How much do we spend on our loved ones on Valentine's Day? This year could be up to $14.2 billion

The National Retail Federation estimates that American consumers will spend a record $14.2 billion on Valentine's Day this year.

According to The National Retail Federation, it is mainly for jewelry, flowers, clothes, sweeties, and nights out. - Retailers are ready to help customers with meaningful and memorable gifts this Valentine's Day. With consumers prioritizing their spouse or significant other this year, retailers expect to see a shift in spending for specific gifting categories - said NRF President and CEO Matthew Shay.

Compared to last year, the average consumer will spend $8 more. The average amount will be $185.81.

As reported by the National Retail Federation, the most popular gifts will be sweets (57%), greeting cards (40%), flowers (39%), a night out (32%), jewelry (22%), clothing (21%) and gift cards ( 19%). New spending records are expected for jewelry ($6.4 billion), flowers ($2.6 billion), clothing ($3 billion) and nights out ($4.9 billion).

- While shoppers may spend the most on jewelry, overall, the most popular gifts are the classics – candy and greeting cards (...) We’re also seeing continued interest in gifts of experience, with about one-third of consumers planning to give a gift of experience this year - said Phil Rist, Prosper Insights & Analytics Executive Vice President of Strategy.

Source: National Retail Federation