Wedding vows Say it like you mean it.

Traditional UK wording, original examples and help writing your own. On the day, read your vows from your phone.

Open the reader See example vows
Paper heart confetti scattered on a wet pavement after a wedding
Outside, just after
You turned up late, soaked from the bus stop and laughing about it…For herWritten by Candid Vows
I promise to share the duvet most nights…FunnyWritten by Candid Vows

Tap to open. This is the real reader.The reader needs JavaScript switched on.

Read them on the day without losing your place

Nerves are normal. The reader shows your vows a sentence at a time, in type big enough to read with shaking hands, and it keeps your place until you move on.

  1. Stays awake

    The screen won’t dim halfway through on phones that allow it. Where a phone doesn’t, the reader tells you before you start, so you can turn auto-lock off.

  2. No signal needed

    Add it to your home screen once and it opens in a stone church or a field with no reception at all.

  3. One sentence at a time

    Each line fills the screen, so you never lose your place. Tap to go on, and tap the left side to go back.

  4. Hard to lose your place

    There is nothing to tap by mistake. Leaving takes a press and hold on one corner, and it reopens where you stopped.

The night before, it checks

Run it once your vows are saved.

  • Your vows are saved on this phone
  • The reader works without signal
  • The screen will stay awake
  • Battery level, where the phone reports it
  • A reminder to turn brightness up and do not disturb on
  • A printed card for your pocket, as a backup

First lines to start from

Every example on this site was written by Candid Vows. Use one as it is, change it, or open it in the reader and hear how it sounds out loud.

The first time you cooked for me, the risotto caught on the bottom of the pan and you served it anyway, perfectly straight-faced.For himWritten by Candid VowsYou turned up late, soaked from the bus stop and laughing about it, and I remember thinking: I want more of this.For herWritten by Candid VowsI don’t need a long speech for this. I’m staying, and I’m glad.ShortWritten by Candid VowsI promise to share the duvet most nights, and to stop pretending I can’t hear the alarm.FunnyWritten by Candid VowsAt [the place you met] you said [the first thing they said to you], and I have been listening ever since.PersonalWritten by Candid VowsI’m saying this in front of everyone we love, so that they can hold me to it.Non-religiousWritten by Candid Vows

Free to use at your own ceremony, with no credit needed.

See all the examples

Traditional wording, ceremony by ceremony

Candid Vows is not connected to any church or register office. Check the final wording with whoever is conducting your ceremony.

Wedding vows are the words you say to each other during the ceremony. In England and Wales the law asks for two short parts: a declaration and the words of contract. The rest depends on the kind of ceremony you have.

Register office or approved venue

At a civil ceremony you each make a declaration and say the contracting words, in front of the registrars and two witnesses. The law gives a choice of forms. This is one of them.

What the law requires you to say

The declaration

“I declare that I know of no legal reason why I [name] may not be joined in marriage to [name]”

The contracting words

“I [name] take you [or thee] [name] to be my wedded wife [or husband]”

Marriage Act 1949, section 44(3A), applied to register offices by section 45 and to approved premises by section 46B. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Write it down. Read it out loud.

Write your vows, say them aloud until they feel like yours, and keep a paper copy as well as the phone. Nothing you type leaves your device.

  1. Write

    Answer eight short questions, from how you met to the promises you can keep. The builder turns your answers into a first draft for you to change.

  2. Practise

    Read aloud with the timer running. You get your time and your pace, and a nudge if nerves are speeding you up.

  3. Print

    Print your vows on A6 cards, two to a sheet, so there’s a spare in a pocket if the phone stays in the car.

“Years ago I promised you things I didn’t understand yet. Now I know what they ask of us, and I would promise every one of them again.”

An example written by Candid Vows

Renewing your vows

A vow renewal is not a legal ceremony, so every word is your choice. There are examples for any anniversary, and a plain guide to planning the day.

Vow renewal ideas