If you want to romance Alex in Stardew Valley, his best gifts are Complete Breakfast, Salmon Dinner, Jack Be Nimble, Jack Be Thick, and the game’s Universal Loves. His birthday is Summer 13, making that the best day to give him a loved gift.
Alex lives with his grandparents, George and Evelyn, at 1 River Road in Pelican Town. His routine revolves around exercise, gridball, the Beach, and his home, while his heart events gradually reveal much more about his family, insecurities, and ambitions.
Alex gift guide
Gift-giving is one of the fastest ways to raise friendship with Alex in Stardew Valley. You can normally give him up to two gifts per week, plus another on his birthday even if you have already reached that weekly limit.
A loved gift normally gives 80 friendship points, while a liked gift gives 45. Birthday gifts receive an 8× multiplier, so a normal-quality loved gift on Summer 13 is worth 640 friendship points.
Birthday: Summer 13
Loved gift: +80 friendship before multipliers
Liked gift: +45 friendship before multipliers
Birthday multiplier: 8×
Check out Stardew Valley on G2A.COM
Alex’s loved gifts
Alex has only three personal loved gifts in Stardew Valley, alongside Universal Loves.
Complete Breakfast: Cooked using Fried Egg, Milk, Hashbrowns, and Pancakes.
Salmon Dinner: Cooked using Salmon, Amaranth, and Kale.
Jack Be Nimble, Jack Be Thick: A fitness-themed Book that Alex loves.
Alex also loves Universal Loves such as Golden Pumpkin, Magic Rock Candy, Pearl, Prismatic Shard, Rabbit’s Foot, and Stardrop Tea.
Best practical loved gift: Complete Breakfast and Salmon Dinner both require cooking and several ingredients, so neither is an effortless early-game option. Until you can produce them consistently, liked Eggs or Field Snacks are usually much cheaper for ordinary weeks.
Alex’s liked gifts
Alex has a much broader liked list in Stardew Valley, and this is where the easiest early-game gifts come from.
- All Eggs except Void Egg
- Dinosaur Egg
- Field Snack
- Parrot Egg
- Universal Likes
Eggs are easily the most convenient choice once you have a Coop. Chicken, Duck, Golden, and Ostrich Eggs are all liked, although Void Egg is an exception and should be avoided.
Field Snack is another good early-game option because it only requires an Acorn, Maple Seed, and Pine Cone.
Alex’s neutral gifts
Neutral gifts give only a small friendship increase, so they work in a pinch but are not efficient for romancing Alex in Stardew Valley.
- All Milk
- Most Fruit, except Fruit Tree Fruit and Salmonberry
- Chanterelle
- Common Mushroom
- Daffodil
- Dandelion
- Ginger
- Hazelnut
- Leek
- Morel
- Purple Mushroom
- Snow Yam
- Winter Root
- Frog Egg
The provider draft was therefore partly right about Fruit and Milk, but common forage is not one single category for Alex. Several forageables are neutral, while Salmonberry and Wild Horseradish are disliked.
Gifts to avoid
Alex’s disliked and hated gifts contain a few easy traps, especially Books and Quartz.
Disliked gifts
- Void Egg
- Salmonberry
- Wild Horseradish
- All Books except Jack Be Nimble, Jack Be Thick
- Universal Dislikes, with several specific exceptions
Hated gifts
- Quartz
- Holly
- Universal Hates
Quartz is particularly easy to get wrong because it is a convenient gift for several other villagers. Alex hates it.
Who is Alex?
Alex is one of the twelve marriage candidates in Stardew Valley. He lives with his grandparents, George and Evelyn, in the house southeast of Pierre’s General Store.
At first, Alex is heavily focused on sport and dreams of becoming a professional gridball player. He exercises constantly, spends Summer at the Beach, and talks openly about his athletic ambitions.
His later friendship events add much more context. Alex was very close to his mother, Clara, while his father was verbally abusive and eventually abandoned the family. After his mother died, Alex moved in with George and Evelyn.
He is friends with Haley, and the two normally dance together at the Flower Dance if neither is partnered with the player. He also has a dog named Dusty who lives in the pen beside the Stardrop Saloon.
Alex’s schedule and easiest places to find him
Alex has one of the easier seasonal routines to remember in Stardew Valley. His main locations change between the area around his house, the Beach, the Ice Cream Stand, and the Spa.
Spring and Fall: Outside near his house in the morning, lifting weights in the afternoon, then near Dusty’s dog pen.
Summer: Beach in the morning, Ice Cream Stand from noon, then home for his workout.
Winter: Spends much of the day working out at the Spa.
Rain: Stays close to home, lifting weights indoors before visiting Dusty later.
Spring and Fall
On a normal Spring or Fall day, Alex leaves his room at 8am and stands beneath the tree beside his house. At 1pm, he goes inside to lift weights, then moves to the dog pen at 4pm before returning home in the evening.
