What Does Your Love Language Say About Your Finances?

Have you ever considered that your preferences for receiving love can tell us a lot about how you view your finances? According to Life Happens’ recent survey “For Love and Money,” each of the five love languages has a corresponding financial style.

What one of the five love languages best describes you? Choose the best answer from the list below. (Don’t overthink it, just go with your gut!)

Do you prefer to receive love through:

• Physical contact
• Acts of service
• Quality time spent together
• Receiving gifts
• Words of affirmation

Now, here is how the love language you chose translates into money and finances:

Physical contact

If physical touch is your preferred method of communication, you are committed to going the extra mile to make sure your relationship succeeds. Your most valuable financial habit is probably a readiness to engage in uncomfortable financial discussions.

According to the study, this group values humor, wit, and financial security in a partner the most. In just three to four months after beginning a relationship, almost half (47%) said they would feel at ease discussing money. That indicates that they are prepared to put in the necessary effort, including saving, to ensure the success of their relationship. The majority of members of this group (71%) are likely to have a savings account. What about their most sensitive financial issue? That would be taking on each other’s debt! (All the other love languages chose prenups as the hot potato.)

Does this describe who you are? If so, you would be one of the 6% of people who use this love language.

Acts of Service

If acts of service are your love language, you’re fiscally responsible and understand the importance of debt repayment—and you’re willing to assist your partner in doing so as well.

According to the research, this group is fiscally responsible. The majority of people have a savings account (57%), a 401(K) (45%), an IRA (48%), and life insurance (46%). They understand the significance of debt elimination, and as their top financial “act of love,” they are willing to assist their partner in paying down mutual debt. In fact, it is so important to this group that they will not discuss marriage until debt is addressed. Additionally, a third of respondents said they would express their love by buying life insurance, while a quarter said they would do so by saving money.

If this is your preferred method of communication, you are not alone—11% of respondents agreed.

Quality Time Spent together

If spending time together is your primary love language, you place a high value on quality time and are deeply concerned about preserving your union. You’re therefore most likely to buy financial protection products, such as life insurance.

Protection is a major theme for this group of love languages. As a result, of all the love language groups, they have the highest rate of life insurance ownership (48%). However, they often prefer to postpone discussing life insurance or end-of-life planning until after they have married. Additionally, of all the love languages, they are also the most likely to own the most financial products, demonstrating their preparedness and knowledge. This group is focused on retirement; it is the only group where the majority (52% said they had an employer-sponsored retirement account).

If this describes you and your financial love language, you are in the company of 22% of the population.

Receiving Gifts

If receiving gifts is your love language, you value the finer things in life as well as non-tangible gifts such as the gift of education. That implies that if you are a parent, saving for your kids’ education comes first.

According to the survey, this group enjoys nice things, so when looking for a partner, they are drawn to someone who can provide them with stability in their careers, their finances, and their budgets. Across all love languages, financial security ranked as the top quality. In contrast to the other groups, which ranked intelligence and humor as the top traits, this group, in an interesting turn of events, ranked career and budgeting as the top two traits. But this group is more than just presents that can be opened. In order to show their “financial” love, they prioritize saving money for college because they also place a high value on intangible gifts like education.

If receiving gifts is your love language, you’re one of 16%.

Words of Affirmation

If verbal affirmation is your preferred form of communication, you place a high value on security and are saving for the ultimate security symbol—a home—in order to achieve this.

The majority of people (40%) identify this as their primary method of receiving love (36% of women and 46% of men). This group places a high value on feeling safe in all facets of their lives. One way they achieve this is by beginning difficult conversations earlier than other groups—much earlier. In fact, compared to just 7% of people whose preferred method of communication is physical touch, 29% said they would discuss a joint bank account after just five to eight dates. When it comes to being open to discussing topics like shared finances, debt, income, and life insurance at the very beginning of a relationship, they outperform all other love languages. By having these discussions earlier, they can work toward more ambitious objectives like purchasing a home, which for them represents the pinnacle of security. Additionally, this group had the highest likelihood of any group to say that getting life insurance is a way to financially express their love (41%).

Regardless of the love language you select, it is evident that having a secure financial future is a desirable quality in a partner. Discussing financial issues—such as debt reduction, retirement, and life insurance—is important, but taking action is even more crucial. Life insurance is the best financial protection option for your loved one, so look into ways to cooperate toward shared long-term financial goals and lay the groundwork with it.