The average UK engagement runs to about 24 months before the wedding, according to Bridebook's 2026 UK Wedding Report, and around two thirds of engagements are shorter than two years. About one couple in five marries within 12 months of getting engaged.
That matters because venues, not suppliers, set your real deadline. Popular venues can book up to two years ahead, and the most wanted summer Saturdays go first. If you have a short engagement, be flexible on the day before you are flexible on the place.
Agree a budget and a rough guest list before you look at a single venue, because the number of people drives almost every cost. Then book the venue, and book whoever will conduct the ceremony: a registrar for a civil wedding, a vicar or minister for a church wedding, or an authorised celebrant in Scotland.
This is also the right moment to take out wedding insurance. Bridebook suggests doing it as soon as you pay your first deposit, since cover can be bought long in advance and protects the money you have already committed.
The date itself is a decision with consequences. May to September is the peak, with August the most popular single month, and the late May and August bank holiday weekends are especially in demand. A Friday or Sunday, or a date outside the summer, is often noticeably cheaper.
Book your photographer, caterer if the venue does not include one, and entertainment. Good photographers and bands for peak dates are the next things to go after the venue. Send save-the-dates now if you have many out-of-town guests, or earlier still if people need to book travel or time off.
A common rule of thumb is to send save-the-dates six to eight months ahead, and longer for a wedding abroad.
Order the dress, allowing at least four months if it is made to measure, and book the florist, transport, cake and stationery. Start the legal paperwork research for your part of the UK, covered below.
If you want an accommodation block for guests, ask the nearest hotels now. Rooms near popular venues disappear well before invitations go out.
Sort the suit or outfits (bespoke can take up to six months), the rings (allow around three months if they are engraved), and the honeymoon. Bridebook puts the average UK honeymoon at about £5,833 for seven days, so it deserves a line in the budget from the start.
Send invitations about six to eight weeks before the day, with a reply date three to four weeks before it, so you have time to chase and still give the caterer firm numbers.
England and Wales: you must give notice at your local register office at least 29 days before the ceremony (28 clear days), and the wedding has to take place within 12 months of giving notice. You normally need to have lived in the registration district for the past seven days. GOV.UK has the current rules and the fee.
Scotland: each of you submits a marriage notice (form M10) to the registrar for the district where you will marry, no earlier than three months and no later than 29 days before. The registrar then issues a marriage schedule shortly before the wedding.
Northern Ireland: you give notice to the registrar for the district where you will marry. The legal minimum is 28 days and notice must be given within 12 months of the wedding. Councils advise allowing eight weeks, or ten if either of you has been married before.
In every case, treat the legal minimum as the last possible moment, not the target. Register offices book appointments weeks ahead, and one missing document can cost you days.
Confirm final numbers and dietary needs with the caterer, finish the seating plan, and confirm timings with every supplier. Final payments usually fall in the last weeks, so put each date in your calendar as a task rather than relying on memory.
MarryHQ turns this timeline into dated tasks from your wedding date, reminds you before each deadline, and keeps the guest list, budget and suppliers in one place.
Tasks, guests, budget, and suppliers in one place, free to start.