The best man’s speeches serve as a special lens for audiences to better understand the bride and groom, and themselves, through the groom’s significant position within their life. The focus should be on highlighting the relationships between the bride and groom rather than the best man and groom’s personal relationships.
Your best man speech will be one of the best things you say on your friend’s big day. Read on for best man speech format, some top tips, good example sentences and helpful resources to help you write the best speech.
Introductions for Your Best Man Speech
Let’s start by saying that there’s no right way or wrong way to give a good speech. But there are some things to keep in mind if you want to be sure that your speech goes well.
1. Spice Up Your Introduction As the Best Man
Make an impression on the audience by telling them a story right away about how you met. You might say something like, “I’ve known [groom] for almost ten years now and let me tell you the story of how we met and became best buddies.” In any case, remember that you want to focus on the positive aspects of your relationship-not the negative ones!
2. Tell A Joke
If you’re naturally funny, you can probably get away with one or two jokes, but always keep in mind the type of joke you want to tell. If you’re of the more serious nature, then you can try to be funny but keep a straight face – this tends to still be funny. Otherwise, if humor doesn’t come to you naturally, look up a few good jokes online but keep them authentic.
3. Have a Theme Running Throughout Your Speech
We suggest having a theme for your toast so that it can weave throughout what you have to say. Pick a theme that nice summarizes your relationship with the groom – work, hobbies, extracurricular activities – this will allow you to have both a strong open and close to your speech.
4. Pick a Dictionary Definition
This is one of the most commonly used techniques in best man speeches – choose a word that best describes the couple’s relationship. Read the dictionary definition of that word and then proceed to tell a story about the couple that illustrates that dictionary definition. Your speech will be like magic!
5. Choose a Quote
This is a simple and effective technique for kicking off the best speech ever. Include a quote that is personal to the couple and one that you know your audience would appreciate. One tip though is to make the audience feel like they’re part of the speech, especially if the quote isn’t widely recognized – briefly mention the source after reading the quote it.
If the Groom is your Best Friend
“I have been (groom’s name)’s best friend since Wednesday this week. I was the successful applicant to an ad he put online asking to pose as his friend. Apparently I got the position by default having been the only one to apply.”
“Some of you have asked me how I’ll cope now that I’m flying solo socially without my best friend…Honestly? I’m thrilled. Now I’ll finally be the best looking man in the room.”
“I’d like to start by congratulating (groom’s name) on his excellent taste in best men. He’s truly outdone himself this time.”
“When (groom’s name) asked me to be his best man, the first thing I did was Google ‘the perfect best man speech’, but you had to pay to read the examples and I didn’t think it was worth it, so I’m just going to wing it.”
“Hi everyone, I’m (your name). I’m here to tell you about (groom’s name) and how truly special, talented, good looking and…sorry buddy, I can’t read your handwriting here.”
“Hi everyone, my name is (your name) and I’m (groom’s name)’s best man. That’s right. It took him (X) years but he has FINALLY admitted I’m the best.”
“Hi, I’m [NAME] and in the run up to the wedding many people have asked me how I’ll cope now my best friend is married and will spend all his time at home loved up with his wife. Well, I’m thrilled. I’m finally able to talk to women without him cramping my style!”
“I’m the best man and I think I got this role by default as [GROOM’S NAME] doesn’t really have any other friends. I didn’t really want to do it, but I thought it might be the only chance I’ll get to have a meal and some drinks paid for by [GROOM’S NAME] so I didn’t risk turning it down.”
“My name is [NAME] and I’ve known [GROOM] since we were at school – so we’ve both learnt together what a mullet it as that it wasn’t a good look for either of us.”
“My name is [NAME] and I’ve known [GROOM] since we were at school – yes, I knew him when he still had hair!”
If the Groom is your Brother
You’re going to be standing up in front of everyone at your brother’s upcoming wedding as his best man. Apart from helping plan the bachelor party, you have one big job: to give the most memorable best man speech at the reception. You’re also expected to deliver a speech that will impress all the wedding guests.
Here are our top 10 tip for best man speech ideas when the groom is your brother.
