15 MoneySaving tips for couples (as it's Valentine's Day) 
Incl £400 double bank switch
£660 married tax break 
2for1 for a year's cinema

On a day when love is all around, we thought we'd share the key tips where saying let's stay together can net huge savings - whether you're married, living together, have both swiped right or are just friends. So with a cheesy love song theme, harness the power of love and get saving...

1. Get £400 FREE if you've "lost that lovin' feelin'" for your bank. It takes 10mins to BOTH switch. It's easy - once you've applied it then takes 7 working days to switch, the bank shifts direct debits etc & you can net up to £200 per customer, so if both do it and switch their own account that's £400. If your bank's pants, why wait?
   
   For all perks below you must use the official switching services within a certain time frame, pass a credit check and you usually need to switch 2+ direct debits, register for web or app banking and stay in credit. Full eligibility in Best Bank Accounts.
   
   - Free £200 (£150 upfront, £50 if you stay). Switch to HSBC Advance* within 30 days of opening the account and you can get £150, and £50 more if still with it in a year. You can also open a 5% regular saver. Min pay-in: £1,750/mth.
   
   - Ends Fri. Free £125 + 2% bills cashback. Switchers to NatWest Reward* get £125. There's a £2/mth fee, but it pays 2% on energy, broadband etc paid by direct debit. After the fee, you'd make £66 with average bills. Min pay-in: £1,500/mth. Existing NatWest custs can get £125 if you switch another account into a qualifying NatWest one.
   
   - Free £125 with no min pay-in + £3/mth. Switch to Halifax Reward and get a free £125 if you've not had a switch incentive from it since 2012, with NO min pay-in. There's also £3/mth if you pay in £750/mth and jump through other hurdles.
   
   - Free £125 & top service. Via this First Direct* link, new customers get £125 (£100 direct) to switch. It's won every customer service poll we've done, some get a £250 0% overdraft and you can open a 5% regular saver. Min pay-in: £1k/mth to keep it free, or it's £10/mth.
   
   - Free £125 M&S with no min pay-in + £5/mth for a year. New M&S Bank* switchers get a £125 M&S gift card with £5/mth added to it for the first year if you pay in £1k/mth. Plus there's a 5% regular saver.
   
   
2. If you "put a ring on it" get a FREE £662 tax break. 1.5m married couples and civil partners are missing out on an easy but under-publicised tax break worth £230 this year, and £432 for the past two. Our Marriage Tax Allowance guide explains all, as John discovered: "MSE has saved me... I contacted HMRC about the marriage tax allowance and now have a £400 rebate."
   
   
3. Save £1,000s by asking your partner to "take on me" and shift YOUR debt to THEIR 0% card. A-ha. If you've card debt, shifting it to a 0% balance transfer, where the new card pays off existing card(s), can win as you owe the new one but at 0% (often for a small fee). Repayments then clear the debt rather than just covering the interest, so you're debt-free quicker, possibly saving £1,000s.
   
   Getting accepted can be difficult, but if you're in a trusting relationship there could be a way to get around this. If one of you is struggling to shift debt, the other can apply for one of the few cards that let you shift someone else's debt (assuming they've a good credit history).
   
   First use our Balance Transfer Eligibility Calc to see if you can shift the debt yourself. If you can't, both Barclaycard & Sainsbury's Bank let you transfer someone else's debt to their cards, and both currently have good deals.
   
   - Barclaycard (eligibility calc / apply*) offers up to 37mths 0% - the longest available - with a 1.85% fee of the amount transferred.
   
   - Sainsbury's Bank (eligibility calc / apply*) offers 36mths 0% for a 2.89% fee. If you can repay quicker, another Sainsbury's Bank card (eligibility calc / apply*) is 28mths 0% with NO fee.
   
   Always make the monthly min payment, don't spend on it & clear before the 0% ends, or they jump to 19.9% (B'card) or 18.9% rep APR (Sains). See full info in Best Balance Transfers.
   
   
4. "It takes two" to save on car insurance... sometimes. Adding your partner, mum, dad or aunt Dot can slash costs. If they've a good record it can bring the premium down - especially useful when adding a responsible older driver if you're young. Sarah tweeted: "Adding a 2nd driver saved me £600. Thanks." Full info and more help, incl cheap multi-car policies, in Cheap Car Insurance a>.
   
   
5. "You to me are everything" in a packaged bank account with £600 of FAMILY travel, phone and breakdown insurance for £156. Paying a monthly account fee can be a waste, yet done right as a cheap way to buy insurance, it can be fruitful.
   
   Our top pick's Nationwide's FlexPlus*, as for £13/mth you get worldwide family travel insurance, family smartphone insurance and UK & European breakdown cover for all account holders. A family needing them all could pay £600+/yr separately. Full eligibility info & more options in Packaged Bank Accounts. Ensure you add your partner as a joint account holder so they get the benefits too.
   
