125 Best First Dance Songs For Wedding Couples

2020

 

 
The wedding first dance is the first dance between newlyweds as a married couple and is often the first dance of the wedding reception songs. It is followed by other formal dances like the father daughter dance, mother son dance, and finally ends with a bridal party dance or an invitation for every guest to begin dancing on the dance floor.

The first dance, however, starts the entire chain of dancing events. Of course, the timing of the bride groom dance can vary at the reception based on your preferences. The first dance can be done immediately following the grand entrance with the wedding party circling the dance floor around the bride and groom or the bride and groom dance can begin the chronological order of the formal dances with fun and dancing to follow. Learn more by reading our common format of a wedding reception.

It is entirely up to the bride and groom on how you want the evening to progress. The most important thing though is to have the bride and groom agree on a song that is special to them. There are literally thousands of choices of great love songs and wedding songs. Unsure? Read our article on choosing wedding songs.

Wedding First Dance Songs

Last Updated: January 6, 2020

First dance song list curated by Matthew Campbell

Other great wedding first dance song lists

• 30 Classic First Dance Songs Perfect For Today
• 40 R&B First Dance Songs
• Best Country First Dance Songs
• 10 Wedding First Dance Songs Not Overplayed
• 21 Modern First Dance Songs

Wedding First dance songs are remembered by the bride and groom for the rest of their lives, so it’s important to pick a song that is significant. Some couples choose a funny song or an instrumental song as those can be just as memorable as a touching ballad.

Many brides and grooms prepare for months for their first dance, by attending dance lessons. They will learn a magnificent waltz, spicy tango, or some other glamorous dance routine to go along with their first dance songs. This is often a wonderful surprise for the guests as they are entertained by the couple’s dance number. If you plan on doing a special, professional dance for your first dance, contact a local dance studio and get lessons.

You’ll also want to pick out your first dance songs well in advance, so you can practice to that specific tune. But again, the most important thing is to choose something memorable from the catalog of wedding songs. First dance songs are a symbol of your love and commitment, so take your time in choosing. We cannot name all the great first dance songs but above are the 100 Best of the more popular wedding first dance songs with brides and grooms around the U.S.

We are always asked:

What should you choose for your first dance song?

Being music enthusiasts, this was a fairly easy choice for my wife and I. There was a song we dedicated to each other during our courting stage. Wedding couples should choose a song that MEANS something to them. It doesn’t even necessarily have to be a slow song. This will be the first song as a married couple you will dance to…In public! All eyes are on you.

If you are not music enthusiasts or just don’t have a song, we would suggest selecting a song with the lyrics that mean something to both of you. Why do you think that Sarah McLachlan’s song Ice Cream is on many first dance song lists? It’s because it has cool words like “your love is better than chocolate, better than anything else that I’ve tried”. Corny? Maybe. But who cares what everyone else thinks. Maybe you met at an ice cream parlor. Then, the song would be awesome as a first dance song. Basically, be creative. You don’t have to be like everyone else and dance to the overplayed Celine Dion love songs (not that there’s anything wrong with that).

In addition, you are not forced to dance to any particular type of music. Many wedding couples take dancing lessons to a jazz song or whatever type of music. That way, bridal couples don’t look goofy dancing in a circle through the whole song (like we did). However, couples who take dance lessons have a connection to the song that will have significant meaning to them the rest of their lives. They will also have the memories of getting the lessons together, especially during the stress of planning the wedding.

If you want to see a list of popular first dance songs, go to our list of first dance songs.  We could list thousands of songs. But we would prefer a wedding couple to choose a song for a reason, not because it was “popular” or “traditional”.