Greeting card and seasonal gift statistics
Current U.S. data on the occasions where cards, thoughtful gifts, and a little personality carry the most weight.
Last updated August 28, 2026
The numbers behind the note.
Greeting cards may be small, but the moments around them are not. This reference brings together the latest national survey figures for Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, and Halloween. Each figure links directly to the original report so it can be checked, quoted, and shared with confidence.
$29.1B
Expected Valentine’s Day spending in 2026
U.S. shoppers are expected to spend a record $199.78 each on Valentine’s Day gifts.
Source: National Retail Federation, Valentine’s Day Spending Expected to Reach New Records, January 27, 202641%
Plan to buy Valentine’s Day greeting cards in 2026
Greeting cards rank alongside flowers as one of the most common Valentine’s Day gifts.
Source: National Retail Federation, Valentine’s Day Spending Expected to Reach New Records, January 27, 2026$38B
Expected Mother’s Day spending in 2026
The National Retail Federation projects a record $284.25 in average planned spending per shopper.
Source: National Retail Federation, Mother’s Day Spending Expected to Hit Record $38 Billion, April 21, 202674%
Plan to buy Mother’s Day greeting cards in 2026
Projected spending on Mother’s Day greeting cards is $1.3 billion.
Source: National Retail Federation, Mother’s Day Spending Expected to Hit Record $38 Billion, April 21, 2026$27.9B
Expected Father’s Day spending in 2026
That is a record total, with shoppers expecting to spend $226.58 on average.
Source: National Retail Federation, Father’s Day Spending to Hit Record $27.9 Billion, June 10, 202660%
Plan to buy Father’s Day greeting cards in 2026
Greeting cards are the most popular planned Father’s Day gift category in the survey.
Source: National Retail Federation, Father’s Day Spending to Hit Record $27.9 Billion, June 10, 2026$13.1B
Halloween spending in 2025
The 2025 forecast set a record, with 73% of consumers planning to celebrate.
Source: National Retail Federation, Halloween Spending to Reach Record $13.1 Billion, September 18, 202538%
Planned to buy Halloween greeting cards in 2025
Halloween greeting-card spending was projected at $700 million, up from 33% of shoppers in 2024.
Source: National Retail Federation, Halloween Spending to Reach Record $13.1 Billion, September 18, 2025Cards stay close to the center of meaningful gifting.
Across the latest Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, and Father’s Day surveys, greeting cards remain one of the most frequently planned gifts. Halloween shows the same pattern in a more playful setting, where card purchases rose from 33% of shoppers in 2024 to 38% in 2025.
For people who want a gift to feel personal without becoming complicated, the practical appeal is obvious: a well-chosen card, notebook, or small useful object can fit the person and the moment without asking them to rearrange their life around it.
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The figures above come from National Retail Federation consumer surveys conducted with Prosper Insights & Analytics. The Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, and Father’s Day data are 2026 projections. Halloween data is from the 2025 survey, the most recent completed Halloween survey available when this page was updated.
- National Retail Federation, Valentine’s Day Spending Expected to Reach New Records, published January 27, 2026
- National Retail Federation, Mother’s Day Spending Expected to Hit Record $38 Billion, published April 21, 2026
- National Retail Federation, Father’s Day Spending to Hit Record $27.9 Billion, published June 10, 2026
- National Retail Federation, Halloween Spending to Reach Record $13.1 Billion, published September 18, 2025
Cite this page
The Warning Chapter. “Greeting Card and Seasonal Gift Statistics.” Updated August 28, 2026. https://thewarningchapter.com/greeting-card-gift-statistics