According to traditional etiquette, the order of the traditional, and most formal receiving line is as follows:

Mother of the Bride
Mother of the Groom
Bride
Groom
Maid of Honor
All of the Bridesmaids

Traditionally, no men stand in the receiving line, except for the groom, of course. Child attendants also do not participate in the receiving line.

However, not everyone is concerned with maintaining the highest level of tradition, and it is acceptable to alter the form of the receiving line if desired. Today, couples may create any number of variations of the receiving line.

Some couples prefer a contemporary, shorter version with just themselves and both sets of parents. That would take the following order: Mother of the Bride, Father of the Bride, Bride, Groom, Mother of the Groom, Father of the Groom.

If any of the parents are divorced and relations are strained, then a simple switch in the order of the line would occur. The line would then look like this: Mother of the Bride, Father of the Groom, Bride, Groom, Mother of the Groom, Father of the Bride.

Children are sometimes also seen in more contemporary receiving lines. However, this is only advisable if they are old enough, and well behaved enough to stand for a long period of time without becoming restless or fidgety.

Typically, it is still good advice to limit the number of people in the receiving line as much as possible for practical reasons. This will make it quick for guests to move through the line ( guests often loathe being held up in a slow moving receiving line!) and to enable the reception festivities to get under way without too lengthy of a delay. It is also probably still favorable to avoid having the ushers, groomsmen and best man stand in the line not only because it will speed things along, but also because it will probably be the more preferred option for these gentlemen themselves.