The 25 Best Gifts for Families

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The 25 Best Gifts for Families

Whether your family is the nuclear unit you come home to every night, the far-flung loved ones you see only a few times a year, or the chosen group you’re so grateful to have found, the right gift can spark fun and foster chances to connect.

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The 25 Best Gifts for Families

Child development and behavior specialist Betsy Brown Braun said the best gifts are “memory makers”—items that are a joy to open and that act as a catalyst for spending more time together.  To help you create meaningful rituals for many years to come, we’ve found great gifts for every family, no matter how it’s defined.

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Foodie friends

One needn’t be under 4 feet tall to get a real kick out of these face plates, which allow creative consumers to make 3D food portraits, fry by fry.  Give one, and your family can trade off nights of artistry. Or nab each of the four Mr. and Miss Food designs.

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Foodie friends

Since the plates are ceramic, they’re best suited for recipients out of the butter-fingers stage. Buttered noodles, however, will make fetching curls, and once the strands are devoured, the dishwasher-safe plates clean up nicely.

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Play furniture

Editor Signe Brewster invested in this adaptable couch when her daughter was 11 months old, and she reports it’s been indispensable through the crawling, cruising, climbing, and body slamming Mom and Dad phases.  The couch is cleverly constructed from four foam pieces—two foldable rectangles and two triangles..

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Play furniture

And in the hands of an older child, it becomes a fort, a pirate ship, and a throne.  As a bonus for the adults in the family, the microsuede covers can be stripped off and washed, and when the couch is laid out, it’s actually big enough for grown-up nap. As Signe will tell you from experience, though, she doesn’t recommend going in for a full night’s rest.

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Cheesemonger in training

Inject new fun into meal prep with an alchemic adventure from Cultures for Health, which sells starter kits for everything from sourdough to kefir.  Aside from bread baking, cheese making is one of the best entries into this kind of cooking, offering quick results you can eat within the hour..

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Cheesemonger in training

Cultures for Health’s Mozzarella & Ricotta Cheese Making Kit comes with salt, citric acid, rennet tablets, cheesecloth, a thermometer, and fairly easy-to-follow instructions.  All you need to add is good milk. You’ll probably mess up the first time you make mozzarella, but failing together is its own kind of fun.

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Cheesemonger in training

And if you do wind up with a clumpy mess, you can almost always salvage your work by claiming you meant to make ricotta.

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Easier video calls

For some people, it’s not always simple to download an app, join a group chat, or answer a video call. Smart displays like the Amazon Echo Show 8 (1st Gen) and the Google Nest Hub Max can help streamline the process somewhat..

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Easier video calls

With easy-to-use remote setup (for loved ones who may be less comfortable with electronics), both of these smart displays allow for quick and intuitive video calling with multiple family members. 

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Easier video calls

Of course, these smart displays can also do a whole lot more, such as manage your calendars, read out recipe instructions, play the radio, and control smart devices in your home.

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Bigger, better movie nights

The BenQ HT2050A, our favorite budget projector for a home theater, transforms any blank wall (or a well-hung sheet) into a viewing surface.  The HT2050A produces a bright image—the ideal size for a living room or a large family room—so it’ll work even if you’re screening a matinee for the kids with the curtains drawn.

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Bigger, better movie nights

If you’re on the road or traveling to another family member’s home, we recommend the Xgimi MoGo Pro.  At just 2.2 pounds, the MoGo Pro is about the size of three paperbacks sitting together on a bookshelf. And its internal speaker system provides a decently balanced, clear sound.

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Bigger, better movie nights

The projector’s battery lasts about 2½ hours, which is long enough for most family favorites (except for The Godfather:  Part II and Braveheart). To take your home-theater experience to the next level, we also have recommendations for projector screens.

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Share photos from afar

A digital frame like the Aura Mason, our top pick, lets you easily and instantly share your favorite photos with family members anywhere in the world.  The Aura Mason is easy to set up and operate, even if some of your relatives aren’t tech-savvy.

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Share photos from afar

To upload photos, just download the app, pair the phone to the frame, and connect to a Wi-Fi network.  This digital frame also has a gift option that allows you to preload it with images for the recipient, using the free and easy-to-navigate Aura app.

