.png){kind=logo}
1 month ago
29
Upgrade to High-Speed Internet for only ₱1499/month!
Enjoy up to 100 Mbps fiber broadband, perfect for browsing, streaming, and gaming.
Visit Suniway.ph to learn
February 14, 2026 | 4:12pm
MANILA, Philippines — Filipinos who choose to be single are focusing on personal goals more rather than a relationship, a recent survey found.
Nationwide data from market research technology company Agile Data Solutions Inc. gathered through local data collection platform Hustle PH found that an overwhelming majority (68.5%) of single respondents are "single by choice."
For comparison, 20.5% of single respondents answered they were "single by circumstance" while just over 11% did not give a definite reply.
Agile described the pattern as "intentional singlehood," where being single is a strategic and self-directed decision, not transitional.
"The idea that everyone must be in a relationship by a certain age is slowly losing its hold," said the company's chairman and co-founder Jason Gaguan in a statement. "What we're seeing is intentional singlehood — people choosing stability, growth, or peace before partnership."
The executive may have a point as just over 43% of single respondents said they wanted to first "focus on personal, career, or financial goals."
"Haven't met the right person yet" and "value independence and freedom" were statistically tied in second, ahead of "timing, life circumstances make dating difficult."
Day of Hearts
A majority (65.71%) of respondents regardless of relationship status, have neutral feelings whenever Valentine's Day comes around.
The next closest feeling was excitement at almost 23% while indifference just edged over 8%. Only 3.22% of respondents said they feel pressured to some degree.
RELATED: 1 in 4 Filipinos experience cheating, nearly half say trust still possible — SWS
"Neutrality isn't indifference," Gaguan pointed out. "It suggests people are separating cultural messaging from personal worth."
Social media appears to have a greater influence on emotions in regards to Valentine's Day as neutrality dips down to 45.79% when seeing posts related to the Day of Hearts.
36.11% agree that Valentine's social media posts affect their feelings (10.20% of which say strongly) while 18.1% say otherwise.
In the same vein, nearly 64% of respondents agree Valentine's Day is overly romanticized in the Philippines. For comparison, just 4.6% disagree, and the remaining 31.5% are neutral on the subject.
The over romanticization of Valentine's Day may be why 27.41% of single respondents sometimes feel pressured to be in a relationship come February 14, though in contrast, 39% say there is no pressure — results mirrored by respondents who aren't single.
About the same number of single respondents never feel left on during Valentine's Day. Just over a quarter say they sometimes feel left out, 13.29% say rarely, 12.85% say always, and 9.02% say often.
The study did note that older respondents answered lower levels of pressure, hinting that confidence in singlehood may strengthen as time goes by.
Celebration
Another majority (66.1%) says that Valentine's Day is more about enjoyment than romance. 32.13% feel neutral on the subject while just 3.5% disagree.
In fact, most respondents spend February 14 with their family (32.05%) or a romantic partner (28.75%) as compared to the 19.32% who do not celebrate at all. Rounding off the marks, here are spending the day with friends (10.06%) or alone (9.82%).
The most popular activity was relaxing at 40.1% followed by celebrating with a partner at a close 37.2%, then doing nothing special at 25.9%, hanging out with friends at 21.9%, and even closer behind buying something for oneself at 19.9%.
RELATED: On martyrdom and love: Why do we celebrate Valentine's Day on February 14?
More than half of single respondents enjoy how they spend their Valentine's Day while 30.5% are comfortable with it because they are single.
A dislike for commercialized things and wanting to spend time with friends were statistically tied among these respondents, as 8.8% answered they felt stressed by romantic expectations.
Among those who said they spend Valentine's with friends, an overwhelming majority (79.1%) agree it is more fun or less stressful than romantic celebrations, compared to the 19.3% who feel neutral and a slim 1.7% who disagree.
Conversely, and interestingly, Valentine's with friends being more meaningful than celebrating romantically is statistically tied among those who agree and feel neutral on the subject, with the remaining 8.5% disagreeing.
Expenses
38.55% of respondents answered that they sometimes spend money on themselves on Valentine's Day. Other responses never (17.44%), rarely (16.64%), always (14.94%) and often (12.44%) polled close to each other.
Nearly half (44%) usually spend less than P500 during the Valentine's season. 38.56% spend between P500 and P,1000 while the remaining 17.44% shell out a larger amount.
The biggest expense for Valentine's was food, which was double the number that answered "shopping" (33.2%). Other polled responses were beauty (21.7%), dining (19.7%), experiences (18.9%) and wellness (15.8%).
Over 80% of respondents say spending on themselves makes them feel good, a far cry from 18.8% who feel neutral and a minuscule 1% who think otherwise.
The study found that over 73% of respondents have emotional returns from self-spending. Among single Gen Z respondents, the most common motivations for self-spending were to celebrate themselves (42%) and reward themselves for hard work or stress (29%).
