HPU Poll: North Carolinians See Gift-Giving as a Positive Part of Valentine’s Day

HIGH POINT, N.C., Feb. 13, 2026 – The latest High Point University Poll found that 62% of North Carolinians see the gift-giving tradition of Valentine’s Day as a positive part of the holiday. A small percentage, 20% of respondents, see it as a negative part of the holiday.

The poll first examined relationship status and satisfaction, then explored Valentine’s Day attitudes. Of the respondents, 42% identified as being single, while 36% identified as currently married. When asked if they were currently in romantic relationships, 54% of respondents said yes.

Among respondents currently in relationships, 53% indicated they were extremely satisfied with their current relationship, while 31% reported being very satisfied. An additional 13% indicated they were somewhat satisfied. Only 1% reported being not at all satisfied with their romantic relationship.

Respondents not currently in relationships were asked about their interest in finding a romantic partner. Of those respondents, 26% were not at all interested in finding a romantic partner, while 18% were not very interested. However, 28% were somewhat interested, 14% were very interested and 10% were extremely interested in finding a romantic partner.

When asked about changes in their relationships over the past year, 92% of those currently in relationships reported their relationship had either improved (44%) or stayed about the same (48%). Seven percent indicated their relationship had gotten worse.

Regarding Valentine’s Day, 28% of respondents indicated that the holiday increases the closeness they feel to a romantic partner, while 7% said it decreases that feeling. The majority (59%) said it has no influence on it, while 6% were unsure.

When it comes to gift spending, 63% of respondents typically purchase gifts under $100 for Valentine’s Day. Another 16% give gifts costing between $100 and $200, while 5% generally give gifts costing $200 or more.

North Carolinian respondents were also asked about dating sites and apps. Sixty-three percent of respondents said they have never used a dating app, while 38% said they have. Additionally, 53% said they do not know anyone who has been in a long-term relationship with or gotten married to someone they met on a dating site or app, while 41% of respondents said they have.

North Carolina Residents – Enjoy Valentine’s Day (January 2026)

As you may know, the Valentine’s Day holiday is approaching. We would like to ask you some questions about your feelings towards the holiday. On a scale from one to seven, where one is “strongly disagree” and seven is “strongly agree,” how much do you agree with the statement, “I enjoy the Valentine’s Day holiday?”

1 – Strongly disagree – 10%

2 – 5%

3 – 10%

4 – Not agree or disagree -30%

5 – 16%

6 – 11%

7 – Strongly agree – 18%

North Carolina Residents – Relationship Status (January 2026) 

How best would you describe your current relationship status? Single – 42%

Engaged – 3%

Living with a significant other – 11%

Married – 36%

Widowed – 5%

Unsure – 2%

North Carolina Residents – Romantic Relationship (January 2026) 

Would you say you are currently in a romantic relationship?

Yes – 54%

No – 42%

Unsure – 5%

North Carolina Residents – Relationship Satisfaction (January 2026) 

How satisfied are you with your current relationship – extremely, very, somewhat, not too, or not at all satisfied? (Asked only of respondents who said they were in a romantic relationship)

Extremely – 53%

Very – 31%

Somewhat – 13%

Not too – 2%

Not at all – 1%

Unsure – *

North Carolina Residents – Relationship Interest (January 2026) 

How interested are you in finding a romantic partner? (Asked only of respondents who said they were not in a romantic relationship)

Not at all interested – 26%

Not very interested – 18%

Somewhat interested – 28%

Very interested – 14%

Extremely interested – 10%

Unsure – 5%

North Carolina Residents – Romantic Relationship Direction (January 2026) 

Overall, would you say your relationship with your romantic partner has improved, gotten worse or stayed about the same in the last year? (Asked only of respondents who said they were in a romantic relationship)

Improved – 44%

Stayed about the same – 48%

Gotten worse – 7%

Unsure – 1%

North Carolina Residents – Valentine’s Day Relationship Effects (January 2026)

Generally speaking, do you find that Valentine’s Day increases, decreases or has no influence on the closeness you feel to a romantic partner?

Increases – 28%

Decreases – 7%

Has no influence – 59%

Unsure – 6%

North Carolina Residents – Valentine’s Day Gift Giving (January 2026) 

Do you see the gift-giving tradition of Valentine’s Day as a positive or negative part of the holiday?

Positive – 62%

Negative – 20%

Unsure – 19%

North Carolina Residents – Valentine’s Day Gift Spending (January 2026)

In total, how much money do you typically spend on gifts for a romantic partner for Valentine’s Day?

Less than $100 – 63%

More than $100 but less than $200 – 16%

More than $200 – 5%

Unsure – 16%

North Carolina Residents – Valentine’s Day Gifts to Friends and Family (January 2026)

Do you give gifts to people other than your romantic partner, such as family members, co-workers or friends on Valentine’s Day?

Yes – 37%

No – 59%

Unsure – 4%

North Carolina Residents – Dating App Use (January 2026) 

Have you ever used an online dating site or app?

Yes – 38%

No – 63%

North Carolina Residents – Long-Term Relationships and Dating Apps (January 2026) 

Do you personally know anyone who has been in a long-term relationship with or married someone they met through an online dating site or app?

Yes – 41%

No – 53%

Unsure – 6%

Methodology:

HPU Poll 118 was fielded by the High Point University Survey Research Center on Jan. 15-31 as an online survey using a panel of respondents recruited and maintained by Dynata. Dynata sent invitations to its panel of North Carolina respondents, and the SRC collected 1,003 responses (an all-adults sample) on its Qualtrics platform. All respondents were asked two screening questions to identify them as registered voters. A total of 755 respondents identified themselves as registered voters. The SRC did all data analysis. The online sample is from a panel of respondents, and their participation does not adhere to usual assumptions associated with random selection. Therefore, it is not appropriate to assign a classic margin of sampling error for the results. In this case, for the all-adults sample, the SRC provides a credibility interval of plus or minus 3.2 percentage points to account for a traditional 95% confidence interval for the estimates (plus or minus 3.1 percentage points) and a design effect of 1.1 (based on the weighting). The all-adults data is weighted toward population estimates for age, gender, race, education, and ethnicity based on U.S. Census numbers for North Carolina. The High Point University Survey Research Center (SRC) produces weights through an iterative procedure within SPSS. Factors such as question wording and other methodological choices in conducting survey research can introduce additional errors into the findings of opinion polls.

Further results and methodological details from the most recent survey and past surveys can be found at the Survey Research Center website. Materials online include past press releases as well as memos summarizing the findings (including approval ratings) for each poll since 2010.

The HPU Poll reports methodological details in accordance with the standards set out by AAPOR’s Transparency Initiative, and the HPU Survey Research Center is a Charter Member of the Initiative.

Dr. Martin Kifer, chair and professor of political science, serves as the executive director of the HPU Poll for the Survey Research Center.

Dr. J.R. Moller serves as the staff director of the HPU Poll for the Survey Research Center.

Denzel Sowa serves as a research assistant of the HPU Poll for the Survey Research Center.