefer to control how your home address is shared without explaining a personal history. Be specific about the requested behaviour and any agreed exceptions. Do not use a vague privacy concern to accuse someone of wrongdoing they could not reasonably have known you objected to; clarify expectations for future sharing.

Can guests give the address to a taxi or delivery service?

Decide what is needed for attending and explain any relevant limits. Ordinary transport directions are different from forwarding the invitation to friends, but the practical context matters. Avoid giving a blanket instruction that leaves guests unable to arrange agreed travel. If you need a different pickup point, discuss it before the visit.

Should I put the address in a large group chat?

Consider whether everyone in that group needs it. Direct messages to confirmed guests may fit a small private event better. Whatever method you choose, communicate the sharing request clearly. No messaging format can promise that recipients will never copy information, so do not mistake a smaller group for a guarantee.

What if someone refuses to remove a post?

Repeat the specific request once and explain the part of the post that concerns you. You can consider the platform’s available reporting or privacy processes where appropriate. If there is a concrete safety issue, seek suitable support. Avoid escalating into public arguments that repeat the very address you wanted kept private.

Can I ask guests not to save the address?

You can state your preference, but distinguish a request from something you can verify or guarantee. Guests may need directions for the visit, and messages can remain in their history. Focus on the practical sharing you want to prevent, and be honest about the limits of what a social agreement can control.