Pearl Nash
Less of us might be getting married these days, but for plenty of couples, it’s still really important.
Lots of women dream of their “big day” from a young age.
But what are the signs a woman is ready for marriage? Read on to find out.
15 signs the woman you’re dating is ready for marriage
1) She’s had other serious relationships
Rather than being a serial dater, she’s more of a relationship kind of gal.
If you know she has had at least one long-term relationship in the past, this shows she understands what it means to be in a couple.
The first flushes of love can feel easy —in part thanks to the rush of chemicals in our bodies in those early days of romance.
But real relationships take work to ride out the tough times as well as the good times.
If she has been involved in serious relationships it suggests she wants to build a life with a partner.
Perhaps she has lived with previous partners before. She may even have been engaged before.
This shows that she isn’t afraid of settling down and probably values that level of commitment from a relationship.
2) She’s always furniture shopping
Ok, so this isn’t just about the Saturday morning trips to Ikea. It’s more than that. It’s essentially about nest making.
Perhaps she is genuinely into home decor. In which case it might not be a reflection of her being ready to get married.
But if she always wants to browse in furniture or home decoration stores, it’s a very settled thing to do as a couple.
Particularly if this type of activity becomes a frequent thing, it could be a way of sending hints.
Those hints being:
I’m ready to build a home life with you and get married.
3) She’s described to you her dream wedding in detail
She knows exactly how she’d like her big day to go. And she’s shared that vision with you.
You’ll know when she’s ready because she will start talking about her dream wedding.
Whether it’s something small and intimate with only close family and friends. Or large and glamorous, like a destination wedding.
In a way, it’s like she’s already started planning.
She knows the flowers she wants, the style of dress she’ll wear and even the song she wants to be played for the first dance. And she’s made sure you’re aware of all of this.
When she talks about her dream wedding, it’s a sign she’s ready to settle down.
4) You know she has “family values”
Research suggests many young people’s attitude toward marriage is changing. With more young adults these days saying that they view marriage as old-fashioned and out-of-date.
But much of our expectations for the future are shaped by not only the expectations of the society we live in but also the family units we grow up in.
If you know that marriage is an important value for her, she is far more likely to see it as the end goal of any relationship.
Maybe you know that she has strong family values. She believes in traditional family structures, roles, beliefs, and ideals.
You may hear her say things like “my parents would kill me if I lived with someone before I got married” or “I don’t believe in divorce”.
If she has these values, then she is likely to be more focused on finding a committed partner who also shares her goals for the future.
5) Get expert advice
While this article explores the main signs a woman you are dating is ready for marriage, it can be helpful to speak to a relationship coach about your situation.
At the end of the day, every woman is different, and so two is every relationship.
With a professional relationship coach, you can get advice specific to your life and your experiences…
Relationship Hero is a site where highly trained relationship coaches help people through complicated and difficult love situations.
They’re a very popular resource for people facing all sorts of relationship challenges and questions.
How do I know?
Well, I reached out to them a few months ago when I was going through a tough patch in my own relationship. After being lost in my thoughts for so long, they gave me a unique insight into the dynamics of my relationship and how to get it back on track.
I was blown away by how kind, empathetic, and genuinely helpful my coach was.
In just a few minutes you can connect with a certified relationship coach and get tailor-made advice for your situation.
6) You know she wants kids soon
It’s true that in modern times, most people in the Western world tend to marry for love.
But that doesn’t mean there aren’t practical considerations too. And having children is certainly one of those things.
If she has made it clear that she sees children in her near future, then she is more likely to be ready for marriage too.
Children are undoubtedly the biggest commitment you can make in life. For plenty of people getting married is what cements the family unit.
And perhaps for good reason…
Interestingly, research has found that couples who marry before having children are significantly more likely to stay together than those who don’t.
In fact, cohabiting couples were three times more likely to split before their kids were teenagers.
For many women who know they want to have a baby, getting married is an important part of creating family stability to raise a child.
7) She has passed other practical life milestones
Sure, plenty of people do marry early in life. But generally, we’re waiting until much later in life to get married in modern times than we used to.
It seems people are taking their time before running down the aisle and don’t feel under as much pressure to do so.
Lots of women prefer to wait until certain significant life milestones have been passed before even contemplating marriage.
That might be finishing their education, establishing their career, and getting their finances in order.
However, if she has already achieved these things, then she is more likely to be at a stage where she feels ready for marriage as the next step to take.
8) Her partying days are behind her
Whether a woman is ready for marriage has just as much to do with her internal stage of life as much as her external stage in life.
For example, she may have a good job, own her own home, and be in a stable position — but emotionally be nowhere near ready to tie the knot.
If her partying days are well and truly behind her, then she will probably be feeling more settled and ready for marriage.
Maybe she never even went through this stage and was always a bit of a homebody.
Either way, these days she prefers couples nights at home to wild nights out with friends. She would rather decorate the kitchen with you than go clubbing.
She’s dated in the past, but now she is a one-man kind of woman. She doesn’t miss the so-called “excitement” of her youth, she feels ready to move on to a different stage of life.
She finds richness and value in a couple’s life together.
9) She talks glowingly about her parents’ long happy marriage
If her parents have had a long and successful marriage, she may be more likely to look at marriage in a positive light.
After all, our parent’s relationship is the first example we have of what a couple should act like.
