People Are Sharing Their Best Low-Cost Valentine's Day Ideas, And It's So Cute I'm Sobbing

Saving money is surprisingly sexy, tbh.

How much are you planning to spend on Valentine's Day? CNBC Make It reports that the average coupled-up American expects to spend between $175 and $210 this year on candlelit dinners, pricey bouquets, and all the chocolates.

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But romance doesn't have to be so expensive. In a recent survey from the nonprofit Life Happens, 67% of respondents said that there is nothing sexier than saving money. Plus, 23% of people actually counted budgeting among the ways they show their love.

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So we asked members of the BuzzFeed Community to share their favorite low-cost Valentine's ideas and added a few more ideas from these awesome Reddit threads. Here's what people had to say:

1. Take your S.O. on a romantic picnic. All you need is a backpack full of snacks, a blanket or two, and a spot in the park.

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"My girlfriend and I love going on picnics. We find a field and bring blankets and set them out and then paint, listen to music, eat snacks, drink tea, make jewelry, read poetry, look at the clouds, pick flowers, doodle, take Polaroids, snuggle, and sleep. It’s the best thing."

—hannahbananamontana2

2. If your date is a Wordle fiend who loves solving puzzles, then perhaps a scavenger hunt will make them swoon.

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"My husband and I love scavenger hunts. The more we do it, the more elaborate they get. We include our house and go all the way down to our local shops, which is a 10-minute walk; very fun. The last one we did ended at our local coffee shop, and the barista had a special treat waiting for me!"

—bubbleguts

3. A museum or zoo membership requires a good chunk of cash up front, but it can totally pay off over time.

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"If you live near a museum, get an annual membership and go on dates there. Museum memberships are usually around $100, and many include admission for the member plus one guest, so they pay themselves back in four dates."

—alicebraz

4. If you'd rather show your love year-round, break up the cost of a typical Valentine's gift into many gifts throughout the year.

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"One of my friends figured out a deal with her now-husband. They priced out a dozen roses on Valentine's Day and used that as a guideline for his budget to give her flowers all year. Instead, he just gets her flowers once a month when it's not February. She doesn't really like roses anyway. So he gets her a different (much less expensive) bouquet every month."

—u/lilfunky1

5. Pizza and a movie marathon is a perfect stay-at-home date (sidenote: It's also my personal love language).

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"On the best Valentine's I ever had, my boyfriend and I ordered a pizza, picked up a six-pack, and watched the '90s Ninja Turtles movies. Chill and fun, and no pressure."

—saraa4a00f7b8f

6. If you have unused gift cards lying around, go on a redeeming spree together.

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"Gift card date night! We try to make a date out of whatever gift cards we have. One date included dinner, ice cream, then shopping at stores we don’t go to often."

—Lifeasanomad10

7. If your love is a meat lover, delight them with a bouquet of roses made out of bacon.

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"I made bacon roses once. They were cheap, yummy, and cute and got a laugh."

—u/notagangsta

Check out this tutorial on making bacon roses, or try these Parmesan and potato-bacon roses to kick things up a notch.

8. A practical gift that shows you've been paying attention to your date's needs can be surprisingly romantic.

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"For my first birthday together, my boyfriend gifted me with a bag of Skittles, 150 hair ties, and a beauty blender. At the time, it seemed like the most random collection of items, but when I asked why he got me those things specifically, he said, 'Well, you’re allergic to chocolate, you’re always complaining about not having a hair tie, and the sponge you use for your makeup is dirty, so the lady at Sephora said this was the best one.' I cried because I realized his gift was that he paid attention and noticed these things."

—u/Ana1945

9. Never underestimate the power of a heartfelt serenade.

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"My now–ex-boyfriend knew once that I had a bad day at work and came over to comfort me. He told me to go to my room and wait for him to come back. It took maybe six minutes, and he came back and knocked on the door. I walked out to my living room, and he'd lit a few candles and turned down the lights. He couldn't get my Bluetooth speaker to work, but he sang 'Sara' by Jefferson Starship to me as we danced around my living room. We're not together anymore, but that was really sweet and something I won't forget for a while."

—LittleMissRose

10. Or the heart-melting potential of putting down in writing all the reasons you love them.

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"On the first Christmas with my boyfriend, I was a student and low on cash. I bought a mason jar and some colored paper. I wrote down reasons I loved him, moments I'll always remember, etc., and put them in the jar and wrapped it. Five years later, it's still his favorite gift."

