Yourfirst dance on your wedding dayisromantic, personal, and unforgettable. So, of course, you need to findthe perfect tuneto mark the special occasion. Finding the right song to play can be a tough task, though. Do you want to go classic or modern? Slow or fast? With all the love songs out there, the options are practically endless.
A survey conducted by The Black Tux of over 900 married couples from all age groups revealed some of the most requested first dance songs in the industry. The study found that "Unchained Melody" by The Righteous Brothers was the most popular choice overall, withclassic love songsby Etta James, Frank Sinatra, and Elvis Presley earning a spot in the top 15.
More contemporary songs from artists like John Legend, Ed Sheeran, and Adele also made the ranks. If the top charts aren't your jam, fear not—we have the best selection of first-dance wedding songs that are anything but ordinary. Whatever your taste, choose something that you and your partner will both love and cherish for years to come.
Ahead, we've rounded up 75 of the best first dance songs for your wedding.
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"All of Me," by John Legend
Lyrics of Love: "Give your all to me/I'll give my all to you/You're my end and my beginning"
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"Like I'm Gonna Lose You," by Jasmine Thompson
Lyrics of Love: "So I'm gonna love you/Like I'm gonna lose you/I'm gonna hold you/Like I'm saying goodbye"
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"500 Miles," by Sleeping at Last
Lyrics of Love: "But I would walk 500 miles/And I would walk 500 more/Just to be the man who walked a thousand miles/To fall down at your door"
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"Unchained Melody," by The Righteous Brothers
Lyrics of Love: "Oh, my love, my darling/I've hungered for your touch"
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"Amazed," by Lonestar
Lyrics of Love: "I want to spend the rest of my life with you by my side/Forever and ever"
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"Perfect Duet," by Ed Sheeran and Beyoncé
Lyrics of Love: "But darling, just kiss me slow/Your heart is all I own/And in your eyes, you're holding mine"
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"I Don't Want to Miss a Thing," by Aerosmith
Lyrics of Love: "The sweetest dream will never do/I'd still miss you, babe/And I don't want to miss a thing"
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"The Way You Look Tonight," by Frank Sinatra
Lyrics of Love: "There is nothing for me but to love you/And the way you look tonight"
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"At Last," by Etta James
Lyrics of Love: "At last my love has come along/My lonely days are over and life is like a song, oh yeah"
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"Sons and Daughters," by Allman Brown
Lyrics of Love: "And I, I'll wrap myself/Around your heart/I'll be the walls of his heart"
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"Yours," by Russell Dickerson
Lyrics of Love: "I came to life when I first kissed you/The best me has his arms around you/You make me better than I was before/Thank God I'm yours"
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"Kiss Me," by Ed Sheeran
Lyrics of Love: "And your heart's against my chest, your lips pressed in my neck/I'm falling for your eyes, but they don't know me yet/And with a feeling I'll forget, I'm in love now"
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"Escapade," by Janet Jackson
Lyrics of Love: "Come on baby, let's get away/Let's save our troubles for another day"
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"Sweetest Thing," by Allman Brown
Lyrics of Love: "You're the sweetest thing that I ever did see/Like a bird taking way/Tears that set you free"
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"Speechless," by Dan + Shay
Lyrics of Love: "And I'm speechless/You already know that you're my weakness/After all this time I'm just as nervous"
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"My Best Friend," by Tim McGraw
Lyrics of Love: "I fall in love all over/Every time I look at you"
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"Give Me Love," Ed Sheeran
Lyrics of Love: "All I want is the taste that your lips allow/My, my, my, my, oh give me love"
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"Your Song," by Elton John
Lyrics of Love: "I hope you don't mind/That I put down in words/How wonderful life is while you're in the world"
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"A Thousand Years," by Christina Perri
Lyrics of Love: "I have died every day, waiting for you/Darling, don't be afraid, I have loved you for a thousand years"
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"Marry Me," by Train
Lyrics of Love: "Forever can never be long enough for me/Feel like I've had long enough with you"
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"I Am Yours," by Andy Grammer
Lyrics of Love: "Still can't believe it when you say you're mine and/I am yours, I am yours, I am yours"
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"Back to You," by Twin Forks
Lyrics of Love: "Follow the signs right back to you/Back to you, back to you/I know they wind right back to you"
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"That’s When I Knew," by Alicia Keys
Lyrics of Love: "That's when I knew I fell in love/That's when I knew you were the one"
