Key Takeaways
- Investing in marriage candidates in Stardew Valley varies in profitability due to gift values.
- Some candidates like Emily offer higher-value gifts, while others like Alex result in a net loss.
- Penny stands out as the most profitable candidate due to savings on farmhouse decorations.
Getting married in Stardew Valley is no easy feat, and it certainly isn’t cheap. With a 250g expense for a bouquet and a 5,000g payout for the Mermaid’s Pendant, players already need to invest at least 5,250g in their spouse – and that’s without mentioning the possible costs of gifts.
Related
Stardew Valley: 14 Mods That Add Marriage Candidates
For Stardew Valley players looking for more marriage candidates, these mods will give them significantly more options.
The following candidates have been ordered by the total gold of all their gifted items, combined with any gold requirements once married. Unfortunately, gift-giving is random, so there is no concrete way to definitively decipher the most profitable marriage in Stardew Valley. Still, this list provides a good idea of the average amount of gold players will receive from their spouses’ gifts at any given time.
Since Kroubus is not technically a marriage candidate, he is not included on this list, but he is a great option for those who would prefer a roommate without the romance. He can also give players some useful and expensive gifts, such as Lucky Lunch and Strange Bun.
12 Alex
-3,905g Gift Total
Alex’s gifted items are 
Survival Burger, 
Dish O’ The Sea, 
Fried Eel, 
Crispy Bass, 
Baked Fish, 
Omelet, 
Hashbrowns, and 
Pancakes. He is firmly secured as one of the least profitable marriage candidates, as he is the only marriage candidate whose requirements total a loss of gold.
In Alex’s fourteen heart event, he asks the player for 5,000g for a “secret project,” which turns out to be for a television set for the saloon. Although the cutscene is a heartwarming one, there is no material benefit to the player from this.
11 Sam
655g – 677g Gift Total
Sam can gift the player Cactus Fruit, 
Coconut, 
Earth Crystal, 
Geode, Pizza, and Pancakes. With a lack of gift options and very limited food items (which tend to be the more expensive gifts), Sam doesn’t quite make the cut as a profitable marriage candidate when considering the number of years it would take to make back the 5,250g spent to get to marriage.
Related
Stardew Valley: The Best Professions For Every Skill
There are a lot of great professions to snag in Stardew Valley for every skill. Here’s a look at some of the best.
With the Tiller and Gemologist professions, Sam’s gifts can be worth more than base value. With the Tiller profession, Cactus Fruit goes up in price from 75g to 82g and with the Gemologist profession, Earth Crystal can earn 65g as opposed to 50g. Moreover, when cracking the Geode given for 25g at Clint’s, more money could be made depending on what is inside.
10 Sebastian
815g – 947g Gift Total
Sebastian is one of three candidates who will give a special gift on Winter 28 to celebrate New Year’s Eve. This gift is 
Beer, which can be sold for 200g or 280g with the Artisan profession. Sebastian’s regular gifted items are 
Coffee, 
Obsidian, 
Void Essence, 
Bat Wing, Frozen Tear, 
Amethyst, and 
Cave Carrot.
With the Gemologist profession, both Frozen Tear and Amethyst are worth more. Frozen Tear goes from 75g to 97g, and Amethyst goes from 100g to 130g.
9 Harvey
1,190g Gift Total
- Loved Gifts: Coffee,
Pickles, 
Super Meal. - Lives: Harvey’s Clinic.
- Birthday: Winter 14.
Harvey gives some quite basic gifts that are given by several other marriage candidates. However, the inclusion of Complete Breakfast and Salmon Dinner (sold at 350g and 300g respectively) bumps up his total considerably.
Other than these two gifts, Harvey also gives Crispy Bass, Fried Eel, 
Carp Surprise, and 
Vegetable Medley. Harvey does leave the farm to work at the Clinic on several days, so when this happens, players are less likely to be able to receive a gift from him before leaving the farm.
8 Elliott
1,110g – 1,270g Gift Total
Elliott is another candidate who gives a special gift on Winter 28 to celebrate New Year’s Eve. His gift is 
Wine, which can be sold for 400g at base value or 560g with the Artisan profession. Elliott’s other gifts are Coffee, Baked Fish, 
Fried Calamari, 
Chowder, and 
Fish Stew.
The inclusion of Wine helps Elliott out a great deal as a marriage candidate. Without it (and without the player taking the Artisan profession), his total would be less than both Harvey’s and Sebastian’s – moving him down two places.
7 Shane
1,285g – 1,517g Gift Total
- Loved Gifts: Beer, Pizza,
Hot Pepper . - Lives: Marnie’s Ranch.
- Birthday: Spring 20.
Shane’s total changes based on two professions: Artisan and Rancher. Given that two of his gifts are farm products and another two are artisan goods, Shane’s total relies heavily on the correct professions.
The gifts given by Shane are Beer, 
Large Egg, 
Pale Ale, 
Void Egg, 
Pepper Poppers, Omelet, and Pizza. With the Artisan profession, Beer increases from 200g to 280g and Pale Ale increases from 300g to 420g when sold. If players choose the Rancher profession, Large Egg goes from 95g to 114g, and Void Egg goes from 65g to 78g.
