Millennials Plan to Spend $290 on Valentine’s Day Activities

February 8, 2016 by Paul Ausick

One of the memes currently making that rounds is that millennials care less about stuff like cars and houses, and more about experiences like dining out or taking vacations. More evidence to support that observation just came out Monday: Millennials (ages 18 to 34) expect to spend nearly $100 more on Valentine’s Day than does the general population.

The young folks plan to spend an average of $290 on Valentine’s Day activities, compared with an overall average of $196 among all people who say they are in relationships. According to researchers at NerdWallet, millennial men are the biggest spenders:

Millennial men in relationships, in particular, plan to pull out all of the financial stops for their valentines by spending an average of $371. The dates will be cheaper for their female counterparts, who expect to spend an average of $197. Among all of those who plan to celebrate Valentine’s Day, men are set to outspend women by an average of $161.


A few more data points from the NerdWallet study:

  • 40% of all respondents reported a partner’s financial situation is more important than their physical attractiveness.
  • 46% of all respondents said that if their partner’s [credit] card was declined on a first date, they wouldn’t pursue a second date.
  • Nearly half (48%) of all respondents say they wouldn’t date someone with bad credit.
  • 68% of men surveyed believe men should pay the entire bill on a first date, while only 61% of their female counterparts feel the same.
  • The majority of millennial men (54%) say a potential partner’s financial situation is more important than their physical attractiveness, whereas only 43% of millennial women feel the same.
  • 43% of millennials would not date someone with bad credit. 51-54% of those above 55+ would not date someone with bad credit.
  • 77% of millennial men in relationships say men should pay the entire bill on the first date, compared to only 62% of men in relationships ages 35-44.
  • 68% of millennial men (including those not in a relationship) say men should pay for the entire first date. The same is true for only 58% of millennial women.

It appears that even if money can’t buy love, good credit may be a good starting point.

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