Among Stardew Valley's long list of features is marriage. It's one of the most commonly asked about gameplay options in the game, and in this guide we'll go over who you can date, and how you should go about proposing to your love interest before moving in together.
For help on locating every villager, check out our guide.
Romance Options
There are a total of 10 individuals that you can choose from for marriage in Stardew Valley. Gender doesn't matter as same-sex marriages are supported. You can only marry one person, and the options are as follows:
Abigail
Alex
Elliott
Haley
Harvey
Leah
Maru
Penny
Sam
Sebastian
Each of the above individuals have their own personalities and traits. Early on in your adventure you will want to introduce yourself to each of them and learn what they are about. Once you've found which individual you would like to romance, you'll need to build a relationship with him or her.
Building a Relationship
While speaking to your love interest will help slightly, the main means of building a relationship with someone is to gift them items that they like. As you gift items that an individual enjoys, you will slowly earn hearts with them which can be viewed on the Social tab of the Main Menu. A total of 10 hearts are required for marriage.
Items range from best, good, bad, and worst. The best items tend to be cooked food, although that isn't always the case. Basic food like fruits, vegetables, and animal produce like milk tend to be favored by many individuals. As far as bad and worse goes, each individual has items that they hate receiving. It will be clear when you gift an item to someone whether or not they like it, as they will respond with dialog.
There are thousands of items in Stardew Valley, so learning which items a particular person likes comes down to trial and error. It is suggested that you learn what items an individual loves before their birthday, as gifted items on birthdays result in a massive amount of relationship points.
Related: The Best and Worst Gifts To Give To Stardew Valley's Villagers
Only two gifts per week can be given to each individual, and it takes a lot of time to raise a relationship to 10 hearts, so be patient and persistent.
Proposing
Once you've earned 8 hearts with an individual, you can head to Pierre's General Store and purchase a bouquet. The bouquet should be traded to your love interest, and will transition the relationship from friendship to something greater.
Although the bouquet is necessary on your path to marriage, you will need a total of 10 hearts to initiate a proposal. Once at 10 hearts, head to the Eastern Beach (unlocked with 300 wood) during a rainy day to visit the Old Mariner who stands at the North side. He will sell you a Mermaid's Pendant for 5000G.
Trade the Mermaid's Pendant to your love interest to propose. The individual should say yes provided you have earned 10 hearts with that person.
Three days later a Marriage Ceremony will take place. After completion of the ceremony, your new husband or wife will move into your farm with you.
Married Life
Being married is a perk in Stardew Valley. Your partner will assist you with daily tasks such as watering crops and feeding livestock. He or she will even cook food for you. Marriage will alter the daily routine of each individual, although those who have set schedules that include work or major responsibilities will continue to walk to their destinations every week.
You will need to continue managing the relationship after marriage to avoid unhappiness. Over time, an unhappy spouse will begin sitting in bed all day and spouting nonsense during interactions. To avoid this, ensure that you continue speaking to your spouse regularly and surprising him or her with gifts that he or she enjoys.
Children
Once you upgrade your home to level 3 you can have children. Upgrading a home to level 2 requires 10000G and 450 wood, while the level 3 upgrade requires 50000G and 150 hardwood.
Once your home has a nursery and you're married your partner will soon ask you whether or not you want to have a child. You can say yes or no depending on your preference. Note that both heterosexual and same-sex marriages can have children.
After a few days a child will appear in your home's nursery. Your child will grow over time, beginning with laying around and playing in the nursery. You don't need to manage the daily needs of your child, although you can interact with him or her.
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