7 Ways Getting Married In Your 30s Differs From Your 20s

I was a bridesmaid countless times in my 20s. I went on so many bachelorette parties in my 20s. But I didn’t get married until my 30s, and I noticed a lot of differences in my wedding, my bachelorette party, and my overall demeanor.

Sure, there were a couple of differences that were more challenging, but for the most part, I’m personally happy with the ways getting married in your 30s differ from getting married in your 20s.

Here are a few big ones that I personally noticed.

7 Ways Getting Married In Your 30s Differs From Your 20s

You have more money.

Almost all of us are poor in our 20s. We’re just starting out in the real world. We have student loans. We are trying to figure out how to handle finances. Or maybe we’re pursuing a post-graduate degree or studies and don’t have a steady paycheck coming in.

With the weddings and bachelorette parties I was part of in my 20s, I noticed we were all going for cheap – trying to find the cheapest dress, trying to find the cheapest bachelorette party, trying to find the cheapest gift. It was no shade to the bride and groom, money was just tight back then.

In your 30s, you have likely been in the work-world for a bit. You’ve probably learned how to manage your finances. You have more money you can spend, and are more comfortable spending it than you were in your 20s.

Bachelorette parties are different.

Bachelorette parties can get as wild as you want them to be. When you’re all in your 20s, bachelorette parties tend to be more wild than when you get older.

A lot of that has to do with the fact that hangovers are pretty much miserable in your 30s. But in your 30s you also have a “been there, done that” mindset, meaning you’ve partied. You’ve had fun. Sure, you probably will still party on a bachelorette, but it’ll probably be more of a combination of partying and relaxation, rather that a non-stop, weekend long rager.

Also, to bring up the money point again, in your 20s, you typically try and do bachelorette parties as cheap as you can. This means it could be four of five girls (or guys!) sharing one hotel room. The thought of having your own bed is nonexistent. In your 30s, you’re more likely to spend on your own bed or a nicer hotel or AirBnB.

Your invite list changes.

Your friendships change when you go throughout your 20s. Those people you were best buds with in high school and college, you may no longer be as close with when you hit 30. This means you don’t need to invite them if you don’t want to.

When you get married in your 20s, you may feel obligated to invite certain friends from high school or college. You’re not that far removed from it. So what if you haven’t chatted regularly? It’s only been a year or two since you were going out with them constantly.

When you get married in your 30s, that timeline has changed. It’s been much more than a couple of years since you were hanging out with them regularly. This makes it easier to note have to invite them if you don’t want to. And with the price of weddings nowadays, every invite counts.

You’re less of a bridezilla.

Of course this one 100% depends on the person. But for the most part, when you get married in your 30s, you’ve been in weddings and have seen some of your friends turn into actual bridezillas. You know what it felt like to be told/yelled at by a bride for something.

You may even also know what it feels like to be put into a bridesmaids dress that looks horrendous on you. All of these helps shape how you act as a bride, how you treat your bridesmaids, and how you treat other people. You tend to be a bit more understanding.

Plus, let’s be real, as we grow up, most of us mature. We may have thought we were “mature” in our 20s, but we realize once we turn 30 that we actually weren’t all that mature.

You know what you like and don’t like.

By your 30s, you’ve been to a ton of weddings. You’ve seen a ton of things. You know what you like and you don’t like. You may have seen something cool and someone’s wedding and said “Oh when I get married I want that.” Or maybe you saw something totally cringe – you know not to include that in your wedding.

I went to a wedding in my 20s where the bride had hired a live painter of their first dance. I loved the idea! When I got engaged, I knew I wanted a live painter and made sure I had the budget to have one at my wedding. The painting came out gorgeous, and I got so many compliments on how great of an idea it was!

There’s more available.

Social media was a thing in our 20s, but not to the extent it’s become today. It’s given us another avenue to find inspiration for our weddings. It’s also become another place for us to show off our weddings.

People have gotten super creative between flower walls, live painters, bouquet preservations, wedding websites and so on. I had so much at my wedding that just wasn’t a thing even five years ago!

Your honeymoon can be more luxurious.

Yes, this one goes back to having more money in your pocket. Instead of choosing a budget-friendly honeymoon or spending all your money on your honeymoon, you probably have more money (or more airline and/or hotel points!) to help you make your dream honeymoon come true.

My husband and I went to the Maldives and Thailand on our honeymoon. You bet we flew business, stayed at an overwater villa and had nice dinners every single! Of course, that’s our personal taste and everyone has their own, but I know that if we had gotten married in our 20s, I’m not sure we would’ve been able to pull this off!

Should you wait until your 30s to get married?

Ultimately you should get married when it feels right to you! But I’m here to share my experience that waiting to get married in my 30s was a dream. My now husband and I were thrilled with our decisions all around and look forward to celebrating the rest of our lives together!

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