6 Maru
1,409g Gift Total
Maru’s gifted items tend to be more useful than profitable with the inclusion of 
Warp Totem: Farm, a 
Gate, 
Quality Fertilizer, various bombs, and 
Refined Quartz. But due to the variety of her items, she earns her spot as one of the more profitable marriage candidates in Stardew Valley.
Maru’s other gifted items are 
Rice Pudding, 
Blueberry Tart, 
Cookie, 
Chocolate Cake, 
Fried Mushroom, and Crab Cakes. With some great selling prices, these dishes are good gifts to receive. Even without selling, Crab Cakes are particularly useful to eat while mining or in Skull Cavern, as they give +1 Speed and +1 Defense stats as well as +225 Energy and +101 Health.
5 Leah
1,560g – 1,741g Gift Total
Leah has the most options for gifted items out of all marriage candidates and is the third villager to offer a special gift on Winter 28 to celebrate New Year’s Eve. Her special gift is also Wine, which (like with Elliott) sells at a base value of 400g or 560g with the Artisan profession.
Related
Stardew Valley: Fastest-Growing Crops, Ranked
Among all the fast-growing, speedy crops of Stardew Valley, these are the most valuable options.
Leah’s gifts are 
Chanterelle, 
Common Mushroom, 
Red Mushroom, 
Morel, Coffee, 
Wild Horseradish, 
Daffodil, 
Leek, 
Dandelion, Cactus Fruit, 
Fiddlehead Fern, 
Spice Berry, 
Sweet Pea, and 
Salad. With the Tiller profession, Cactus Fruit increases from 75g to 82g, Fiddlehead Fern increases from 90g to 99g, and Sweet Pea increases from 50g to 55g. Leah is generally a profitable marriage candidate, although the randomization of gifts may result in her lower-priced items being more common than her high-value gifts.
4 Abigail
1,690g – 1,750g Gift Total
Abigail also has quite a lot of options when it comes to gifts. Her gifted items are as follows: 
Solar Essence, Bat Wing, Void Essence, Amethyst, 
Fire Quartz, 
Parsnip Soup, 
Tom Kha Soup, 
Trout Soup, Chowder, 
Lobster Bisque, 
Cherry Bomb, 
Bomb, Fried Mushroom, and Crab Cakes.
Similar to Maru, Abigail’s presents include dishes and items useful for mining in the Skull Cavern. With the Gemologist profession, both Fire Quartz and Amethyst increase from 100g to 130g sell price – making Abigail a solid option for marriage when considering the gold that can be earned from her gifts.
3 Haley
1,825g Gift Total
All possible gifts from Haley are food items that typically have a higher selling price than gifted gems or foragables. Also, if a player decides to keep some of Haley’s gifts (such as a Fried Egg, 
Bread, or Hashbrowns), they can use them in other cooking recipes to make dishes that are worth more than the original gifted dish.
Haley’s other gifts include Cookie, Blueberry Tart, Pancakes, 
Poppyseed Muffin, 
Maple Bar, Omelet, Chowder, 
Eggplant Parmesan, 
Bean Hotpot, and Parsnip Soup. Without the need to choose a specific profession to earn the optimal amount of gold from her gifts, Haley is a very good choice for marriage profitability.
2 Emily
2,110g – 2,322g – 2,416g Gift Total
Emily’s gifts are as follows: 
Cloth, 
Wool, 
Duck Feather, Refined Quartz, Bean Hotpot, Rice Pudding, Blueberry Tart, Cookie, Chocolate Cake, Coffee, and an 
Omni Geode. With the Rancher profession, some gifts increase in value. Cloth goes from 470g to 564g, Wool goes from 340g to 408g, and Duck Feather goes from 250g to 300g. Moreover, with the Artisan profession, Cloth can reach 658g.
The Omni Geode sells for 0g – but when opened at Clint’s for 25g, it can produce a 
Prismatic Shard worth 2,000g. Unfortunately, the chances of that happening are 1/88, and it can only happen after cracking at least fifteen geodes.
1 Penny
231,455g – 231,503g Gift Total
If, like many Stardew Valley players, decorating the farmhouse is not a priority, then Penny is the perfect marriage candidate for profit. During her fourteen heart event, Penny decorates the farmhouse bedroom, which can save the player a total of 230,000g. Without the need for a 
Catalogue for wallpaper and flooring (30,000g from Pierre’s) or a 
Furniture Catalogue for decoration (200,000g from Robin’s), players can technically make the most profit from Penny.
She also has some good value gifts, such as 
Large Milk, 
Egg, Omelet, Hashbrowns, Pancakes, Salmon Dinner, Crispy Bass, Fired Eel, Carp Surprise, and Vegetable Medley. Furthermore, she can give the player 
Mixed Seeds, which can be planted for a great profit, and a Geode that sells for a base value of 50g and could yield more if cracked open.
- Released
- February 26, 2016
- Developer(s)
- ConcernedApe
- OpenCritic Rating
- Mighty
