How to Choose Your Wedding Date

Choosing the date is the first proper decision you'll make, and almost everything else hangs off it. The venue, the season, the budget, who can come: it all flows from those two numbers. So it's worth a bit of thought before you lock it in.

Most couples start with a season in mind and a rough year. That's a sensible place to begin. From there it becomes a juggling act between what you want, what's available and what you can afford. Here's how to weigh it all up without driving yourself round the bend.

Start with what actually matters to you

Before you look at a single venue calendar, have the conversation between the two of you. What do you care about most? Some couples want a specific date that means something, like the anniversary of your first date or a grandparent's birthday. Others care far more about the weather, or keeping costs down, or simply getting married sooner rather than later.

Rank your priorities honestly. If a summer Saturday at your dream venue is non-negotiable, accept now that it'll cost more and book further out. If price is the thing keeping you up at night, you'll likely end up looking at a winter weekday, and that's a perfectly lovely thing to be looking at.

One gentle warning. Avoid building the whole day around a date that's only meaningful to you two if it lands somewhere awful, like Christmas Eve or the August bank holiday when half your guests are already away. Sentiment is wonderful, but a date nobody can attend isn't.

The UK seasons, honestly

British weather refuses to be told what to do, so treat any "best month" advice with a pinch of salt. That said, the season genuinely changes the feel, the cost and the daylight you'll get. Here's the rough shape of it.

Summer is the obvious favourite and prices reflect that. According to Hitched's 2024 National Wedding Survey, the average UK wedding came in at around £20,700, and a peak-season Saturday sits at the top end of most venues' pricing. Shift to a Friday in March or a weekday in November and you can knock a meaningful chunk off that figure.

Weekday and off-peak savings

The single biggest lever you have is the day of the week. Saturdays are the premium slot, full stop. Move to a Friday or Sunday and most venues drop their hire fee. Go midweek and the savings can be substantial.

A few things to weigh up before you commit to a Tuesday:

• Guests may need to take time off work, so give them as much notice as you can.
• Older relatives and those travelling far might find a midweek date harder.
• Some suppliers offer their own midweek discounts, so always ask.

For a lot of couples the trade is well worth it. You get a quieter, cheaper date and your guests get a long lie-in the next morning rather than a Sunday-night scramble home.

Check availability before you fall in love

Here's the order that saves heartache. Pick a shortlist of three or four possible dates, not one. Then approach your absolute must-haves first: usually the venue, and sometimes a particular photographer or registrar.

In England and Wales you'll need to give notice at your local register office, and a registrar has to be free for your chosen date and time if you're having a civil ceremony. Popular registrars book up, so this is a real constraint, not an afterthought. Sort the venue and the registrar together rather than booking one and hoping the other fits.

If you've got a few flexible dates in hand, you can usually find one that works for everyone important without compromising on the place. Rigidity is what creates the stress here.

Give your guests plenty of notice

Once the date's confirmed, get it to the people you most want there. A save-the-date a good 8 to 12 months out is standard, and longer if you're marrying abroad or on a tricky weekday. This is exactly where a wedding website earns its keep: you can share the date the moment it's locked in, then add the venue, travel and accommodation details as they firm up, without printing anything twice.

If you're building yours with Build The Day, you can publish the date and a simple "more details to follow" note straight away, then layer in the rest as you go and collect RSVPs against it later.

A quick gut-check before you commit

Sleep on it. Then run through this short list:

• Can the people who genuinely have to be there make it?
• Does the season match the kind of day you actually want?
• Is the price one you can live with, deposits and balances included?
• Are your two or three key suppliers free, not just the venue?

If you can say yes to all four, send the deposit and tell everyone. The relief of having a fixed date is enormous, and it turns a vague "sometime next year" into a real plan you can build around.