   
6. "Join hands, start a love train." Or at least join forces to get 1/3 off train fares for two. The Two Together Railcard gives the two named cardholders 1/3 off most fares if travelling together. It usually costs £30, but via a 10% off code it's £27. Abi tweeted us: "Didn't know about Two Together - saved £40+ on tickets, thanks." 
   
   If you've kids and travel with them, the Family & Friends Railcard gets a third off most grown-up fares, 60% off for kids. And via a 20% off code it's £24 rather than the usual £30. See Cheap Train Tickets for more tips.
   
   
7. Say "I WILL always love you" with up to £100 off codes for singles' and couples' wills. It ain't exciting but planning for your loved ones' future when you've gone is vital - and we've codes for wills checked by specialists. Via Which?, you can get a single will for £99 or a couples' will for £159. Co-op offers similar single wills for £99, or couples' for £185. See Cheap Wills.
   
   
8. Never wonder "who's gonna drive you home", with full breakdown cover (incl onward travel) for you and your spouse or civil partner - 15mths for the price of 12. Our top-pick that includes home start and onward travel AutoAid* is usually £43.31 for a year. But we've blagged an extra 3mths free. It covers any car you or your spouse/civil partner drives & can be cheaper than two single AA or RAC policies. See Cheap Breakdown Cover.
   
   
9. "Love is in the air" with 'free' airline companion tickets - two can fly in business class for less than economy. It's about credit cards where you earn frequent flyer miles for spending, and if you hit certain trigger spends, you get a 'free' companion ticket. That means when you pay for one ticket in points, you get the second - in the same class, even First - for 'free', though you pay taxes & charges on both.
   
   The no-fee BA Amex (eligibility calc / apply*) gives 1 Avios point per £1 spent, plus 5,000 more when you spend £1k+ within the first 3mths. Put £20k+ on it a year and you get a 'free' companion ticket to use within 1yr.
   
   Or, for £195/yr, the BA Premium Plus Amex (eligibility calc / apply*) gives a higher 1.5 Avios per £1, plus 25,000 extra if you spend £3k+ within the first 3mths. Most importantly it also offers the 'free' companion ticket at a lower £10k+/yr spending trigger (and you've 2yrs to use it).
   
   Add your partner as a second cardholder to max the gains, and put ALL spending you can on the cards. Also set up a direct debit to repay IN FULL each month to avoid the 22.9% interest on both. Full help and more options in Top Airline Cards.
   
   To show what's possible when you max the points, MSE Guy and his wife flew business class to New York for less than the price of economy over Christmas.
   
   
10. Forget "Saturday night at the movies." Cuddle up with 2for1 cinema tickets for A YEAR on Tues or Weds instead. It's about our 2for1 for £1ish movie trick. Pat did it: "Just bought travel insurance for £1.02 and within 10 minutes had the 2for1 code. Going on Wednesday – result."
    
    
11. "How deep is your love?" If you really trust them, reduce tax by saving together. Basic-rate taxpayers can earn up to £1,000/yr interest tax-free under the personal savings allowance (higher rate, £500). If you'll exceed that & your partner won't, consider putting some savings in their name to minimise tax. But you MUST trust each other as you're giving your money to someone else.
    
    
12. "Let's stay together." If you're planning on buying your first home, get a 25% savings boost. This is a no-brainer for anyone who may one day want to buy their first home. With a Lifetime ISA or Help to Buy ISA the state adds £250 per £1,000 saved. If buying together, get one EACH to double the boost (and if one has owned before , the other can still get one).
    
    
13. Get "money for nothing". Playing the system between two can bag 5% cashback for SIX months. Cashback credit cards pay you for spending. The big payer is Amex Everyday (eligibility calc / apply*), which gives 5% cashback (max £100) for the first 3mths & up to 1% after. Yet couples can get six months at 5%. Here's how:
    
    Harry applies & makes Meghan his 2nd cardholder, so both get 5% cashback to use on wedding stuff. Before the 5% ends, Meghan applies, making Harry her 2nd cardholder to bag another 3mths at 5%. (They must spend £3k+/yr per card to get ANY cashback though.)
    
    Set up a direct debit to repay IN FULL each month to avoid the 22.9% rep APR which would wipe the gain. Full help and how to use them in Top Cashback Cards (APR Examples).
    
    
14. Cut the cost of a "white wedding". If you or your partner's popped the question this Valentine's or recently, congrats. See our Cheap Wedding Tips and find out if you need wedding insurance.
    
    
15. But don't forget "love hurts" when you team up with a bad credit scorer. Apply for joint mortgages, loans, bank accounts and sometimes utility bills (not credit cards) and your credit files can be linked - regardless of whether you're kissing, living together, or hitting your diamond wedding anniversary. So don't get joint products if your partner has a history of poor credit. See Boost You r Credit Score.

Over to Martin: "I hope you enjoyed this week's episode on 'Aargh - 6.1% student loans. Are you owed money back?' (watch again online or the Sun morning ITV repeat). Next Mon: 1) The best deals for your kids' savings. 2) How to save £1,000s on life insurance to protect your family. 3) I'm forced into a taste test of 20-year-old food. Do watch or set your Betamax."