Best (and Worst) Cities For Valentine's Day

San Francisco, CA, tops the list as the best city for Valentine’s Day, while Gilbert, AZ, is the best city for a romantic dinner for two.

A married couple holding hands on Valentine's Day
(Image credit: Getty Images)

Once a year, on February 14th, the world celebrates Valentine’s Day. The little sentimental things we do or say often involve flowers, dinner out, gifts, heartfelt cards and other romantic gestures. But in our hectic world, it can be hard to put aside time for romance. Valentine’s Day is great. And, some cities make pampering your Valentine easier than others. 

WalletHub “played cupid” to determine the most romantic and cost-effective cities for celebrating Valentine’s Day by comparing 100 of the largest U.S. cities across 25 key metrics, ranging from jewelry stores and florists per capita to the cost of a starry-eyed three-course meal for two.

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RankCityTotal ScoreBudget RankActivities RankGift Accessibility RankWeather Rank
1San Francisco, CA7841793
2Seattle, WA748101126
3San Diego, CA721316638
4Portland, OR722091012
5Las Vegas, NV71515248
6Atlanta, GA71431145
7Chicago, IL70463814
8Honolulu, HI694015530
9Orlando, FL68694319
10Scottsdale, AZ689341438
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RankCityTotal ScoreBudget RankActivities RankGift Accessibility RankWeather Rank
100Hialeah, FL25100906338
99Detroit, MI3199587225
98Newark, NJ3296659748
97Birmingham, AL3697553516
96Cleveland, OH3798274013
95San Bernardino, CA3787979453
94Toledo, OH3790789213
93Baton Rouge, LA3792624716
92Memphis, TN3791645048
91Laredo, TX40411008825
90Winston-Salem, NC4280728138
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Least ExpensiveMost Expensive
Gilbert, AZCleveland, OH
Fremont, CAAlbuquerque, NM
Chesapeake, VASanta Ana, CA
Glendale, AZ Miami, FL
Plano, TXHialeah, FL
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Most Jewelry StoresFewest Jewelry Stores
Scottsdale, AZ Gilbert, AZ
Orlando, FL Detroit, MI
Honolulu, HI Henderson, NV
Tampa, FLNorth Las Vegas, NV
Miami, FLFremont, CA

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Kathryn Pomroy
Contributor

For the past 18+ years, Kathryn has highlighted the humanity in personal finance by shaping stories that identify the opportunities and obstacles in managing a person's finances. All the same, she’ll jump on other equally important topics if needed. Kathryn graduated with a degree in Journalism and lives in Duluth, Minnesota. She joined Kiplinger in 2023 as a contributor.