The best Skyrim wives to marry depend on what you need from a spouse: Aela the Huntress is the strongest all-round pick for archer and melee builds because she is an Expert-tier Archery trainer who follows you into combat, Mjoll the Lioness is the safest choice because she is flagged essential and can never die, and Brelyna Maryon is the best match for mage characters. Marriage is also one of the cheapest permanent upgrades in the game — the Amulet of Mara costs roughly 200 gold — and it pays back with Lover’s Comfort (15% faster skill gain for 8 in-game hours) plus about 100 gold per in-game day from your spouse’s share of profits.
Our top picks
![The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (Anniversary Edition) - [PlayStation 4] | kostenloses Upgrade auf PlayStation 5](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51WubchYsEL._SL500_.jpg)
As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you.
Quick comparison: the best wives in Skyrim at a glance
| Pick | Best for | Key specs and perks | Cost and requirement | Housing note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aela the Huntress (Whiterun, Jorrvaskr) | Archers, melee hybrids, Companions roleplay | Expert Archery trainer, up to level 75; follower who levels with you; strong light-armor archer | Amulet of Mara, ~200 gold, plus the full Companions questline | Lives in Jorrvaskr; will move into any home you own |
| Mjoll the Lioness (Riften) | Players who refuse to lose a spouse | Essential NPC — cannot be killed; two-handed warrior follower; carries Grimsever, a unique sword | Amulet, ~200 gold, plus retrieving Grimsever from Mzinchaleft | Shares Aerin’s house in Riften; moves into your home |
| Brelyna Maryon (College of Winterhold) | Mages, spellswords, enchanter builds | Dunmer mage follower with destruction and conjuration support; summons soak aggro | Amulet, ~200 gold, plus her personal practice quest | College quarters, or your home |
| Jenassa (Whiterun, The Drunken Huntsman) | Stealth builds, dual-wield, assassin runs | Dual-wielding mercenary follower, 500 gold hire fee; sneaky, effective at range and in close | Amulet, ~200 gold, plus the 500 gold hire fee | No fixed home; moves into yours |
| Ysolda (Whiterun market) | Fastest, cheapest marriage; roleplay and pacifist runs | Not a follower and no combat value; still delivers the standard spouse share and Lover’s Comfort | Amulet, ~200 gold, plus one Mammoth Tusk | Breezehome or any home you own |
Best overall: Aela the Huntress
Aela is the pick that does the most work for the most builds. Per the game’s trainer tables, she teaches Archery up to level 75 — the Expert tier — which means your spouse is also your cheapest reliable way to push a bow build toward the cap without hunting down a trainer in another hold. She is a Companion, so she fights like a Companion: light armor, high mobility, and enough damage to matter at mid levels.
Who it suits: archers, sneaky hybrids, and anyone who wants a spouse who is genuinely useful on a dungeon run rather than decorative. The trade-off is the unlock cost in time, not gold. You have to complete the Companions questline before she is available, and she is not essential — like most follower-spouses she is flagged “protected,” meaning only your own weapons and spells can actually kill her. A careless Fireball in a crowded fight is the real risk, not the draugr.
Best for players who refuse to lose a spouse: Mjoll the Lioness
Mjoll is the only top-tier marriage candidate who is flagged essential, per the game’s NPC records — she cannot be killed by anything, including you. If you have ever lost a follower to a stray swing or an area-effect spell and reloaded an hour of progress, that single flag is worth more than any perk. She is also a competent two-handed warrior, and her personal quest rewards you with Grimsever, a unique sword you can hand to another follower or sell.
Who it suits: tanks, heavy-armor builds, and anyone playing on a high difficulty where followers die constantly. The trade-off is that she comes with Aerin, a housemate who follows her around Riften and adds nothing to combat. If that bothers you, marry her and move her to a Hearthfire home; the escort behaviour mostly resolves once she is living somewhere else.
Best for mage builds: Brelyna Maryon
Mages have the worst early-game survivability and the most to gain from a spouse who can tank. Brelyna is a Dunmer mage at the College of Winterhold who becomes a follower after her own short personal quest, and her summons and destruction spells pull aggro away from a robe-wearing character better than any warrior does. Marrying her also keeps you based at the College, which is the single best location for an enchanter — the Arcanaeum, the Atronach Forge, and trainers are all inside the same building.
Who it suits: pure mages, spellswords, and anyone levelling Enchanting or Alteration. The trade-off is durability: she is squishier than Mjoll or Aela and will go down in extended fights if you do not manage the room.
Best cheap-and-fast marriage: Ysolda
Ysolda is the answer to “I want the Lover’s Comfort bonus tonight.” She asks for one Mammoth Tusk, which you can pull off any mammoth corpse near a giant camp for free, and she has
