A one-size-fits-all time-frame for when you ought to be ready to transition from your dating relationship to a greater commitment like marriage doesn’t exist. Couples enter into relationships at different ages and stages of their lives for various reasons.

However, evaluating how well you know your partner, your relationship certainty, what you’re expecting marriage will do to your relationship, and what you see as the current and anticipated quality of the relationship could be more useful ways to judge if it’s truly time to take the plunge...