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"Have You Ever Been in Love," by Céline Dion
Lyrics of Love: "Have you ever been in love/You could touch the moonlight"
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"In Case You Didn’t Know," by Brett Young
Lyrics of Love: "In case you didn't know/Baby I'm crazy 'bout you/And I would be lying if I said/That I could live this life without you"
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"Falling Like the Stars," by James Arthur
Lyrics of Love: "We're fallin' like the stars, fallin' in love/And I'm not scared to say those words with you, I'm safe"
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"Only Wanna Be With You," by Hootie and the Blowfish
Lyrics of Love: "I just want to love you, but you wanna wear my ring/Well there's nothing I can do/I only wanna be with you"
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"Thinking Out Loud," by Ed Sheeran
Lyrics of Love: "And darling I will be loving you 'til we're 70/And baby my heart could still fall as hard at 23"
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"Can't Take My Eyes off You," by Frankie Valli
Lyrics of Love: "I love you, baby/And if it's quite alright/I need you, baby/To warm the lonely night"
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"Can't Help Falling in Love," by Elvis Presley
Lyrics of Love: "Take my hand/Take my whole life too/For I can't help falling in love with you"
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"Work Song," by Hozier
Lyrics of Love: "When my time comes around/Lay me gently in the cold dark earth/No grave can hold my body down/I'll crawl home to her"
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"XO," by John Mayer
Lyrics of Love: "Your heart is glowing/And I'm crashing into you/Baby kiss me, kiss me"
33of 75
"This Kiss," by Faith Hill
Lyrics of Love: "It's the way you love me/It's a feeling like this"
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"Make You Feel My Love," by Adele
Lyrics of Love: "No, there's nothing that I wouldn't do/To make you feel my love"
35of 75
"I Won't Give Up," by Jason Mraz
Lyrics of Love: "Well, I won't give up on us/Even if the skies get rough/I'm giving you all my love/I'm still looking up"
36of 75
"Hold Me," by Stevie Wonder
Lyrics of Love: "So hold me, baby hold me/Say you'll never let me go"
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"Teenage Dream," by Boyce Avenue
Lyrics of Love: "My heart stops when you look at me/Just one touch now baby I believe this is real"
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"January Wedding," by The Avett Brothers
Lyrics of Love: "I understand because my heart and hers are the same/And in January we're gettin' married"
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"Fresh Eyes," by Andy Grammer
Lyrics of Love: "So suddenly I'm in love with a stranger/I can't believe that she's mine"
40of 75
"Lay Your Heart Next to Mine," by Steve Azar
Lyrics of Love: "It will be all right/When you hold me tight/And you lay your heart next to mine"
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"You Are the Best Thing," by Ray LaMontagne
Lyrics of Love: "Believe me, you don't even have to try/Oh, because/You are the best thing"
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"There Will Be Time," by Mumford & Sons feat. Baaba Maal
Lyrics of Love: "And in the cold light, I live to love and adore you/It's all that I am, it's all that I have"
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"Come Rain or Come Shine," by Ray Charles
Lyrics of Love: "I'm gonna love you/Like no one's loved you/Come rain or come shine"
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"You Are," by Lionel Richie
Lyrics of Love: "And my love you'll see/We'll stay together, just you and me/I've got so much love"
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"Dreams Are More Precious," by Enya
Lyrics of Love: "Come see, close your eyes/Come see, give me your sorrow/And I keep watch for you"
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"Faster," by Matt Nathanson
Lyrics of Love: "Yeah you own me/And you make my heart beat faster, faster"
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"First Day of My Life," by Bright Eyes
Lyrics of Love: "This is the first day of my life/I'm glad I didn't die before I met you/But now I don't care, I could go anywhere with you"
The Ultimate Guide to Wedding Music
48of 75
"Crush," by Dave Matthews Band
Lyrics of Love: "Just as long as you're around/And here I'll be dancing on the ground"
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"Home," by Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros
Lyrics of Love: "Ah, home, let me come home/Home is wherever I'm with you"
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"Latch," by Sam Smith
Lyrics of Love: "How do you do it, you got me losing every breath/What did you give me to make my heart beat out my chest"
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"You and Me," by the Wannadies
Lyrics of Love: "But it's you and me/And we'll always be together/You and me, always, and forever"
52of 75
"Happy," by Pharrell
Lyrics of Love: "Clap along if you feel like happiness is the truth/Because I'm happy"
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"Waste," by Phish
Lyrics of Love: "A dream it's true/But I'd see it through/If I could be/Wasting my time with you"
