This list of Christmas gift ideas for adult children includes practical, sentimental, and experience presents to make holiday shopping easy! We’ve even included creative and fun ways to give gift cards!
Finding gifts for your kids is easy â until they become adults! Then it can be so hard to pick the perfect present to give during the holiday season. Luckily, there are a few sure-fire Christmas presents you can give that your adult son or daughter will love.
How to Find the Best Christmas Gift Ideas For Adult Children
One way to identify what gift ideas are best for your adults kids is to consider:
What do they need?
Thinking about their current lifestyle, is there something that would help their everyday life? College, moving into a new home, starting a new job, getting married, or growing their family are all huge life events that could help you choose the perfect gift!
What do they enjoy doing?
As your kids get older, their responsibilities grow, but they’re still that same little girl or boy on the inside! What do they love to do in their free time? Do they enjoy reading, playing card games, traveling, receiving a spa treatment, or watching movies? Your child’s hobbies can help you pick out a great gift!
What would they love getting each month?
There are so many great monthly subscription services to choose from nowadays, and many of them make a great gift! We love Audible for readers, as well as, a gym membership. Amazon Prime Video, Apple Music, and magazines!
How to Give a Gift Card as a Present
Gift cards are so practical, and your adult children and kids in college can really benefit from them! With that said, they may not feel very personal. The key is to present the gift card in a fun or unique way!
Here a few unique ways to give a gift card:
- Place it in a gift box
- Attach it to a framed photo
- Include it with a small gift like his or her favorite candy
- Wrap it up in a large box as a funny surprise
If you have several adult children or grandchildren, you could do a fun Christmas game with different gift cards as prizes. We love the Christmas hot potato games, as well as, Christmas party games!
Other Practical Gift Ideas
Not every great gift can be wrapped up in a bag or box. There are several great, practical gifts your son or daughter may love including:
- money for a car payment or student loan
- car maintenance
- tools
- lawnmower
- plants or flowers
- landscape service
- household items like silverware or dishes
- small appliances like a iron, toaster, or vacuum
- phone plan or a new phone
Of course, a practical gift isn’t right for everybody. So it’s best to only choose a practical gift if you know your child is needing and wanting one of these items.
Choosing the Best Experience Gifts
An experience gift can be a great option for adult children or college kids that don’t have a lot of disposable income or already have enough “stuff”.
We love these experience gift ideas for adult children:
- favorite restaurant gift cards for a date night
- online courses
- an outdoor adventure like horseback riding
- outdoor or indoor skydiving
- tickets to a play
- concert tickets
- spa day
- planned vacation or road trip
The Best Sentimental Gift Ideas for Your Kids
If you are looking for a meaningful gift idea for your adult children, we have you covered!
- picture frames or filled photo album
- leather journal
- engrave a watch
- have a handmade sign made with your family name
- handwritten recipe book
- custom jigsaw puzzle
- personalized blanket
- customized jersey
You can also find 100s made-to-order items on Etsy or the Etsy app! They have so many great thoughtful gift ideas for the entire family, but you’ll need to plan ahead for shipping and handling for handmade pieces.
Self Care Gift Ideas for Adult Children
We love the idea of making a self care basket for our loved ones! You could include:
- a nice robe
- slippers
- bubble bath
- face masks
- chocolate
- candles
A gift certificate to get a manicure, pedicure, or haircut are also great ideas for adult kids.
Best Christmas Gift Ideas For Adult Daughters
No matter what your adult daughter is into â from cooking to crafting â youâre sure to find the perfect Christmas gift idea on this list!
1. Monogrammed Tote
This stylish monogramed tote with matching makeup bag is sure to come in handy for your adult daughter.
2. Satin Pillowcase
Your adult daughterâs skin and hair will never look better after sleeping on this satin pillowcase each night.
3. Stand Mixer
Sheâll love practicing her baking skills in the kitchen after you give her a new stand mixer for Christmas.
4. Fuzzy Slippers
Your adult daughter can enjoy lounging around in comfort with these soft and fuzzy slippers after the stress of the holidays is over.
5. Bangle Bracelet Set
This stylish bangle bracelet set comes with a watch and four matching bracelets that pair perfectly with any outfit.
6. Insulated Tumbler
You canât go wrong by giving your adult daughter a new insulated tumbler for Christmas!
7. Aromatherapy Bracelet
No matter how stressful her life gets, your daughter will instantly be able to relax with the help of an aromatherapy bracelet.
