Gifts for Any Occasion

posted in: Gift Guides

You just remembered that a special someone’s birthday is coming up. Or you want to send a little token for kindness. Or does a loved one need a pick-me-up? But who has time to go shop-to-shop or browse hundreds of websites for the perfect gift? My goal is always to make shopping easier for you so I’ve compiled a list of sites and apps that help make gift-giving an absolute breeze.  

Bake Me a Wish

Cakes, cupcakes, cheesecake, brownies, cookies, pies, towers…did I catch your attention yet?  If your recipient has a sweet tooth, this NYC-based baked goods gifting company makes it easy to choose the perfect sweet treat, allowing you to search by theme, occasion, gluten-free, and more.  Overnight delivery in beautiful packaging is available nationwide and you have the option to request a personalized gift card.  

Pricing: $27 and up

ekuBox 

Eku stands for Eat, Keep, and Use, and their 60+ gift options are elegant and well-designed with a curated selection of soothing self-care items, delicious foods, and even baby essentials. ekuBox was founded by Paula Slof, who created this brand so she could share her gift-giving skills with others while also supporting small businesses. For every box purchased, EkuBox plants a tree. Gift cards for $100 and up are also available.

Prices: $58 and up

Gentlemen’s Hardware

This men’s gifting site offers functional and stylish kits and standalone items, including barware, grooming accessories, tech essentials, and fishing gear. The site is easy to shop with a helpful gift guide page organized by interest. You can also purchase a gift card if your favorite guy might want to shop for himself.  $25, $50, and $100 gift cards are available. 

Pricing: $10 and up

GiftYa

Sometimes, the best gift is spending money! GiftYa is a way to send a colorful e-gift to your recipient’s favorite shop, restaurant, salon, etc. There are lots of fun designs to choose from and you can further personalize it with photos, video, and a message. The Giftya arrives on your recipient’s phone or email inbox in minutes. They link it to their credit card and use it whenever they want, so it can never be lost or stolen!  They can even switch retailers or opt for a Visa gift card. Shop via their site or app.

Pricing: $5-$100

Goodly

This gifting site makes it fun to find the perfect present for anyone on your list! Search by category, collection, gender, color, brand, and price. The tastefully selected items include stationery, socks, snacks, and home goods, and everything is nestled in stylish, sustainable packaging.   

Pricing: $58 and up

Groupon

If your recipient might prefer experiences to “stuff”, gift them the gift of Groupon! This marketplace is packed with amazing activities, including spa services, ax throwing, and flying lessons. Many of the activities feature exclusive discounted pricing so you’ll get a bang for your buck. If you think they’d like to choose their own adventure, gift cards for $25-$100 are available.

Pricing: $5 and up

Joann

This craft and fabric supersite has a gifts page where you can shop by interest or budget. Choose from DIY gifts, like a candle-making kit, to ready-to-use items like a macrame hammock. If you think your recipient would prefer to shop for themselves, gift cards are also available.  

Pricing: $.60 and up

Knack 

I’ve written about Knack several times over the years and they continue to impress. Knack is a custom gifting platform that makes gift-giving easy with ethos-based collections, individualized gift baskets, and expert advice. Whomever you are shopping for, you will surely find a perfectly curated present. There are countless pre-designed boxes organized by theme or you can create your own, choosing from foods, books, beauty, home items, and more. 

Pricing: $33 and up

Nuts.com Gift Drop

Who doesn’t love snacks? This new gifting feature from Nuts.com allows you to send a gift card for a basket packed with your recipient’s choice of treats, including dried fruits, nuts, chocolates, and other yummy goodies    Select gift size and occasion, enter the recipient’s email and a message, and they build their own gift at their leisure.  

Prices: $59.99 and up

Ocelot Market 

This marketplace for products from around the world represents more than 80 artisan-focused brands and makers with accessories, apparel, items for the home, and more. When you select Gifts for Her or Gifts for Him, you can tailor the offerings by brand, type, price, size, color, where the items are made, and gender.  Gift cards are also available.  

Pricing: $6 and up

Punchbowl

Sometimes a card says it all. With Punchbowl, which is a subscription-based digital greeting card service, you can send digital greeting cards to anyone on your “nice” list, from teachers to loved ones to clients. There are a dizzying number of designs to choose from for pretty much any occasion, and there are lots of options for customization, from uploading a video message, adding your company logo, and including a gift card from a major retailer.  The cards can be delivered by email or text to one person or multiple people. You can even set reminders for important occasions so you never forget a birthday again.

Pricing: $3.99 per month and up

Seattle Chocolate 

Another perfect present for your favorite sweet tooth is from woman-owned Seattle Chocolate, which not only carries mouth-wateringly good treats, but they partner with artists to present their treats in fabulous designer packaging. Their latest collection is a collab with New England-based artist Ali Mac. You can shop by occasion, artist, treat preference, and more.

Pricing: $4.99 and up

SmashUps from American Greetings 

This new offering from American Greetings takes digital greetings to another level with easy-to-create, personalized, entertaining, and shareable videos that feature celebrities, talking characters, or selfies.  They can be delivered to your recipient by email, text message, or via social media. A digital gift card can be added to the greeting via email. Available on iPhone and Android.

Pricing: $6.99 per month or $29.99 per year

Sugarwish

Sugarwish started out with a focus on sweet treats, but they have now expanded their gift offerings to include other categories, like coffees & teas, and wines through Vinebox by Sugarwish. You can’t go wrong with Sugarwish because the gift invites the recipient to choose a mix of items that suits them. I also appreciate the packaging, which is always festive and well-constructed. Once you determine how much you want to spend and add your message, you can send a gift notification by email, text, or social media like Facebook or Twitter, and even Slack! 

Pricing: $23 and up

Sterling Forever

Looking for jewelry? Sterling Forever is a one-stop jewelry shop with hundreds of options, from bracelets to custom necklaces, many of which are inspired by design trends or celebrity favorites. Gifting is easy on the site because you can search by price, metal, stone, and category.  All pieces have a lifetime guarantee. Gift cards for $25 to $250 are also available.

Pricing: 30 and up

Uncommon Goods

This online marketplace allows you to sort through a selection of artisan-made “uncommon” gifts by price, occasion, recipient, etc. There is a broad selection of all sorts of items, from jewelry to home goods. Shoppers can also now purchase Uncommon Experiences, which are expert-led one-of-a-kind experiences, like dream decoding and hanging plant design. Gift cards are also available. 

Pricing: $10 and up

Zales

Zales is another reliable gifting destination for jewelry. There are thousands of pieces to choose from and their dedicated gifts page allows you to search by necklaces, earrings, bracelets, etc. by occasion, gemstone, budget, and more. Gift cards from $50-$2000 are also available.

I may receive commissions for purchases made through links in this post. By following these links, you will never pay more for products/services – in fact, in some cases, I am able to arrange special discounts just for friends of TrueTrae. Thank you for supporting my channel!

Follow Trae Bodge:

Smart Shopping Expert

Trae Bodge is an accomplished lifestyle journalist and TV commentator who has specialized in smart shopping, personal finance, and retail for more than a decade. She has appeared on TV over 1,000 times; including Today Show, GMA3, NBC Nightly News, Inside Edition, and network affiliates nationwide. She has been named a Top Voice in Retail by LinkedIn, and her expert commentary has appeared in Forbes, USNews.com, Kiplinger, Yahoo Finance, and numerous others.
Latest posts from