Getting Married and Managing Money

That is how me and my wife handle our finances. We have VERY different spending habits so we don't argue of small expenses. She can buy as many clothes as she wants and I can get as much fishing gear as I need. Just be sure to have your savings and bill account on auto draft or direct deposit from your checking so you aren't tempted to hold onto it.

I just pay for everything. She buys what she wants on occasion but we talk about most purchases.

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we have a pretty big wage gap and i'm not sure how we would even handle splitting bills/spending

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Wage gap adds complexity to the situation. I am not yet married but I expect to setup a system that focuses in order:
- Both max retirement accounts
- Current bills allocation
- Long-term goals (e.g., house fund)
- Short-term goals (e.g., travel budget)
- Fun money

My current girlfriend and I make enough that money would never be an issue with our combined income. In some ways, this is a bad thing because it means spending habits can expand without any penalty. Reeling that back in is hard to do down the road.

We were broke together with one account and still have one account (checking) even though we are as broke. We have a regular savings account also. There is a big wage disparity, she make more than double what I make. It all gets deposited into the checking account and I move money to the savings account and pay all the bills.

Going on 25 yrs together.....with a setup like you describe. A joint house account for household bills, mortgage, etc. Separate personal checking & small savings accounts for each of us....main paychecks auto-deposited to those personal accounts and specific amounts transferred to household account each month. Plus he’s got business & trust accounts, I have business accounts too. Way too damn many things going on at my house for a single joint account. That’s for some mythical one income couple with uncomplicated finances.

As long as you are transparent with regard to your finances—actually sit down and review the stuff together if necessary on a monthly basis—there is no drawback to separate accounts. As another poster mentioned, it’s silly for a dual income household to quibble over small purchases, as long as you’re meeting bigger budget goals for savings, retirement, paying down mortgage, etc. Decide together if you need to up your household contributions to cover an upcoming vacation, a new couch, a new roof. But don’t waste your precious free time arguing over whether he spends too much money on lunch or you spend too much money on books.

Life is short—arrange it as you need for maximum peace and equity. Figure out what works for your relationship & household. Ignore any religious figure who tries to convince you otherwise.

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Getting married soon and seeking advice on how to manage our money as a couple. My idea is to essentially have 4 accounts.1 savings account, 1 “bill account” and each have our own individual account. We’ll sit down and add up all our bills and divvy up our share for that. Agree on a number for savings to go to that account. The rest will go to each of our accounts for our personal spending.

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Good idea.

We have 3 accounts. Joint savings (saving for a house) and individual checking accounts to which our checks are deposited into. We each put a set amount each month into the savings. Most all bill and rent are paid from my account since I make considerably more than my wife. Whatever is left over after she puts money into the saving from her account she is free to do with as she pleases. I fear if we had one account she might see it as a bottomless piggy bank since she tends to have fancy tastes if you know what I mean.

wait till 35y/o and have tons of money in bank
marry an 18y/o
have separate accounts
profit

We're similar to what others have said.

Savings
Joint checking
Each a personal checking

Except, we transfer a set amount to fund our personal accounts each month. This works well for us. We each have the same amount each month to spend on whatever we want without having to check with the other person. It also eliminates any issues regarding who is currently making more money.

Joint checking for monthly expenses, managed by wife .

Joint saving account managed by both of us.

CD in her name, managed by both.

Savings account in my name for property taxes and insurances - home/autos

Investments in my name, managed by me