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"We Will Dance," by Steven Curtis Chapman
Lyrics of Love: "Sometimes we dance as one/And feel the beating of each other's hearts"
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"The Luckiest," by Ben Folds Five
Lyrics of Love: "And in a white sea of eyes/I see one pair that I recognize/And I know/That I am/I am/I am/The luckiest"
56of 75
"Better Together," by Jack Johnson
Lyrics of Love: "Yeah, we'll look at the stars when we're together/Well, it's always better when we're together"
57of 75
"Spend My Life With You," by Tamia & Eric Benet
Lyrics of Love: "Can we just feel this way together 'til the end of all time/Can I just spend my life with you"
58of 75
"I'm Gonna Make You My Wife," by the Whispers
Lyrics of Love: "I'm gonna make you my world/You be my morning light/The star at night/Or the air I breathe"
59of 75
"Man on Fire," by Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros
Lyrics of Love: "Only one desire/That's left in me/I want the whole damn world/To come dance with me"
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"Lucky," by Jason Mraz and Colbie Caillat
Lyrics of Love: "I'm lucky I'm in love with my best friend/Lucky to have been where I have been/Lucky to be coming home again"
61of 75
"Never Let Me Go," by Florence + The Machine
Lyrics of Love: "Never let me go, never let me go/And the arms of the ocean are carrying me/And all this devotion was rushing over me"
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"Love You Like I Used To," by Russell Dickerson
Lyrics of Love: "Didn't know I could ever love you more than I did/But baby I do, I don't love you like I used to, no"
63of 75
"Girl You're Alright," by Paul Otten
Lyrics of Love: "All her friends tell me she's got a halo/I think I knew that right from the get-go"
64of 75
"Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic," by Sleeping at Last
Lyrics of Love: "Every little thing she does is magic/Everything she does just turns me on/Even though my life before was tragic/Now, I know my love for her goes on"
65of 75
"You & I (Nobody in the World)," by John Legend
Lyrics of Love: "All of the stars, you make them shine like they were ours/Ain't nobody in the world but you and I/You and I"
66of 75
"Say You Won't Let Go," by James Arthur
Lyrics of Love: "I know I needed you/But I never showed/But I wanna stay with you until we're grey and old"
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"You're Still the One," by Shania Twain
Lyrics of Love: "You're still the one I run to/The one that I belong to/You're still the one I want for life"
68of 75
"Mine Would Be You," by Blake Shelton
Lyrics of Love: "Baby, if I had to choose/My best day ever/My finest hour, my wildest dream come true/Mine would be you"
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"Who Would Have Thought," by Dylan Dunlap
Lyrics of Love: "Who would have thought that you'd make me love California?/And that's saying a lot, 'cause I hated it here before ya"
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"You Are My Sunshine," by Jasmine Thompson
Lyrics of Love: "You are my sunshine/My only sunshine/You make me happy/When skies are gray"
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"From the Ground Up," by Dan + Shay
Lyrics of Love: "And we'll build this love from the ground up/Now 'til forever it's all of me, all of you/Just take my hand"
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"Celestial," by Ed Sheeran
Lyrics of Love: "You make me feel/Like my troubled heart is a million miles away/You make me feel/Like I'm drunk on stars and we're dancing out into space"
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"Lover," by Taylor Swift
Lyrics of Love: "Can I go where you go?/Can we always be this close forever and ever?/And ah, take me out, and take me home (forever and ever)"
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"Anyone," by Justin Bieber
Lyrics of Love: "Dance with me under the diamonds/See me like breath in the cold/Sleep with me here in the silence/Come kiss me, silver and gold"
75of 75
"this is how you fall in love," by Chelsea Cutler and Jeremy Zucker
Lyrics of Love: "Wherever we go/What glitters is gold/You'll be my best friend/Until we grow old"
FAQ
When do we do the first dance at our wedding?
Traditionally, the first dance kicks off thedancing portionof the reception, so it occurs after the meal. Many couples, however, choose to do the first dance at the beginning of the reception during their grand entrance, or even after the cake cutting.
How long should the first dance be?
Your first dance should be around two-and-a-half to three-and-a-half minutes long. Longer can feel awkward, but too short and your videographer and photographer won't be able to properly capture the moment.
How do we pick a first dance song?
There's no one way to choose a first dance song, but to help you and your partner decide, you can look to your birth years for inspiration, narrow it down to a specific genre, and look carefully at lyrics of popular first dance songs to find what resonates. Consider things like the pace of the song and your ability to dance to it.
How do we dance for the first dance at our wedding?
There are a few ways you can do your first dance, and it will depend on the song you choose and your skill level. "The sway" is the classic first dance style, along with the Waltz and the Foxtrot. You can also opt for an original choreographed dance.
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