Anniversary card messages and wishes

An anniversary card is one of the few you write to someone who already knows how you feel, which is exactly why people freeze at the blank page. The trick is not to summarise the whole relationship. Pick one year, one habit, one running joke, and let that stand in for the rest.

The messages below are grouped by tone and by who you're writing to, so you can go straight to romantic lines for a partner, warm ones for parents celebrating a silver or golden year, or something light for friends.

Every line is short enough to write out by hand. If you want the best of both, open with a joke and sign off with something you actually mean.

Romantic anniversary messages

• Another year with you, and it still feels like the easiest decision I ever made.
• Happy anniversary. I'd choose this, and you, all over again.
• Thank you for every ordinary day. They're my favourite part.
• You are still the best thing that ever happened to me. Happy anniversary.
• Here's to another year of you stealing the duvet and me letting you.
• Everything good in my life has you somewhere in it. Happy anniversary.
• I love the life we've built. Happy anniversary to us.
• Same heart, more years. Happy anniversary, my love. Shop this card

Funny anniversary card messages

• Happy anniversary. Statistically, we're doing very well.
• Another year and neither of us has run off. Well done, team.
• Congratulations on tolerating me for another twelve months.
• Happy anniversary to the only person who knows how I like the tea.
• We've argued about the thermostat this many years and we're still here. Impressive.
• Marriage is just deciding whose turn it is to load the dishwasher, forever. Happy anniversary.
• Happy anniversary. You still make me laugh, mostly on purpose.

Anniversary wishes for parents

• Happy anniversary to the two people who showed us what it's meant to look like.
• All these years and you still finish each other's sentences. Congratulations.
• Thank you for a home full of noise, food and each other. Happy anniversary.
• Congratulations on your anniversary — the whole family is proof it worked.
• Happy anniversary, Mum and Dad. Still the best double act going.
• Wishing you both a wonderful anniversary and a very long sit down.

Short anniversary card messages

• Happy anniversary. Still my favourite.
• Here's to us, and to next year.
• Congratulations on another brilliant year together.
• Happy anniversary — you two got it right.
• To many more. Happy anniversary.
• Cheers to you both today.

Milestone anniversary wishes

• Twenty five years of getting it right. Happy silver anniversary.
• Forty years, one ruby anniversary, and still the same laugh across the room.
• Fifty golden years together. What an achievement.
• Sixty years. There should be a medal, but a card and cake will have to do.
• A whole decade together. Here's to the next one.
• One year down, all the good ones to come. Happy first anniversary.

Shop all anniversary cards

Milestone anniversary cards

Silver, ruby and golden years covered.

Cards for the two of them

Warm, funny and not remotely soppy unless you want it to be.

How to write it so it lands

• Mention the year number or its name; it dates the card in a good way.
• One shared memory beats three general compliments.
• If it's from the family, sign every name rather than "all of us".

Where to shop next

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Frequently asked questions

What do you write in an anniversary card?

Name one specific thing from the year just gone — a trip, a house move, a hard patch you got through — then finish with a wish for the year ahead. Specific beats poetic every time.

What are the anniversary years called?

The best known in the UK are paper (1st), silver (25th), ruby (40th), golden (50th) and diamond (60th). Mentioning the name in the card is an easy way to make it feel occasion-specific.

What do you write in an anniversary card for parents?

Write as their child, not as a guest. Thank them for something you grew up with — the food, the arguments they got over, the way they still make each other laugh — and keep it to a few lines.