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Irreverent fun for parents and kids

Exploding Kittens, a card game that’s kind of a cross between Apples to Apples and Russian roulette, treads lightly between being fun for the family and just short of inappropriate..

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Irreverent fun for parents and kids

Pick up an “exploding kitten” card from the deck and you’re out—unless you have a “defuse” card (such as catnip or a laser pointer), which will keep your kitten safe from harm.  We think it’s a silly romp, great for kids between the ages of 8 and 14.

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Irreverent fun for parents and kids

In short, Exploding Kittens is the perfect game to fill the little moments before and after meals and other family traditions.

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Record your memories

When loved ones are far away, it can be soothing to hear their voices.  Artifact is a self-described “personal podcast” service that interviews your family members about a topic and edits their stories into a cohesive episode.

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Record your memories

For instance, an Artifact editor could interview a grandparent to save a favorite memory for young grandchildren, or it could edit together your parents’ love story from separate interviews (or interview them together).  It’s up to you, depending on what you find meaningful.

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Record your memories

For the interview, you or your loved one needs a phone or a computer that accepts calls.  (If you’re talking through a computer, you might want to consider getting a good USB microphone, like the Blue Yeti.)

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Record your memories

The cost of the service varies; the price above includes one podcast episode, with one interview and up to two guests.

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A good ol’ whodunit

Codenames is among the best board games we’ve found for groups of adults (with or without young children).  It’s an interactive word-guessing game played in teams, so you can pair parents with kids of different abilities (to introduce younger family members to new vocabulary words)..

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A good ol’ whodunit

This game is also easy to learn, so your group can spend less time reviewing the rules and more time actually playing.  Wirecutter senior staff writer Signe Brewster said it’s a perfect cross-generation game—just as entertaining for grandparents as it is for kids (it’s rated for ages 14 and up, but we think even 10-year-olds will enjoy it).

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A good ol’ whodunit

If you have younger kids, child development and behavioral specialist Betsy Brown Braun recommends an old-fashioned game of Charades (here’s a refresher on the rules).  You can tailor it to specific topics (books, movies, or songs) that little kids understand, and it’s free!

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A good ol’ whodunit

If you have younger kids, child development and behavioral specialist Betsy Brown Braun recommends an old-fashioned game of Charades (here’s a refresher on the rules).  You can tailor it to specific topics (books, movies, or songs) that little kids understand, and it’s free!

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Send a celebrity surprise

If your loved ones could use a laugh (or even a surreal distraction), give them a video from Cameo, the platform that sends personalized messages from celebs, and celebs-adjacent. Get their favorite B- or C-level star to record them a greeting..

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Send a celebrity surprise

Or you could splurge on heartfelt words from Motown legend Smokey Robinson.  Many staffers have received Cameos ranging from meaningful to absurd. They’re always a hit.

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Shoot your shot

An empty driveway is a missed opportunity. Any baller will go nuts over this Spalding NBA Basketball Hoop. And even less-eager family members will enjoy a low-key game of H-O-R-S-E on a balmy night.  A basketball hoop is great for a solo player practicing three-pointers, but it’s also perfect for getting the whole family to team up and play together.

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Shoot your shot

(Child development and behavior specialist Betsy Brown Braun said team activities are an especially great bonding tool for siblings.)  The Spalding NBA Basketball Hoop has a solid base (which you’ll need to fill with water or sand), and you can wheel it aside when you need to park the car.

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Shoot your shot

It is regulation size, but it also lowers to 7.5 feet (from 10), so younger kids won’t feel left out.  We saw cheaper hoops with plastic backboards, but this one is made from polycarbonate, which is stronger and bouncier—and allows for better rebounds.

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Discover family stories

For some families, the ritual of telling stories—even the ones that are recounted every year—reminds us of our ties to one another.  Once a week for a year, StoryWorth emails a chosen storyteller a question designed to inspire a personal anecdote..

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Discover family stories

Their written replies are shared with you, and when your subscription runs out after a year, you can either renew or have the stories printed in a keepsake book, up to 480 pages long.  (The hardcover is included in the subscription price, and you can add any pictures you want, with or without captions.)