8. Window Herb Garden
Sheâll love being able to plant her own herb garden right in her kitchen when she gets this plant starter kit for Christmas!
9. Recipe Tin
Share your favorite recipes with your daughter and place them inside this pretty recipe tin to give a memorable gift this holiday season.
10. Cricut Joy
Your adult daughter will love letting her creativity flow by making all kinds of amazing crafts with a Cricut Joy.
11. Makeup Towels
No matter how many times she cleans her face with this bleach safe makeup towels, theyâll never stain!
12. Birth Month Flower Necklace
Give a personalized gift this Christmas with a birth month flower necklace showing off the flower for the month she was born.
Unique Gifts for Your Grown-up Son
Finding the perfect Christmas present for your adult son doesnât have to be difficult. Wrap up one of these gift ideas, and I guarantee heâll be happy this year!
1. Wooden Bourbon Glass
Preserve the flavor of your sonâs favorite drink when you give him this rustic wooden bourbon glass as a gift this holiday season.
2. Stainless Steel Watch
A sleek watch never goes out of style, which makes it the perfect gift for your adult son!
3. LED Torch Speaker
Give this LED torch speaker to your son as a gift, so he can listen to his favorite music outdoors any time of day or night.
4. Travel Organizer
Make sure your son stays organized every time he travels with the help of this leather travel organizer.
5. Survival Kit
With the help of this handy survival kit, your adult son will have everything he needs to be prepared in case of an emergency.
6. Minimalist Wallet
Your son will love trading in his bulky wallet for a minimalist wallet that fits perfectly in any pocket this holiday season.
7. Cast Iron Pan Set
Whether he enjoys cooking in the kitchen or over a campfire, a set of cast iron pans is sure to be a handy gift.
8. Bluetooth Record Player
Any music lover would enjoy having their own Bluetooth record player at home to play their favorite vinyl or digital music.
9. Solar Power Bank
With the help of a solar power bank, your sonâs devices will always have a charge.
10. Echo Show
Turn your sonâs house into a smart home with the help of an Echo Show, which will allow him to control all the other smart features of his house in one handy location.
11. Ring Alarm
Secure his home, even if heâs on a budget, with the help of this simple to install Ring alarm system.
Best Gifts for College Kids and Young Adults
Make sure your adult kid enjoys college in style with the help of one of these amazing Christmas gift ideas. From decorations for their dorm room to useful cooking tools, your college student is sure to love every item on this list!
1. Bedside Shelf
Help your college student expand the storage in their dorm room with the help of this shelf that attaches to their bedside.
2. Adulting Note Pad
With the help of this adulting to do list, your adult kid will know exactly what they need to accomplish each day of the week!
3. Fidget Pen
Make sure your college student has a useful stress reliever they can enjoy in class with this fidget pen.
4. Tool Set
Thereâs nothing your college student wonât be able to fix when they have this handy tool kit stored in their dorm room.
5. Air Purifier
Keep germs and pollutants at bay, even if your kid is living in the dorms, with the help of a mini air purifier.
6. Laundry Backpack
Lugging their laundry to the laundry mat will be easy when they have this handy laundry backpack to carry all their dirty clothes.
7. Desk Organizer
Their desk will never be more organized after they receive this desk organizer with a lamp and phone charger for Christmas.
8. Personal Safe
Your studentâs important possessions will stay secure and locked up when you give them this personal safe as a gift.
9. Inspirational Candle
Make sure your kid knows youâre rooting for them as they go away to college by giving them an inspirational candle for Christmas.
10. Ramen Bowl
Cooking a college food staple in the dorm room couldnât be easier when you give this microwavable ramen bowl to your college student as a gift.
11. Mini Air Fryer
Your college student will love cooking their own dinner in their dorm when they have their own mini air fryer!
We hope this list of Christmas gift ideas for adult children helped you find something perfect to give this Christmas season!
We know you’re going to find something they will love, and we hope this variety of gift ideas helps you for a birthday or special occasion, as well!
Grown-up kids also really love surprises! Why not send them a DIY movie night gift basket or a care package to brighten their day? Also, if you know a newlywed, we love including gifts for a fun date night at home like one of these date night games!
Along with these Christmas gift ideas for adult children, we also have Christmas gift ideas for your neighbors and tips to host an old fashioned Christmas party that you may like!