—s463b03bd4

11. If Gomez and Morticia Addams are your idea of #CoupleGoals, consider a stroll in a cemetery.

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"For our first date, my now-husband and I had a snack at a little bistro, then walked around the state cemetery for three hours. We go back there on our anniversary."

—promising.young.woman

"Love this. My partner and I do this from time to time. One time, we got locked in the cemetery and it was frightening. The guard missed our car as he was closing up. When we came up behind him, we scared him so badly. He thought he was alone at the cemetery."

—fakefattrusty

12. If your date lives for scoring deals, maybe postpone the festivities until the day after Valentine's.

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"Hubby has finally learned (after 20 years of marriage) that I am way more excited about half-priced chocolates on Feb. 15 than anything he might come home with on Feb. 14. Make a game out of the bargain holiday-themed gifts after the sales start!"

—u/kbinsturner

13. Cooking together can also be a really fun and intimate activity. Plus, you get to eat some (hopefully) yummy food when you're done!

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"When my boyfriend and I aren't feeling like going out and being around other people, we'll sometimes pick out an ambitious recipe together, get the ingredients, and then make an afternoon of the cooking project.

"We'll have snacks and cocktails, put music on while we're cooking, and then, when dinner is ready, we'll open a bottle of wine and light candles and have a nice date night together. We've made homemade tagliatelle with truffle butter, braised short ribs, beef Wellington, lasagna, carnitas, and so on. These things are a lot more fun to make when you do it together! And far cheaper than getting them at a restaurant."

—butthatsnoneofmybusiness

Psst, looking for a recipe? Check out these Valentine's Day dinners that look much fancier than they really are. 

14. Or, if you really want to go out for Valentine's Day, you can have a great date night somewhere cheap and tasty.

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"The best date my boyfriend and I had was on Valentine's Day 2020. I was around six months pregnant with our first baby. We went downtown to a restaurant — the cheapest little place that sold hamburgers, fries, hot dogs, etc. It was super quiet, and we kinda sat right smack dab in the middle. It was the perfect date, and we just talked about our baby boy and our future as a family of three."

—aries97

15. If you live together, doing their least-favorite chores can score you some serious brownie points.

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"One concept for a 'free' gift is to do chores that your S.O. is normally responsible for, or a big task they have been putting off or dreading. Then give them a bath bomb with a note that says, 'I know you've been dreading painting the spare bedroom — surprise! It's all taken care of! Enjoy a relaxing bath instead. I love you.'"

—u/CrashCourseInCrazy

16. A thoughtful gift that shows you're planning to spend your future with them can also be extremely swoonworthy.

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"My fiancé and I have been together for five and a half years. We did long distance last year after he was unexpectedly offered a job that would allow him to be closer to his aging parents. We knew long distance in the middle of the pandemic would be difficult, and there was a possibility that travel restrictions would keep us apart. We didn’t know what to expect.

"We have family friends who had an almost identical situation several years ago after they first started dating. When they were doing long distance, they wrote letters to each other every week. He gifted me with a stationery set that would allow us to write weekly letters for a year, and it caught me by complete surprise. It was so thoughtful and romantic and showed me a side of him I didn’t know he had. There was so much uncertainty leading up to him leaving, but that gift made me feel like things were going to be okay. The letters we shared while we were apart are priceless and the best gift he’s ever given me. We’re back in the same place again after a little less than a year of job searching. We drove cross-country together to our new home, and he proposed as I walked through the door. I love him so much."

—chelynwei

17. Bringing over a care package or giving your date some extra TLC if they're not feeling their best come Feb. 14 is another great way to show you care.

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"My then-boyfriend, now-husband, got me a bouquet of carnations, soup, a box of really nice chocolates, cold medicine, a box of tissues, and a 'date' at his house watching horror movies. This was our first Valentine's together, and I was sicker than all hell (he gave me the cold, lol). He also didn't know that I wasn't exactly huge on V-Day, but he kind of was. He didn't know how to navigate it, but this was REALLY sweet of him. We watched some movies, I fell asleep off and on, and he tucked me in and just let me be."

—witchyribbon84

18. And finally, when all else fails, break out all of your pillows and blankets and make a fort of coziness to block out the world.

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"When my husband and I don’t have any money, we move the coffee table out of the way; bring every quilt, blanket, cushion, and pillow we can find; and have a 'sleepover' watching films. We eat whatever food we have in the house and spend the evening spooning and watching movies. Cheap and cheerful date night."

—MrsA

Note: Some submissions have been edited for length and/or clarity.

Do you have another romantic Valentine's idea that won't break the bank? Tell us all about it in the comments.

And for more stories about life and money, check out the rest of our personal finance posts.