Whether we do it unconsciously or not, we end up modelling what we think family should be based on this early example.
It can put some people off marriage if their own parents went through a divorce or had an unhappy time in their marriage.
But if she talks about how her parents are still in love after 40 years together, then she may be more open to the idea of being in a similar situation herself.
10) She’s not so strict about birth control
Pregnancy is a responsibility that for obvious reasons women tend to take very seriously. The consequences of having a baby are about as life changing as it gets.
But sometimes when a woman sees a committed future with a man, she might become less strict around birth control.
If she is prepared to have unprotected sex it could be an indication that she is ready to settle down with you.
Even if you are not necessarily trying to have a baby, it suggests she is prepared to deal with the consequences if she were to fall pregnant.
If she is particularly pushy about not using contraception during sex, it could be that she is hoping to get pregnant and start a family.
11) She talks about the long term future
Her talks about the future don’t simply involve what restaurant you’re going to go to at the weekend, or what movie you should watch at the cinema next week.
She talks about long term plans together and shared goals. She happily discusses things like where you might live, whether you’ll have children, etc.
These conversations are significant because they show she is thinking about the big picture of your relationship.
Marriage involves really prioritising another person in your life. So if she talks far more in terms of “we” than “I” when she discusses the future, she is thinking as a team already.
She is clearly showing you her hopes and dreams for the future. If that heavily features you and your relationship, then she may well be feeling ready for marriage.
12) Her friendship group is all married couples
Life doesn’t have a set timetable, but what we see happening around us tends to influence us too.
When we’re younger we tend to have more single friends. We might go out more. We may not feel in any rush to settle down.
But as we get older, that often changes.
People within our friendship groups one by one pair off and get married. Weekends out in bars with friends turn to weekends at home with partners.
If the vast majority of her friends are married, and she is constantly with other married couples, this might mean she too feels more ready to get married too.
13) She drops hints
According to one survey up to 33% of women plan to drop engagement hints when they are ready to get hitched.
And not just once or twice, but up to 15 times in a month (Just in case you didn’t get the message the first time).
So there is a good chance you won’t need to guess whether she is ready for marriage, because she will let you know in one way or another.
Having said that, according to research it can take quite a lot of hints. In fact, it took an average of 36 hints over the course of almost eight months to get the proposal they were looking for.
Popular “hints” can include things like:
- Discussing or pointing out engagement rings she likes
- Sharing wedding-related Pinterest boards or TikTok videos
- Buying bridal magazines
- Discussing marriage and engagement with her partner
- Watching films about weddings and marriage
14) She wants your families to meet
Getting the potential in-laws together could be a sign that she definitely sees the relationship as marriage material.
If meeting your partner’s parents is a big step, then your parents meeting her parents is even more so.
Getting the two families together isn’t common unless marriage is on the horizon. It suggests she is already contemplating unifying the two families by bringing them together.
Similarly, being involved with your family and making a real effort to get to know your folks and siblings shows a strong level of commitment to your relationship.
You know what they say, a marriage is bigger than just two people. That’s why extended family often plays a significant role.
15) She starts “hypothetical” chats
Remember as a child how some kids would “play pretend” and play the role of happy families.
These make believe scenarios imitated grown up life and paved the way for actual relationships later in life.
It’s no different for adults.
The same thing happens. To prepare mentally and pave the way for the real thing, couples often start having hypothetical chats about it all before it happens for real.
We talk about what we’d do if we got married. We discuss our plans for the future. She may ask you how many kids you would want. You might even pick out baby names.
Whilst it doesn’t mean she wants to skip down the aisle straight away, it does mean these bigger plans are in her mind.
16) She has already started acting like your wifey
We all know that after the honeymoon period, relationships tend to settle into real life. It’s only natural.
If she already acts like your wife, it suggests she sees herself in this role.
Maybe she packs your lunch for you or reminds you of your mom’s birthday every year. She knows all the ins and outs of your daily routine, and is heavily involved in it.
It’s these little acts of affection that we only do when in a committed relationship.
Perhaps as a couple you’ve already settled into domestic life — taking care of your home together, cooking for each other, etc.
This can mean she is already thinking about the responsibilities that come with being husband and wife.
17) She has been talking about getting engaged for ages
Of course, with many women, you won’t need to read the signs as she will tell you outright that marriage is on her mind.
I even have a friend who tells men on first dates that she is ultimately looking for a husband.
It might not sound very romantic or spontaneous, but it’s normal for couples to talk about their relationships and getting engaged long before they actually get married.
Marriage is a big deal and shouldn’t be taken lightly.
The idea of getting down on bended knee as a surprise sounds exciting. But a more practical approach to tying the knot can work better for many couples.
It’s a chance to discover they are on the same page before making such a big decision.
So perhaps the strongest sign the woman you are dating is ready for marriage is that she communicates this clearly to you.
This is especially true if you’ve known each other for some time. You’ll probably discuss how you both feel about the idea of marriage and whether it is something you want.
To conclude: The best way to know if she is ready for marriage
I hope these signs have given you a better idea if the woman you are dating is ready for marriage.
But of course, the very best way to know is simply to ask her.
Serious discussions about the future should be a regular feature of any budding romance.
Being honest about what you both want is all part of the healthy communication that makes any relationship work.