1. Relive Your Childhood Memories
This is the best approach to begin a best man speech for your brother. In contrast to other close friends, your sibling is the one individual you’ve known longer than anybody else. Go back in time to when you were kids and jot down a couple of ideas. This can be the basis of your speech.
2. Think Back To Your Fun Times Together
What fun memories do you have with your brother? Did you play sports together or hang out? If you had free time, what would you do together? What happened when one of you left home and moved away? These are more story ideas for your speech.
3. Think Back to Your Fights
You probably argued about something when you were kids. What was it? And why did you get into a fight? This will be funny speech material as well.
4. Advantage of Being A Brother
Brothers can be funny. They’re also loyal and loving. So why not make a few jokes? And what better place to do it than in front of an audience who knows exactly what brothers are like? You’ll get laughs, and they won’t mind because they’ll understand the bonds of affection between brothers. Just remember, though, that you should only take the joke to the level that the audience will be able to tolerate. Otherwise, your joke won’t land well with the wedding guests.
5. Establish Your Relationship
As the groom’s brother, it’s likely that you’ll know most of the guests in the wedding party, but not everyone. Make sure to introduce yourself at the beginning of your speech so that everyone knows the relationship between you and the groom. You can do this in a serious way, such as “Hi, I’m David; Mark’s younger brother” or in a humorous way, “I’m David; think of me as Mark 2.0, the younger, better looking and more improved version”.
6. Have Fun At His Expense
You’ve got a lifetime of stories to draw inspiration from, so this is the opportunity to let loose and go for it! Anything goes from early childhood days, school memories, vacations and holidays, fashion, awkward teen years, jobs, etc. The only caution is to veer away from mentioning ex-girlfriends or anything equally awkward.
7. Brotherly Competition
Everybody expects a little rivalry between siblings. Don’t be shy about putting your sibling down a peg or two. Be sure to do it right and you won’t sound conceited. Try to be modest even as you mock the groom during your best man speech.
8. Stories About Mom and Dad
Of course, the one thing you share most with your brother is your mother and father. Stories about your mom and dad will always be well-received, so long as they’re not bitter. Try to keep them short and lighthearted, and avoid any negative stories about your childhood.
9. New Sister Joining the Family
Now’s the time to include something about your brother’s wife, since she’s officially joining the family. Ideally, combine a compliment with humor but don’t ever make jokes at her cost. It’s best to gently include some lightheartedness into the situation by making comments about how lucky he is, how she has made him a better person, etc.
10. End On A Genuine Note
Now that everyone has had a laugh at your brother’s expense, it’s time to tell him something genuinely nice about him; after all, you are siblings and he’s asked you to be his best man. The brotherly bond is special, so end of your speech with a toast to celebrate him and his new bride.
Best Man Toasts to End your Speech
A good part (and the end) of the best man’s speech involves presenting a toast to the newlyweds. Here is some inspiration for you when writing yours!
Traditional Toasts
- “Please join me in raising a glass to the happy couple – to [NAME] and [NAME]”
- “To my best friend and his beautiful bride/groom: the new Mr and Mrs/Mr [NAME]”
- “Here is a toast to a perfect couple – to a long life together filled with happiness, adventure and lots of wonderful memories”
- “To [NAME] and [NAME] – here is to a lifetime of love and happiness
Humorous Toasts
- “To [NAME] and [NAME] – we all knew [NAME] had found the one when he/she started spending more time with [NAME] than he did playing on his/her Xbox!”
- “To the two things that make a great marriage – having a good sense of humour and selective hearing. To [NAME] and [NAME]”
- “Please can everyone join me in toasting two young – well, kind of young – people in love. To the [bride/groom and groom]”
- “For one more time, I’m going to ask everyone to fill their glasses and – for those who still can – stand, and raise a glass to the newlyweds”
Final Thoughts
The best man’s speech does not have to be daunting, let the tips above you. Just think of your relationship with the groom and your genuine feelings will shine through. It doesn’t have to be lengthy or ground breaking, the speech just has to come from the heart.