Summer
Summer is particularly easy. Alex leaves home shortly before 8am for the Beach, then heads to the Ice Cream Stand at noon. At 5pm, he returns home to lift weights.
Summer 16 is different because Alex attends his medical check-up at Harvey’s Clinic.
Winter
During Winter, Alex leaves home at 9am and spends most of the day exercising in the Spa. He heads home at 3pm, then later visits Dusty’s dog pen.
Rainy days
Rain keeps Alex near home. He spends the morning inside, lifts weights from around 1pm, then visits the dog pen at 4pm before returning home.
Once the Ginger Island Beach Resort is unlocked, Alex can also randomly spend a day there, except on festival days and his Summer 16 clinic appointment.
Alex’s heart events and romance progression
Alex’s heart events in Stardew Valley gradually move away from his confident athlete persona and reveal his doubts, family history, and changing priorities.
Two hearts
Visit the Beach on a sunny Summer day while Alex is there. He tosses you his gridball, which you fail to catch, before talking about his dream of becoming a professional player.
Neither response to his question affects friendship, so choose whichever fits your character.
Four hearts
Enter Pelican Town between 9am and 4pm. Alex is talking to Dusty and explains that both of them have been through difficult situations.
He tells you about his abusive father, his mother’s illness and death, and why he came to live with his grandparents. Neither dialogue choice changes friendship.
Five hearts
Enter Alex’s house while he is there. You find him looking at his bookcase and worrying that he is not intelligent enough to succeed outside sport.
Best answer: “We all have our strengths and weaknesses.” gives +50 friendship.
Avoid: Agreeing that he is worthless costs 50 friendship.
Six hearts
Enter Alex’s house while he is home. He admits that becoming a professional gridball player may not be realistic and apologises for how arrogant he acted when you first met.
There are no dialogue choices in this scene.
Eight hearts
Visit the Beach on a sunny day while Alex is there. He normally visits during Summer, although the event can also become possible in another season when he passes through the Beach on his way to Ginger Island.
Alex talks about his mother, who died twelve years earlier, and plays a music box she left behind. All four responses have no friendship effect, so you can choose whichever one feels most appropriate.
After reaching eight hearts, give Alex a Bouquet if you want to begin dating him.
Ten hearts
After receiving Alex’s letter, enter the Stardrop Saloon between 7pm and 10pm. He has reserved a private room for dinner, with Gus playing violin and Emily serving the meal.
Alex confesses his feelings for the player. You can return those feelings or reject him, but neither choice changes friendship points.
Fourteen hearts
Alex’s 14-heart event is available after marriage from Year 2 onwards. Leave the farmhouse between 6am and 8:20am on any day except Sunday with at least 5,000g available.
Alex asks for 5,000g to fund a secret project. Visit the Stardrop Saloon the following Sunday to see the result: he has turned part of the back room into a place where he, George, Kent, Shane, and Gus can watch gridball together.
It gives Alex a way to stay connected to the sport even though his original dream of becoming a professional player did not work out.
Marriage benefits
After marrying Alex in Stardew Valley, he moves into the farmhouse and adds his own spouse room. He also creates a workout area behind the farmhouse where he sometimes lifts weights.
Like other spouses, Alex can occasionally help with farm chores. He also gives the player food depending on his schedule and the weather.
Days spent indoors
- Omelet
- Hashbrowns
- Pancakes
Rainy nights
- Survival Burger
- Dish O’ The Sea
- Fried Eel
- Crispy Bass
- Baked Fish
Alex also continues visiting his grandparents after marriage. Following his 14-heart event, he spends part of Sunday watching gridball at the Stardrop Saloon.
Fast friendship tips
Alex is easy to befriend once you stop treating his loved gifts as the only viable options. Eggs and Field Snacks make the early friendship grind much cheaper.
- Craft Field Snacks during your first Spring for an inexpensive liked gift.
- Once you have chickens, use Eggs for a steady supply of liked gifts.
- Prepare Complete Breakfast or Salmon Dinner when you have the ingredients to spare.
- Save a loved gift for Summer 13 to benefit from the 8× birthday multiplier.
- Talk to Alex when you pass his house, the Beach, Ice Cream Stand, dog pen, or Spa.
- Choose “We all have our strengths and weaknesses” during his five-heart event for +50 friendship.
- Give him a Bouquet after eight hearts if you want to continue the romance.
- Never give him Quartz just because you have spare pieces from the Mines.
Alex initially presents himself as a confident athlete focused almost entirely on going pro, but his friendship storyline gradually shifts towards family, self-confidence, education, and finding value outside professional sport. That character development is ultimately a bigger part of his romance than the gridball obsession he starts with.
G2A Plus: G2A Plus Free members can earn Plus Points on eligible purchases, while Premium also adds member discounts, monthly digital rewards, exclusive discount codes, and priority support.