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Discover family stories

Before it’s time to print, you or your family member can go to the StoryWorth website and edit the responses or provide additional context to the finished work.  The book won’t print until you’re fully satisfied. Although we haven’t tested this service, we’ve read good things about it.

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A game that won’t shuck

Cornhole, an all-American backyard pastime, is simple to set up, easy to play, and only as competitive as you and your family want to make it.  A good cornhole set will be durable enough to resist warping or degrading during extended storage in the garage or long days spent in the sun..

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Find your roots

Families love nothing more than reveling in their family-ness.  Our top pick for the best DNA testing kit, AncestryDNA stood out for its simple reports, interface, and large DNA database. However, it can’t differentiate between maternal and paternal lineages, and the company may monetize your data if you opt in to its research program.

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Find your roots

If you really want to dig into the history encoded in your genes, our upgrade pick, FamilyTreeDNA, provides more-detailed analysis of your lineages.

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Find your roots

(Be aware that FamilyTree voluntarily gives law enforcement access to its customer database.)  Of course, there’s always the old-fashioned approach: hiring a genealogist to research your family history (without the extra privacy concerns).

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Find your roots

(Be aware that FamilyTree voluntarily gives law enforcement access to its customer database.)  Of course, there’s always the old-fashioned approach: hiring a genealogist to research your family history (without the extra privacy concerns).

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Play together while apart

If your family is tech-savvy, there are plenty of online options for playing games together.  We like Jackbox Games, which bundles multiple quick games for up to eight players (some can accommodate more). We particularly like Quiplash, in which players answer humorous prompts and the wittiest response is voted the winner.

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Play together while apart

It’s easy to follow, and it inspires a certain shared irreverence, even through a computer screen.  If you’re playing with kids younger than 13, we recommend using the optional family-friendly setting.

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Play together while apart

We also enjoy Ticket to Ride (appropriate for kids 8 and up), a faithful online adaptation of the award-winning board game about expanding a railroad empire.  And in Among Us, you and your family members are trapped aboard a spaceship with a secret killer lurking about.

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Play together while apart

At the end of each round, debate as a group who’s been assigned the murderer role.  When you figure out the identity of the imposter picking you off in the dark hallways, vote them out of the airlock.

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Take in the night sky

Few things in life are as awe-inspiring for kids or adults as peering up at the night sky, and a good telescope can make that experience even more powerful.  For beginner astronomers, we recommend the Astronomers Without Borders OneSky Reflector Telescope, a manual telescope designed to sit on a table.

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Take in the night sky

Its mirrors expand and collapse, so this model is easy to store, when it’s not being used to stare at the cosmos.  Be advised that because this telescope doesn’t automatically find the celestial bodies you seek, younger stargazers may need assistance with setup (and older ones may need a bit of patience).

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Take in the night sky

Once it is aligned, though, the clear, breathtaking views are worth the extra effort. For less-expensive sky peeping, the Celestron SkyMaster Binoculars are easy enough for kids to manage.  One of our editors loves her Celestron binoculars and said they have “surprisingly good optics.”

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Take in the night sky

They’re also cheap enough that if you accidentally drop them, it isn’t the end of the world (but, even so, use the included strap).  If your arms tend to get tired, Celestron also sells a tripod adapter, which can bring you a little closer to a true telescope experience.

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Take in the night sky

For a completely free option, we like the Night Sky app.  It acts as a personal planetarium, showing you constellations and other notable objects in whichever part of the sky you point your phone at.

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Watch the birds from a rear window

You’re buying the birds dinner, but you get the show. With strong suction cups, this clear bird feeder mounts to the outside of a window, giving you a close-up view of any hungry bird who stops by for a snack..

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Watch the birds from a rear window

It provides hours of entertainment for kids—and wouldn’t you rather have them glued to this real-life nature show than to the TV? (It’s surprisingly enjoyable for adults, too.)  Add a bag of birdseed, and you’ve got an inexpensive gift that nearly anyone will enjoy.

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Gather ’round the fire

There are few things as good and simple as sitting together around a fire. We think the Solo Stove Bonfire Fire Pit is a great device for that cause.  For one thing, it’s easy to light, thanks to a base plate that draws oxygen directly up to the embers. 

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Gather ’round the fire

So the person tasked with lighting the fire can join in the revelry sooner, rather than fussing over sparks or using noxious fire starters. That same vented plate also dispels spent ash and helps avoid messes. 

