Stardew Valley is one of the most widely loved farming simulators ever created. Players can enjoy running a farm, helping to rebuild Pelican Town, or exploring the mines. However, the social and romantic aspect of the game is one of Stardew Valley's most compelling features. There are twelve potential spouses for players to romance and marry.

Each potential Stardew Valley love interest has their own pros and cons, with a broad spread designed to appeal to various players' tastes. However, there are some whom the Stardew Valley community has warmed to more than others. While there are no bad Stardew Valley spouses, there are some who get more attention as the best husband or wife in the game.

Updated on February 17, 2024, by Andrea Sandoval: One of Stardew Valley's features that make it such a compelling game is its wide variety of engaging and exciting characters. Players have a lot of fun befriending and even marrying some of the bachelors in Pelican Town. However, there's no doubt that some of these characters make better spouses than others. With Stardew Valley's eighth anniversary right around the corner, we updated this list to include more information about the best spouses in Stardew Valley.

Who Are the Singles of Stardew Valley?

Stardew Valley's Romanceable Characters:	Occupation/Hobby:	Personality:	Family & Living Situation:
Haley	Photography & Fashion	Shallow and rude in the beginning, but kind as a spouse	Haley lives with her sister Emily
Shane	Works at Joja Mart & raises chickens	Shane has a brooding personality that becomes more likable as the story advances	Shane lives with his aunt Marnie
Penny	Elementary school teacher	Sweet and kind, but tormented by her living situation	Penny with her problematic mother in a trailer (until the player builds a house for them)
Elliott	Writer	Romantic and pompous	Elliott lives alone in a cottage in front of the beach
Alex	Gridball player	Indifferent in the beginning but sweet as the story advances.	Alex lives with his grandparents
Sam	Musician, D&D player	Kind and charming	Sam lives with his mom and little brother (and later on his father)
Leah	Artist	Snobbish and friendly	Leah lives alone in a cottage in the woods
Maru	Nurse/ Inventor	Intelligent and nonsensical	Maru leaves with her mom, dad, and older brother Sebastian
Emily	Waitress at The Stardrop Saloon, seamstress, and witchcraft	Spiritual and optimistic	Emily lives with her sister Haley
Harvey	Doctor and model planes aficionado	Level-headed & charming	Harvey lives above his clinic
Sebastian	Programmer, D&D player, and loves motorcycles	Broody but kind	Sebastian lives in his parents' basement
Abigail	Loves video games and has a great interest in the macabre	Adventurous, extroverted, and straightforward	Abigail lives behind the General Store with her parents

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12 Haley Is Hard To Befriend

Everything to Know About Haley

Despite her often prickly exterior, Haley ends up having as much depth as any other Stardew Valley love interest. She has secret layers underneath her exterior, particularly in her love of photography and secret dark room. However, it takes a while for Haley to really warm up to the player. She initially comes across as uncaring and even disdainful, with many insults or backhanded compliments in her initial dialogue.

Haley remains the most standoffish of Stardew Valley's love interests even when the player begins building up a friendship. She only becomes friendly once the player has seven hearts with her. As a result, even though Haley is the best Stardew Valley wife for many players, others find her too hard to get to know, landing her at the bottom of the list.

11 Shane Is A Tough Nut To Crack

Everything to Know About Shane

Shane is another Stardew Valley spouse who starts off hostile to the player. He's initially entirely uncaring of the player's existence, even telling them to stop speaking to him. However, he has some genuine layers underneath his personality. Stardew Valley also gives Shane one of its darkest storylines. Shane's depression and struggles with alcohol get very dark, but not giving up on forging a friendship with him can help save his life and set him on the right path.

Shane is one of Stardew Valley's most divisive spouses. Many consider him the best person to marry in Stardew Valley because of his lengthy character development and hard-hitting emotional scenes. However, others dislike his initially prickly personality and the fact that marriage seems to cause him to relapse. Shane is definitely a controversial choice to marry in Stardew Valley, but he's not a bad husband.

10 Penny Is Sweet But Too Shy

Everything to Know About Penny

Penny is a school teacher who is somewhat married to her job in Stardew Valley. She does a lot of work to help support the children in town. However, she gets very anxious about being a bad role model, which means no drinking, no stories about her climbing trees, and no nonsense. Some of this may be related to issues with her mom, Pam, who seems to struggle with problems related to alcohol. Taking a look at Penny's list of hated gifts, it's clear that she wants nothing to do with alcohol, or any of the things that contribute to its making.

Penny is one of the most considerate love interests in Stardew Valley and, hence, one of the best wives in the game. She gives her spouse the same care and attention she gives her students. However, her restrictions on her own behavior and her initially shy personality can make it a challenge to get to the point of romance for some players. It could be a good idea to marry Penny in a Stardew Valley replay to see if it works for the player.

9 Elliott Lacks Character Development

Everything to Know About Elliot

Elliott is one of the more aloof and mysterious of Stardew Valley's husbands. The novel he is working on is of a genre chosen by the player. Throughout the game, Elliott is pretty one-note when it comes to a relationship. What you see at first is what you'll get when you marry him.

This doesn't make Elliot a bad husband in Stardew Valley. However, it will disappoint players who enjoy seeing the much greater depth some characters hide under their exteriors. For players who like him at the very first meeting, Elliot will prove one of Stardew Valley's best spouses, but the lack of character depth and continual development puts him mid-list in the rankings.

