How does United States mark Valentine's Day?
Valentine's Day
- Local date
- February 14, 2027
Valentine's Day in the United States is 14 February, a single day, not a holiday, and with no return-gift day. There is no rule about which direction gifts flow; cards, flowers, chocolate and going out to eat are the usual combination, while in schools it is common for a whole class to exchange cards — expanding it from a couples' day into a classroom activity. Commercially it is large; institutionally it does not exist at all.The Census Bureau's page ties the day to population data: by the 2022 American Community Survey, 49.8 per cent of men and 46.3 per cent of women aged fifteen and over were married, and 75.5 per cent of those who have ever married had made only one trip down the aisle. Talking about Valentine's Day through census figures is a characteristically American way of attaching a holiday to statistics.
What is this topic?
There is more than one day for showing affection, and they do not fall together: Japan has women giving chocolate on 14 February and a return gift on 14 March, Taiwan keeps both 14 February and the lunar Qixi, Brazil places it on 12 June, India stretches it into a week, and the United States keeps it to a single day. This page compares who gives, who returns, what is given, and how large a measurable trace the day leaves in each place.
Sources and dates
Dates follow local time zones, calendars, and official notices. Check the source when a date is estimated or locally variable.