To say that Valentine’s Day 2021 was unusual would be a massive understatement. This year was a completely different scenario than 2020 when we weren’t yet dealing with all the upheaval that a pandemic would bring to our lives. However, despite the quarantine bubble, spending for Valentine’s Day had some definite bright spots.

Unsurprisingly, Valentine’s Day 2021 sales took a significant drop from 2020 — down over 20%, at $21.8 billion. However, the good news is that spending this year was still up over 2019 and the second-highest in history. It’s also great news for the floral industry since consumers spent $2 billion on flowers this year — down from $2.3 billion in 2020 but significantly higher than any other year.

Here are a few more highlights of consumer spending for Valentine’s Day 2021:

2021 average spending per person dropped by 16% from 2020.

Overall spending per person was $164.76, compared to $196.31 in 2020. Again, this is not a surprise due to COVID-19 restrictions and the number of people planning to celebrate at home. Spending has been on the rise since 2017, and in 2019 it was $161.96 per person. 2021 average spending per person dropped by 16% from 2020.

Men spend more money on Valentine’s Day compared to women.

In 2021, according to NRF, the average amount spent for the celebration by men was $231. Women spent much less, at $101. Men have traditionally spent more on February 14th; In 2020, American men spent $26.05 billion on gifts and activities, almost 9% more than women ($23.92 billion). Interestingly, women spent more on activities ($16.12 billion) compared to men ($14.61 billion), and men spent more on gifts ($11.44 billion for men, $7.80 billion for women).

Red Roses continue to be the most popular flower.

While so much has changed for Valentine’s Day 2021, one thing remains the same: Of the $2 billion spent on flowers for Valentine’s Day, red roses were by far the most popular. This has always been true, with red roses making up nearly 70% of all rose sales for Valentine’s Day.

While results were mixed, there is good news overall for the floral industry, which seems to be recovering. And once we break free of this pandemic, the future looks bright indeed!