Give Yourself Time to Know Your Partner Through the Good Times and the Bad. As a baseline, Ian Kerner, PhD, LMFT, licensed psychotherapist, couples therapist and author of She Comes First, suggests that one to two years is often a good amount of time to date before getting engaged.

Is 6 years too long to wait for a proposal?

The truth of the matter is that there is no right or wrong length of time to wait to get engaged. Some couples wait six years before making it official, while others date for just six months—it all depends on your unique circumstances.