Absolutely not, despite the fact that one of my friends constantly tells everyone she loves them.
I hug in lieu.
Male. Hell no.
But then again, I don’t have any friends anyway 
Male, 24.
I have a friend my age, that when drunk, tells me he loves me. I’ve responded by saying so as well. And once I told another friend during a friendly argument, that I love him like a brother.
It doesn’t mean I love them in a sexual way, just that there is a strong bond between us. It’s completely innocent and positive.
Male, 25.
I don’t hang up the phone with my Mom without telling her I love her. I’ve never told my dad (he and I have issues that still need to be worked out).
Never told my brother or any male friend. I’ll tell female friends if they’re very, very close, and usually I’ve had to test the waters with a casual and off-handed “Love ya!” to see how they respond. The “I love you” in a romantic way is a bit more difficult, and it’s hard to tell a female friend you love them without them freaking out.
I think women are a lot more comfortable with it, especially with other women. But I really respect any guy who can say it, especially to another guy.
Adam
Female, and I say it seriously to my husband and to my closest female friends. I say it jokingly in conversation occasionally. I think it would worry most of my male friends, so I don’t say it to them.
Ewww no! Only to hub and then only rarely.
It’s a phrase rendered meaningless by overuse.
Or, as my husband says, "Don’t SAY I love you, DO I love you. " Yes please dear…
Yes, I say it to family and my close girlfriends.
I’d be comfortable saying it to guy friends, as all of my guy friends these days have known me longer than Mr. Carmichael – but it’d have to be one of those “they said it first” things.
Female. Yep, I do. Mostly to my two best female friends, but also to my friend Jeff.
Of course my SO and kids hear it the most. Not my sister, even though I love her, and not really my mom either. Just not the kind of thing my family does.
Best,
karol
Female. Yep, to family and friends, including male friends. It doesn’t matter if they say it back. I tell DeHusband multiple times a day, including phone conversations.
My reasoning: When I was growing up, I kept a count of how many times my parents told me they loved me. From age 13 to 22, my mom told me 4 times, my father once. Not that they didn’t love me, they just never said it. I never want anyone to have to wonder or have reason to keep count. One friend told me I was the only person who told him he was loved and didn’t expect anything from him.
Female, 21. I say it to my parents and my boyfriend and nobody else. I love my friends, but saying it that way would be strange.
I say it to my best friend - I’ve known her for 7.5 years. I have other friends to whom I’m almost as close, but I don’t say it to them, for whatever reason. Perhaps 'cause they’re male? Hmmm.
I say it often to my husband and kids, and have a couple of female friends I say it to sometimes. Usually, it’s a more off-handed remark, like if they do something I really appreciate, I’ll say something like, “See? This is why I love you!” Or I’ll just say “Love ya!”; but I specifically remember a time when my best friend drove me to the hospital, and I was very ill. When I got out of her car, she said “I love you” in a very solemn tone, and I said it right back. That’s happened with the same friend one or two other times.
In Spanish, I’d say “Te quiero” to many friends. In English, I don’t say “I love you” unless the friend mentions it first, and so far only one friend (male) has said that(while sober).
Another vote here for the “love ya” category. There seems to be a difference in pronouncing “I love you” over “Love ya”.
Male – I can’t remember ever specifically telling a friend that I loved him, but I probably have once or twice while drunk. I certainly don’t do it on a regular basis.
Male. I think it a lot about my best friends, but I almost never say it out loud. I can only think of two of my friends who I’ve said it to, and it’s because they helped me through some pretty tough times without question.
And I can’t remember ever saying it to anyone – friends, family, or romantically – without the other person’s saying it to me first.
To my husband, I say it every day. Actually *we *say it every day, at least once a day. And my best male friend and I say it every time we speak.
That’s the beauty of Spanish. In Spanish “querer” is my verb of choice, since “amar” sounds too formal.
Never.
My best friend tells me he loves me all the time when he’s drunk. It gets sort of annoying, frankly.
I’m very much not a touchy-feely person. Don’t like to hug or any of that stuff.
However, when my relationship to someone is romantic in nature, I crave cuddling like nobody’s business. Strange.
Yes, but only when I really mean it. Every time I speak to my immediate family (but they’re a long way away and I only see them every few years) I say it. To my best friend of seven years we say it to each other after a big fight or when one of us needs encouragment, but it’s definately a phrase that I would not say lightly. I’m very wary about saying it to a friend of the oppposite sex (I’m a girl) even if I feel it and even if they say it to me, because I’d be worried they’d take it the wrong way.
There are different kinds of love. Nothing better than knowing you’re loved…either in a friendly way or a romantic way. I say it all the time to my friends.