When’s the Best Time to Buy Your Wedding Dress?

I am the girl who bought her wedding dress before she was even engaged.

It me. I am she.

This is going to be a classic case of “do as I say, not as I do”. Because let's just say I got lucky. As in, by some miracle I didn't hate it by the time I got married. But be warned (as you'll learn).

I'd like the record to show that I wasn't stockpiling napkin swatches when I bought it. Truly, I wasn't even thinking about my own future-nuptials. A friend was looking for bridesmaid outfits for another friend's wedding and spotted this particular dress online that she thought was my vibe (it was). I admired it, considered adding to cart and then decided don't-be-ridiculous-you-psycho and closed tab.

But then it went on sale (and yes, before I closed the tab, I'd set a notification in case this very thing happened). I knew that realistically, there was a high proposal-probability within the next year or two. So I went for it.

My now-husband even unknowingly slept on top of it for at least 12 months - it was stashed under his side of the bed in our London apartment.

In the end? I owned that dress for close to three years before I actually wore it. And by the time the wedding finally rolled around, I wore it not because it was the dream dress (which, honestly, I think is a pretty unhelpful fashion narrative - more on that another day), but because it seemed a bit sad after all that time to ditch her.

All this to say, I don't recommend purchasing a wedding dress several years out from the day. In fact, here's what I think is the perfect timeline.

So, when should you buy your wedding dress?

In my experience (working and chatting with hundreds of couples), somewhere between 9-15 months is a sweet spot. That might sound broad but depending the type of dress you're thinking of, your level of decisiveness and your tolerance for stress, it's a nice window.

This timeframe gives you enough time to shop around, try different designers, consider something made-to-measure if that’s your jam, and make peace with your choice before walking down the aisle. But not so much time that you’ll get bored of it or tempted by something else.

Here’s a rough breakdown:

⏰ 12–18 months out:

Ideal if you’re going down the made-to-order route. You’ve got breathing room for research, bookings, fittings and alterations – without any panic or pressure.

🧵 6–12 months out:

Still totally fine. Perfect for off-the-rack purchases or working with a local designer. You’ll just need to be a bit more decisive with your timeline.

⚡️ Less than 6 months out:

Now we’re in sample sale / ready-to-wear / non-bridal territory. It's doable (plenty of people go this route!) but options might be a little more limited and you’ll want to move quickly.

💥 Less than 1 month out:

This is where you’re relying on express shipping and a prayer (kidding… sort of). Not impossible, but definitely not recommended – mainly because you’ll have a heap of other things on your plate by then.

From experience: avoid buying two+ years out

From personal experience, I’d suggest you try and avoid buying a dress two+ years out from the day. Reason being, you’ll probably not be that into it by the time you wear it and may clandestinely buy another dress and squirrel away the first as your guilty secret (it’s more common than you think). That said though, if you find an outfit you love earlier than planned, or if you’ve left it to the last minute, don’t panic.

Don’t not buy something you truly adore just because the calendar says it’s too early or too late. There are so many incredible off-the-rack, ready-to-wear wedding outfits (and plenty of non-bridal designers doing great things) that you’ll be just fine.

(Yes yes I know this is contradictory but you know yourself better than me so go with your gut).

One more thing to keep in mind

Many bridal designers drop new collections around April and September each year, so if you’re in the market, these are great months to keep an eye out for fresh arrivals.

Final thoughts

I’ll finish off just by saying that if I have one piece of wedding attire advice, it’s to wear something you feel good in today and not stress too much about how you’ll feel about the outfit in the future.

Your tastes will change, as will the trends and styles. So choose something that you love right now and enjoy the dress/garment as a time-stamp of who you are in this moment. Be as influenced or as uninfluenced as you like and don’t worry too much about the timelessness of a dress (the 80s brides sure didn’t and I’ll bet they had a hoot on their wedding days and look back at their taffeta triumphs with fondness and love).