Survey Reveals How Long Couples Date Before Getting Married

Marriage is pretty serious business. It's a life-long commitment after all and not a decision to be rushed...

Which is why the results of this survey make a whole lotta sense.

Couples are now dating a lot longer compared to their parents and grandparents, meaning that they are entering wedded bliss after getting to know each other properly.

According to the results, the average couple now dates for 17 months before moving in together. They then live together for 22 months before getting engaged, and they then spend another 20 months before getting married.

The survey also shows a huge a change in this generation's perception of marriage on a whole.

The average age of a woman getting married in 1971 was 22.6-years-old and it's now 30.8-years-old

And the average age of a man getting married in 1971 was 24.6-years-old and now it's 32.7-years-old.

The jump is pretty big, but clearly it's working out for the best as the UK's divorce rate is now at its lowest level for nearly 50 years.

The survey also found that people had two relationships before finding their wifey or hubby.

Marriage has also become a consensual independent decision free from any external pressure, with 84 per cent of people discussing marriage before proposing, and 83 per cent of people surveyed felt no pressure to marry.

The number of weddings has also started to rise, with a 2.7 per cent annual growth in latest figures.

Founder of Bridebook.co.uk, Hamish Shephard, said: "It is fantastic to see how the 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."