What’s your Valentine’s Day fantasy? (Keep it classy!)

Men put the ‘most effort’ into Valentine’s Day and spend more than double on gifts for their partners than women, new research claims.

The study found that men plan to spend an average of $217 to celebrate the annual event next Tuesday, while women are forecast to spend $99.

The survey of 1,000 Americans in relationships, by Groupon, asked couples to rate their effort levels towards Valentine’s Day planning.

Men gave themselves an average of seven compared to the women’s six.

The survey also claimed that men consider themselves more romantic than women and are more likely to believe in the idea of love at first sight.

Nearly half of the men surveyed rated themselves as ‘very romantic’, while just under 40 per cent of women described themselves in the same way.

It found that couples are more likely to throw themselves into celebrating Valentine’s Day in their first year together, spending an average $223 on gifts, than in the subsequent years when the average planned spend dropped to $149.

But married people are predicted to spend close to double as much as unmarried couples in a long-term relationship - with an estimate of $168 compared to $87.

Despite admitting to spending hundreds of dollars on Valentine’s Day, around three-quarters of survey participants said it is not about money.

The top three ‘most meaningful’ gifts cited were dinner at a restaurant, followed by a Valentine’s card and a weekend away.

Other highly ranked activities and gifts included an activity, jewelry, candlelit dinner at home, a homemade gift, chocolate, a night in a hotel and a gift card.

Perhaps surprisingly, the traditional gift of flowers came twelfth - in-between a movie and champagne.

-Daily Mail