Every year, Americans spend about $20 billion on Valentine’s Day shopping. They buy everything from candy and flowers to jewelry and electronics for their sweethearts.

Do you want to make sure you pick out the perfect Valentine’s Day gift for your significant other this year? Before you begin your shopping, there are some things you’re going to want to keep in mind.

Here is a guide to selecting the best Valentine’s Day gift for your romantic partner.

Start Valentine’s Day Shopping in January

There are far too many people who wait until February 13 to start their Valentine’s Day shopping. Do not do this!

If you’re going to put together the perfect Valentine’s Day gift for your partner, you’re going to need more than a day to do it. You should start your shopping sometime in January instead of waiting until the last minute.

This should give you more than enough time to find the right gift. You might have to take a few trips out to the mall before you stumble upon what you want to give to your significant other.

Think About the State of Your Relationship Before Shopping for Valentine’s Day

Did you literally just start dating someone at the end of last year? You might not want to get them a fancy watch or a necklace just yet.

At the same time, you shouldn’t allow yourself to get lazy when it comes to Valentine’s Day just because you’ve been with someone for a long time. You can do better than a box of chocolates for your husband or wife of 30 years.

Use the length of your relationship to determine what you should buy for your partner. A dozen flowers would work well for your girlfriend of three months, but for your wife, something like silver earrings would work better.

Consider What Your Partner Might Want on Valentine’s Day

Has your partner been hinting about something that they wish they would have gotten for Christmas since December 26? Pick up on their hints and consider buying it for them for Valentine’s Day.

You and your partner likely spend a lot of time talking about your interests and the things that are most important to each of you. Use this insider information when you’re doing your Valentine’s Day shopping.

You should, in theory at least, know your partner better than almost anyone else in the world. This should give you an advantage when you’re shopping for a gift for them.

Go Above and Beyond No Matter Which Valentine’s Day Gift You Choose

Valentine’s Day is a day to show your partner just how much you love them. You should, of course, do this every day, but you should go all out on Valentine’s Day.

Let’s say that you’re getting your partner tickets to a concert that they really want to go to for Valentine’s Day. That’s an awesome, slightly-outside-the-box kind of gift that will really go over well.

But you could make it even more awesome by taking it to the next level.

For example, you could:

• Put the tickets inside of a mixtape you made for your partner to listen to on the way to the concert

• Dress up like the person who will be performing at the concert when you give your partner the tickets as a gift

• Splurge for backstage passes for the concert and throw them in as an added bonus for your partner at the end

The tickets alone will get a great reaction from your partner. But how much better will that reaction be when you show that you went above and beyond for them?

Avoid Breaking the Bank on Valentine’s Day

As we mentioned earlier, Americans spend tens of billions of dollars on Valentine’s Day each year. It makes it one of the most expensive holidays for many Americans — and it comes less than two months after the most expensive holiday of all.

With this in mind, you should avoid breaking the bank on Valentine’s Day, if at all possible. While you do want to show your partner that you love them, you don’t want to do it at the expense of your credit card balance.

Come up with a budget for Valentine’s Day shopping ahead of time and stick to the budget you come up with. Your credit score will thank you later.

Keep the Real Meaning of Valentine’s Day in Mind at All Times

Many people get so caught up in trying to track down the perfect gift while Valentine’s Day shopping that they lose sight of the true meaning of the holiday. Try not to make this mistake.

Valentine’s Day is supposed to be a day that allows you to step back and appreciate how much you love your partner and how much they love you. You should make that the focus of the day as opposed to putting the spotlight on Valentine’s Day shopping.

It’s important to put some real thought into the gift that you get for your partner. This is one way to show them how much you care.

But it’s also just as important to spend time with them and use your words to tell them about your love for them. They’ll remember the things that you say to them on Valentine’s Day way more than they remember whatever gift you got them.

Ready to Get Your Valentine’s Day Shopping Underway?

Getting out there and doing your Valentine’s Day shopping shouldn’t be a stressful experience. It should be something you genuinely enjoy doing because of how much you love your partner.

As long as you give yourself plenty of time to shop around, you shouldn’t have any trouble finding a great Valentine’s Day gift. Get your shopping started now, and it’ll provide you with more than enough time to get a gift your partner will love.

Would you like some help coming up with specific Valentine’s Day gift ideas for your partner? Take a look at the articles on our blog to see some excellent suggestions.