[Valentine's Day] Canadians Expected to Spend $64 On Average This Year, Down 13% Compared To 2021

...and 31% less than in 2020, the last reference year before the pandemic.

How do Canadians feel about this holiday? HelloSafe polled its readers to find out. In total, 764 people responded to our survey via hellosafe.ca between January 24 and February 2.

$64

...is their average expected budget for Valentine's Day this year. It is 13.20% less than in 2021 when Canadian lovebirds spent $74 on average for this very special day.

A Valentine's Day budget almost one third lower than two years ago

The average Canadian spending on Valentine's Day is at its lowest in the past five years. The pandemic and the economic crisis are setting in and are not encouraging household consumption for this kind of event. The average household budget for 2017 was $81.20. This year it has decreased to $64.10, a 21% decline.

Experiences are preferred over physical gifts this year

With the pandemic still weighing down consumer spending and restaurant attendance, at 39% of responses, the most popular activity for Canadians in our poll was a romantic dinner at home. On the other hand, with Covid-19 constraints in restaurants, attendance is down and going to one to celebrate is less popular than before. And among physical presents, the most popular are flowers or greeting cards at 36%, even if they too are down compared to 2021.

Compared to last year the only activity rising this year is the "Other" category with 49%. Canadians may wish to escape from their daily lives with ideas that are out of the ordinary compared to fairly standard previous years - such as an overnight stay in an atypical place.

58.1% of Canadians plan to spend less money this year for Valentine's Day

Unemployment is falling day by day; however, Canadians are warier of the uncertainty of the situation. For 58.1% of them, they are not ready to spend as much this year. 26.4% plan to spend the same amount and just 15.5% plan to increase their spending, which represents a minority. This is, therefore, reflected in a decrease in purchasing power, particularly among young people and explains why the budget devoted to Valentine's Day is less than in previous years

It is important to remember that the Canadian economy has been hit hard by Covid-19. Unemployment has almost doubled in less than a year. It went from 5.6% at the end of 2019 to 9.5% in 2020. After two difficult years, it is starting to fall again with an overall rate of 7.5% for 2021 giving way to a record rate of 5.9% in December.

Four original ideas for February 14

Idea #1: Prepare a "ready-to-cook" lunch box from a restaurant

Since the start of the pandemic, many restaurants have offered gourmet boxes of their flagship dishes to prepare at home. An original dinner perfect for an intimate meal, made by you. Not only that, it helps support the local economy!

Idea #2: Enjoy an outdoor activity

With these freezing temperatures, what better way to warm up than skating? Snowshoeing or cross-country skiing is another great option, with a hot drink at the end. If you don't have any equipment, you can also choose a nice walk among the trees to spend some time together.

Idea #3: Change your living room into a cinema

There are plenty of projectors at low prices that will allow you to project the film of your choice on a wall in your home. Grab popcorn, blankets and voila!

Idea #4: Send flowers or another gift

If you are, unfortunately, separated from your other half on February 14, think of sending flowers or another gift. A little attention is always appreciated.

Alexandre Desoutter, editor-in-chief at HelloSafe Canada

« Can we love each other in times of Covid? The answer is yes, but more than ever it will be at home. Covid-19 will once again weigh on Valentine's Day this year. With planned spending down this will be another tough year for industries used to doing big business on this holiday - restaurants, but also of cinemas, theatres and other places favoured by couples on February 14 ».

Our methodology

This study is based on information from public and private sources – in particular from Statistics Canada. But also on the results of our survey conducted on the HelloSafe.ca between January 24 and February 2, 2022, on a sample of 764 Canadians of all ages and from each province all over the country.

About HelloSafe.ca

Hellosafe.ca is our comparison platform that is shaking up the insurance market – giving you access to the best insurance deals in Canada in fewer than 30 seconds. Safe is supported and financed by Blue, an Insuretech Venture Capital firm. Blue already owns two leaders in the French insurance comparison market. These platforms help more than 10 million people find better, less expensive insurance every year. We have developed a unique comparison technology that offers quotes without asking users to give their phone number or email address. This engine is the result of four years of hard work.

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Astrid Roussel

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