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Gather ’round the fire

Plus, the Solo’s double-wall structure intensifies the heat of the fire, so it’s more efficient and far less smoky—and hopefully this encourages your family to stay out a while longer.

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Creation station

Don’t overthink it! Child development and behavior specialist Betsy Brown Braun reminded us that some family gifts can simply be a collection of things you may already have around your house.  She recommends making a “creation station,” a basket full of stationery supplies, hole punches, markers, and ribbon..

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Creation station

“They [kids] love stationery,” Brown Braun said.  “Their store of choice is not Toys ‘R’ Us, it’s Staples.” Many Wirecutter staffers love using IKEA’s Råskog cart to keep supplies organized. (And we particularly like the look of this art-station setup from funwithmama on Instagram.)

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Creation station

A gift like this also provides an opportunity to teach kids about responsibility.  Brown Braun suggested that they be the ones in charge of maintaining the creation station—putting the tops back on pens and packing up the supplies when playtime is over.

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Piscine play

Easy to learn but hard to master, this fast-paced, two- to five-person card game is one of our favorites for kids and adults to enjoy, even together.  It involves a pass-and-play dynamic, which means you need to keep track of your own cards as well as those of opponents..

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Piscine play

This makes the game maddeningly fun.  Each card features adorable sushi art. And if you find yourself growing tired of the cards, or you have more than five people you want to play with, the expanded-deck Sushi Go Party accommodates up to eight players.

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Popping off

The easiest way to make popcorn from scratch for a crowd is with an air popper like this Presto Poplite.  Unlike the stovetop methods that tether you to the kitchen, or the microwave options that produce small quantities, the Presto Poplite pops up a big bowl in less than three minutes.

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Popping off

Package it alongside a bag of kernels and some seasoning, and the snacking portion of movie night is settled.  Agreeing on something to watch, well, that’s your business.

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Hop, skip, and jump

Though we have recommendations for adult and kid-specific jump ropes, we think the one to best serve both is the Ohyaiayn Soft Beaded Jump Rope.  Its beads and handles are squishy to the touch, and it weighs just enough to give the rope a good balance—not too heavy, not too light..

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Hop, skip, and jump

Importantly, the 9-foot length is adjustable, to suit the height of whoever is using it.  And since the rope comes in a set of two (blue and pink), it’s also perfect for a family game of double dutch.

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Monthly reads

For literary surprises appropriate for everyone in your family, The Book Drop offers monthly book deliveries for adult, YA, or middle-school-age reads, plus genre-specific and large-print options. 

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Monthly reads

The picks are chosen by the staff at Delaware’s Bethany Beach Books, with help from booksellers, publisher reps, book-club members, and an in-store curator.  And they usually include titles from indie publishers, rather than the big names that tend to dominate the best-seller lists.

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Monthly reads

Plus, to ensure diversity among the titles chosen, the Book Drop has announced it will include more-diverse voices, with a focus on Black, Brown, and LGBTQIA+ authors.

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Vroom, vroom

Vacuuming is often the last chore a family can find the time to accomplish, and it’s also among the most annoying of them (loud! strenuous! disruptive!)  A robot vacuum that can adeptly zip around the home without knocking into furniture is a great solution.

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Vroom, vroom

We recommend the iRobot Roomba 694 as our budget pick, because it sucks up debris better than most and navigates without getting lost.  And with Wi-Fi connectivity, it’s easy to use the vacuum from any room in the house with a smartphone app. Like a charming new pet that follows orders, this little gizmo will delight the entire family as it performs its task.

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Piece it together

For a quiet activity that can be tackled in bursts, it’s hard to beat a jigsaw puzzle.  One great option from among our staff’s favorites is this vibrant design by Charley Hopper, commissioned by the National Park Service.

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Piece it together

Featuring vibrant birds, flowers, and leaves that flourish in the famed mountains, this puzzle feels like “an Easter-egg hunt for the eye,” according to senior staff writer Tim Heffernan. 

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Piece it together

nd though 1,000 pieces will pose a challenge for younger kids, according to Tim their natural curiosity and quick eyes will make it all entertaining rather than frustrating.

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