How Long Do Couples Date Before Marriage Nowadays?
While there is no doubt that marriage is an institution that is still very relevant , it seems that some of the old patterns regarding when people decide to tie the knot have changed dramatically. From the time a couple decided to date before marriage, to the actual age of people marrying, the changes described in a recent study are hardly negligible.
Study Shows The Average Time Couples Date Before Marriage
According to a new study Millennials sure like to take their time before saying “I do”. From the study’s findings, it turns out that people are now getting married at ages that would be unthinkable to their parents’ generation.
To be more precise, the study showed that while women in 1971 were becoming wives at the tender age of 22.6, men waited two more years before entering married life, at 24.6. Today, however, women decide to tie the knot a whole 8 years later, at 30.8, and the same goes for their male counterparts, at 32.7 years old.
It is clear that millennials set building their careers and getting life figured out as top priorities before walking down the aisle, but how long do modern couples date before marriage? The study revealed that partners today are waiting longer than ever before. To be exact, it takes a couple close to 5 years (well, 4.9 years to be exact) to make the decision to settle down with each other.
Dating Time Break Down
Let’s have a look at how these 4.9 years are spent. A Refinery29 article breaks down that time as follows: “1.4 years (17 months) of dating before moving in together, living together for 1.83 years (22 months) before getting engaged, and spending 1.67 years (20 months) engaged before getting married. On average, couples will spend 3.5 years living together before marriage, and nearly nine in 10 couples (89 percent) live together in some capacity beforehand”.
Perhaps bearing in mind that today the divorce rate in the UK is at its lowest for nearly 50 years, Hamish Shephard – the founder of Bridebook – said: “It is fantastic to see how marriage is evolving with today’s modern couples for the positive. Marriages are becoming stronger than ever, relationships happier and more committed than ever, and couples more independent and consensual in their decisions than ever. We have reached a tipping point where the divorce rate will likely be on the decline for the foreseeable future as marriage increasingly becomes the fully informed independent choice of couples wishing to demonstrate their commitment to one another without the pressure seen in previous generations.”
So, all in all, it seems that people today may like to put other aspects of their lives in order before making the big step. And it is quite clear that those who decide they need to date before marriage and get to know each other better will probably be more certain of their decision and more conscious of their “I dos”.