8 Alex Is An Affable Jock

Everything to Know About Alex

Alex is an easy Stardew Valley spouse to please. He likes exercise and loves a good breakfast. Like a sweet puppy dog, he's always eager to impress. While Alex has a lot of baggage, from his alcoholic father and his mother's passing to feeling misunderstood by the world at large, he's just a lovable and sweet guy under the surface.

Alex can be somewhat one-note and limited for some people's tastes, however. Outside of sports and enjoying others' company, he doesn't have many interests. Many Stardew Valley players enjoy his development as he cares less about fame and more about doing things for their own sake. However, not everybody considers him to change enough to be the best marriage in Stardew Valley.

7 Sam Is A Kind and Adorable Partner

Everything to Know About Sam

Sam is one of Stardew Valley's sweetest characters. He's almost always enthusiastic to see and talk to the player. This makes every conversation with him enjoyable. Sam also has one of Stardew Valley's easiest romances due to this appreciation for the cheap Joja Cola that everybody else hates.

Sam isn't a perfect husband in Stardew Valley. He's somewhat oblivious, such as missing the obvious crush Sebastian has on their mutual friend Abigail. Nonetheless, he's never malicious, cold, or even particularly insensitive. People looking for easy companionship will find Sam a good person to marry in Stardew Valley.

6 Leah Is A Good Balance Of Nice Personality And Good Character Development

Everything to Know About Leah

On the surface, Leah might resemble a female Elliott in Stardew Valley. They're both creative types plagued with self-doubt over their work. However, while Elliott waxes and wanes on his own, Leah's struggles feel more tangible. She's contacted by her ex and wonders whether she's made the right decisions.

On top of that, Leah is one of the most affectionate spouses in Stardew Valley, even prior to her marriage. Her personal storyline is one of the most emotional in the entire game, with plenty of space for player input. Between her independent personality and compelling narrative, many fans consider Leah one of Stardew Valley's best wives.

5 Maru Is Smart And Passionate

Everything to Know About Maru

Stardew Valley's Maru is a brilliant scientist who has to deal with her father trying to keep her from being her own person. She is hard at work on numerous projects, ranging from everyday science to things beyond human possibility. Her storyline focuses on both her inventions and her relationships with family members.

Maru's design and quietly passionate personality have made her the preferred love interest for many Stardew Valley players. The unusually fantastical touches to her personal storyline also help it stand out among the grounded and emotional narratives of other Stardew Valley spouses.

4 Emily's Zest For Life Is Contagious

Everything to Know About Emily

Emily is an energetic woman who lives her life full of zeal. She will dance for her love interest, trade recipes, and survive a bear with the player while camping in the woods together. She's more capable than most of the other spouses in Stardew Valley, even being able to impress her monster-slaying and business-running spouse.

There's another reason to get to know Emily in most Stardew Valley playthroughs. Befriending her is the only way to get the Red Plate recipe. This recipe gives a temporary max energy boost, so players want to be able to make it. With this incentive to speak to her often, players might find themselves more drawn to her than they expect. Her knack for positivity is a vast contrast to her sister Haley's demeanor, pushing her much closer to the top ranking.

3 Harvey Is A Charming And Sweet Husband

Everything to Know About Harvey

Harvey is Stardew Valley's capable and bashful town doctor. This already hits a lot of appealing notes for many players, who find him one of Stardew Valley's most charming potential husbands. Harvey's interactions and romance events are full of innocence and sweet intentions, from his secret aerobics to his romantic hot air balloon ride.

Harvey is also one of Stardew Valley's oldest husbands, as the town doctor who is significantly older than most of the other young adult spouses. This age gap may prove off-putting to some players and appealing to others. Similarly, his mustache-heavy design can either win over or alienate some Stardew Valley players.

2 Sebastian Is Hard To Befriend But Warms Up To The Player

Everything to Know About Sebastian

Sebastian is one of Stardew Valley's most difficult romances to begin. He keeps odd hours, spending most of the day working at his computer and being easier to find outside at night. He's also initially withdrawn and reserved, only coming out of his shell around his friends Sam and Abigail, and many players could consider him an unlikable character. Underneath his standoffish exterior, Sebastian is very deep, and as his character begins to unfold, he shares some of his deepest passions with the player character.

Many consider Sebastian one of Stardew Valley's best husbands because of how he warms up over the course of his romance. The player can help him overcome a lot of his troubles by getting to know him. In particular, he brightens up immensely when he moves out of his stepfather's house. His sensitivity and particular aesthetic also appeal heavily to certain Stardew Valley fans.

1 Abigail Is Stardew Valley's Most Popular Spouse

Everything to Know About Abigail

Abigail is famously one of Stardew Valley's most popular love interests. Her goth-inspired design makes her one of the game's most distinctive and eye-catching bachelors. On top of that, Abigail's romance storyline goes places nobody else's does, including a video game session and an adventure in the mine.

Abigail's Stardew Valley romance isn't all sunshine and fun, however. There is lots of genuine depth to her character, including her fears about her action-packed path in life. Her ambition, warmth, and design all lead many players to consider Abigail Stardew Valley's best wife and spouse overall.