Valentine's Day Countdown

Valentine's Day arrives every February 14, the world's holiday of love, from handwritten cards to candlelit dinners. This countdown is to Valentine's Day 2027, ticking down live to February 14.

How many days until Valentine's Day?

Valentine's Day is on Sunday, February 14, 2027, which is 206 days away. The live countdown above ticks down to the exact moment, to the second.

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Valentine's Day's story so far

6th century BCRome's Lupercalia fertility festival, held each February 13-15 with animal sacrifice and ritual matchmaking, is first traced to this era. Most historians now doubt it directly inspired Valentine's Day.

494 ADPope Gelasius I formally forbids Christians from taking part in the pagan Lupercalia festival.

496 ADPope Gelasius I declares February 14 a feast day honoring the martyr St. Valentine, though scholars still debate whether this was meant to replace Lupercalia.

1847Massachusetts entrepreneur Esther Howland creates elaborate lace-and-flower valentine prototypes and, the following year, builds an assembly-line workshop that turns valentine-making into American big business.

1866The New England Confectionery Company (Necco) begins printing short phrases onto candy 'Mottoes,' the direct ancestor of the heart-shaped Sweethearts conversation candy.

1910Thirteen American florists meeting in Rochester, New York found Florists' Telegraph Delivery (FTD), the first flowers-by-wire network, letting customers send fresh flowers to distant cities the same day.

1913Hallmark, which had sold Valentine's postcards since 1910, adds boxed valentine greeting cards to its lineup, helping cement the mass-market card industry.

Valentine's Day world records

Largest flower bouquet"Unity Blossom" — about 11,700 chrysanthemums spanning roughly 10 x 11 meters, built by Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation, India, January 2025

Largest box of chocolates2,547.49 kg (5,616 lb 4 oz), made by Russell Stover in Kansas City, Missouri, April 2023

Most people kissing simultaneously39,879 people locked lips at once in Mexico City's Zócalo on Valentine's Day, 2009

Longest kiss58 hours, 35 minutes, by Ekkachai and Laksana Tiranarat (Thailand), a marathon that ended on Valentine's Day 2013; Guinness has since retired the category for safety reasons

Who was St. Valentine?

The day is named for a third-century Roman martyr, by legend, a priest who performed forbidden weddings for soldiers. The romantic association came a thousand years later, when Chaucer and the poets of courtly love linked mid-February to pairing birds and lovers' notes.

How it's celebrated

Roughly 145 million Valentine's cards are exchanged in the US alone each year, and that's not counting classroom valentines. Japan flips the tradition: women give chocolate on February 14, and men reciprocate on White Day, March 14.

Quick facts

Named for a 3rd-century Roman martyr, St. Valentine
Linked to romance by Chaucer in the 14th century
About 145 million cards are exchanged in the US each year
Japan answers it with White Day on March 14

Don't show up empty-handed

Classics that never miss — chocolate first, obviously.

Chocolate gift box Scented candles Jewelry Date-night box Teddy bear Valentine's cards

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Valentine's Day — frequently asked questions

When is Valentine's Day?

Valentine's Day is on Sunday, February 14, 2027.

How many days until Valentine's Day?

Valentine's Day is on Sunday, February 14, 2027, which is 206 days away. The live countdown above ticks down to the exact moment, to the second.

Updated July 2026 · alarm-clock.org

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