Valentine’s Day Jewelry Sales Jump 14% as Higher-End Spending Drives Market Growth

During the seven days leading up to Valentine’s Day, consumers spent on average 14% more on jewelry than they did during the same period in 2025. Spending on diamond jewelry also rose, increasing 12% year on year.

Lab-grown diamond jewelry gained some additional share of value during Valentine’s week, with prices edging up about half a percent.

Retail Market Was Positive in February

The jewelry market also performed well in the rest of February, not just in the week leading up to it. Total jewelry sales increased 10.7%, driven by higher-spending consumers buying more jewelry.

Unit sales of items priced at $1,500 and above rose by double digits, while their average price remained nearly flat. This suggests higher-end consumers purchased more items but kept their per-item budgets steady.

Unit sales of lower-priced items continued to decline. However, low-end buyers spent, on average, a mid-single-digit percentage more per item.

As a result of this shift in the market, the overall average spend per item jumped by about 20%.

It was primarily mid-market independents and luxury retailers that captured most of this demand. Still, many retailers that typically operate with lower average transaction values (ATVs) also had stronger sales of higher-priced pieces.

Finished Jewelry Up 13%

Growth in fine jewelry was led mainly by finished jewelry. These items remain the backbone of the market, with revenue rising 13% year on year.

For Valentine’s Day, gold jewelry led the market in unit sales, while non-bridal diamond jewelry generated the strongest revenue growth.

Diamond Jewelry Breaks A Record

Revenue from diamond jewelry, both finished pieces and items set in stores, rose by a mid-single-digit rate, despite another decline in unit sales. Consumers simply chose to spend more, with the average transaction value increasing by nearly 19%.

This marks the largest year-on-year rise in average diamond jewelry prices on record, exceeding even the surge seen in the post-COVID market in 2022.

A Lab-Grown Diamond Conundrum

Lab-grown diamond jewelry continues to hold a meaningful, and gradually growing, share of the market. One of its most important entry points has been engagement rings, arguably the ultimate jewelry gift.

Yet an interesting pattern emerges around major gifting occasions. When consumers purchase diamond jewelry specifically for events like Valentine’s Day, the share of lab-grown jewelry tends to decline.

For example, lab-grown diamond jewelry held a higher market share in February overall than it did during the week leading up to Valentine’s Day, when most holiday gifts are purchased.

Why natural diamond jewelry performs better during “official” periods of love, while lab jewelry does well for The love jewelry item during any other time of the year?

The Bottom Line

The K-shaped economy is clearly visible in the U.S. jewelry retail market. The higher-end consumer remains a significant source of strength, while the lower end of the market remains exceedingly soft. Consumers who spend more are buying more, while those shopping at lower price points are purchasing fewer items.

Even retailers with average transaction values below $250 are seeing demand shift away from lower-priced items toward higher-priced jewelry.

The consumer market is telling us that demand is concentrating at the higher end.

For retailers, capturing this demand increasingly means focusing on higher-value pieces.

The other takeaway is the power of occasions. Events like Valentine’s Day encourage gift-givers to stretch their budgets. It’s not necessarily about buying more jewelry, it’s about spending more when the moment justifies it.

About Tenoris

Tenoris collects retail sales data from a broad representative sample of US jewelry retailers. Tenoris subscribers – include retailers, manufacturers, miners, and financial firms – use this data to study everything from broad market trends to price prediction, assisting them in identifying changing trends and opportunities ahead of their competitors.