what countries celebrate valentine's day

Many countries across the world celebrate Valentine’s Day (or a similar “day of love”) on or around 14 February, but they don’t all treat it the same way.

Quick Scoop: Where Is Valentine’s Day Celebrated?

Here are some of the main places where Valentine’s Day or a close equivalent is widely observed today:

• North America: United States, Canada, Mexico.

• Europe (widespread): United Kingdom, Ireland, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Portugal, the Netherlands, Belgium, Switzerland, the Nordic countries (Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Finland, Iceland), plus many in Central and Eastern Europe like Poland and the Czech Republic.

• Latin America: Brazil (lovers’ day in June), Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Guatemala, Peru and others, often under “Day of Love and Friendship” style names.

• Asia: Japan, South Korea, China, Taiwan, the Philippines, Vietnam, Singapore, India and others, usually with their own twist on gifting and dates.

• Oceania: Australia and New Zealand, where it’s increasingly commercial and popular.

• Middle East & Africa: Growing celebrations in places like Israel, Lebanon, South Africa and urban areas elsewhere; even in Saudi Arabia, where it was once restricted, red roses and chocolates are now commonly sold around 14 February.

In many other countries, Valentine’s Day is not a traditional holiday but has become more visible in big cities through global media, social networks and marketing.

Different Styles of Celebration

Although the core idea is love, how people mark the day can be quite different from country to country:

• Romantic couples’ day: In places like France, Italy or much of Western Europe, the focus is on adult couples (dinners, flowers, short trips), and it’s less about kids or classmates.

• Friendship-focused: Finland and Estonia celebrate “Friend’s Day,” emphasizing platonic friendship and inclusive gifting rather than only romance.

• Family and friends: Several Latin American countries use “Day of Love and Friendship” to celebrate partners, friends and sometimes colleagues with anonymous gifts or small exchanges.

• Multi-date traditions: East Asian countries often split or multiply celebrations—Japan and South Korea have Valentine’s Day plus follow-up dates like White Day; Taiwan celebrates love on both 14 February and a separate lovers’ day in July.

Mini Forum-Style Take

Many online discussions point out that Valentine’s Day today is a mix of tradition and globalization: some people embrace it as a fun excuse to show affection, while others see it as commercial or prefer local festivals of love instead. In practice, whether a country “celebrates” often comes down to how common it is in schools, workplaces, shops and social media, especially in bigger cities.

TL;DR: Valentine’s Day (or a similar love/friendship day) is now observed in most of North America, Europe, much of Latin America, large parts of Asia, and in growing pockets of the Middle East and Africa, with each place adding its own cultural spin.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.