Finding the best gift ideas for a boss can be an intimidating task. You may want to come up with lots of ideas here.
And you don’t want to buy another dust-collecting-throw-that-into-the-garbage gift. You may want something special. Something that reminds your boss that you’re the best colleague they’ll ever find.
Whether you’re looking for gift ideas for a special day, like Christmas or a birthday, or your boss is leaving, maybe climbing upstairs on the career ladder, I got you covered.
In this post, I reviewed the best gift ideas for every type of boss.
Questions to ask when choosing the best gift ideas for a boss
Here’re some questions to help you find out what’s the best gift idea for your boss:
- What’s the one thing they’re always speaking about?
- What’s the one thing they’re always complaining about?
- What are they doing in their free time?
- What types of accessories and gadgets do they show up with at work?
- Are they completely obsessed with what…?
Pro tip: look at their desk and filter down the ideas provided in this post.
Best gift ideas for a boss (any type)
For the geek: Bellroy Tech Kit
If your boss carries around lots of cables and tech accessories, then Bellroy’s Tech Kit will quickly find its way to their hearts. This small case is ideal for carrying all their chargers, cables, earphones, pencils, and even their mouse conveniently.
This esthetic tech kit is water-resistant and comes with magnetic clips for easy access. Bellroy actively uses recycled materials in its products and promotes environmental sustainability.
For the caffeine addict: Ember Smart Mug
This ceramic, temperature-control mug will keep your boss’s coffee warm even for the longest meetings. Ember mug’s battery can keep their drinks hot for up to 80 minutes without charging. They can set their preferred drinking temperature and control it with their smartphones.
Why is Ember’s mug smart? Because it wakes up when your boss pours in coffee and sleeps when not in use. Plus, the smart LED light indicates when their drink is ready. It’s easy to keep clean and even has a scratch-resistant ceramic coating for esthetic use.
For the boss whose desk is a mess: Office Oasis Magnetic Desk Organizer
This US-patented desk organizer will keep your boss’s desk extremely neat. With six adjustable compartments, your boss can find the perfect setting for their pencils, markers, sticky notes, scissors, paper clips, business cards, and even their cell phones.
It comes with a bamboo base and magnetic grids that allow hundreds of individual configurations to remove clutter.
For the gardener boss: Raised-Bed Gardening for Beginners
With this bestselling book, your boss will find everything they need to know how to start and sustain a thriving garden. Raised-Bed Gardening for Beginners will show them how to construct a planting box, select the right plants, maintain soil, and rotate crops.
The result? Freshly picked veggies. Healthy and calm boss.
For the heavy laptop user: Nexstand Laptop Stand
Working on a laptop computer can cause health issues if you don’t pay attention to ergonomics.
The Nexstand laptop stand holds your laptop in a position that supports your health and comfort and fits almost all laptop models of different sizes and manufacturers.
I’ve been a heavy user of this laptop stand for years. The best thing about Nexstand is the superior folding design and durability: when folded up, you can carry it in a small sleeve, which comes with the model.
With 8 height adjustment options, you can rest assured that any type of boss will find the one comfortable with them.
For the boss who’s commuting by bike: Bike balls
If you’re looking for the best gift ideas for a boss, don’t look any further. According to The Telegraph, Bike balls are among the 10 best innovative bike lights. With these ultra-bright and soft LED lights, you can rest assured that your boss will be instantly visible.
All they need is to attach their balls to the back of their bike seat and enjoy the ride. These bike balls are water-repellent and super easy to use. Plus, they look cool when you ride. 🙂
For the boss with a MacBook: MacBook USB adapter
Plugging sucks. You know it. Your boss knows it.
This 7-in-2 USB hub will make your boss’s life a lot easier. They can connect any type of USB device, hard disks, and TV screens to their MacBook Air or MacBook Pro. Plus, they can charge their gadgets, Kindle devices, or wireless headphones via the USB hub.
This MacBook dongle is compatible with smartphones, keyboards, laptops, and card readers.
For the avid reader: Kindle Paperwhite
Amazon’s legendary eBook reader is back. I’ve been using my Kindle Paperwhite for 6+ years with sheer joy, and it changed who am I today. The battery life is freakin’ amazing—it lasts for many weeks or even for months.
This device is lightweight and waterproof. With its 300ppi display and adjustable screen, your boss will enjoy reading it under any light conditions, even in complete darkness or on the train.
The best thing about Kindle is the highlighting function, which lets your boss save their favorite quotes and takeaways for later and then export them.
For the boss who is always running the treadmill (not the hamster wheel): Audible subscription
Working out can be a lonely challenge, especially when you do it in the gym. Listening to one of the world’s largest collections of audiobooks will make your boss an exercise addict.
With an Audible Premium Plus subscription, they’ll receive credits that can be redeemed for new content every month. Plus, they’ll gain access to thousands of audiobooks from the Audible catalog.
For the Star Wars fan: Baby Yoda LEGO keychain minifigure
Show me someone who doesn’t like Grogu the Child. This Baby Yoda minifigure may not be the most luxurious gift for a boss, but the cutest one!
It comes with a LED source to ensure that your boss will always find what they’re looking for. It’s 1.5 times more in size than a standard LEGO minifigure and fits well in your palm.
For any type of boss, it’s a must-read: Surrounded by Idiots
Whew! This book will show your boss how to handle conflict and communicate better by understanding human behavior. It identifies four types of personalities and shows them how to approach those people.
The author is a behavioral expert who has been educating leaders and executives in top companies across the globe. In this book, he shares hints on body language, speaking up, written communication, and so much more.
For the boss who makes noise: Logitech MX Master 3 Wireless Mouse
What’s the constant noise always coming from your boss’s office? I bet that’s click noise.
Once your boss will get their hands on Logitech’s iconic mouse, they’ll never want to go back. The ergonomically designed Logitech MX Master series offers a comfortable design with an ultra-fast, electromagnetic scrolling experience. This mouse comes with a 4000 DPI sensor for precise tracking and with flow cross-computer control across multiple screens.
Plus, your boss will make 90% less click noise thanks to the Quiet Click technology. With fully customizable buttons, they’ll easily upgrade their workflows.
For the boss who enjoys creativity: Skillshare membership
Who said that your boss shouldn’t learn new skills? Skillshare is one of the leaders in the online course industry.
With thousands of online classes, this gift idea will quickly find its way to your boss’s heart. Membership comes with unlimited access to Skillshare classes, peer support, offline access, hands-on learning, and individual learning paths.
For the boss with plugged ears: Genuine Leather Airpods Case
This case is made from genuine leather and perfectly fits your boss’s Airpods. It’s compatible with the first and second generations of Airpods.
This product perfectly protects their Airpods from scratching and damage and nicely completes a leather backpack, wallet, or other types of accessories. Charging takes place in the case, so your boss doesn’t need to take their Airpods out while charging.
For the boss who needs a hug: World’s best boss coffee mug
If you’re looking for creative gift ideas for your boss, choose this coffee mug. This high-quality ceramic mug comes in a decorative gift box. Plus, your boss can safely put it into the dishwasher or microwave.
For the traveler: Star Wars Luggage Tag from American Tourister
Show me a boss who doesn’t like traveling. Or even if they hate it, they travel a lot for business.
This rubber-molded ID tag comes with the iconic Star Wars character. It’s a must-have gift for any Star Wars fan and a perfect fit for any American Tourister suitcase.
For the boss who lacks vision: The Vision Driven Leader
Leadership expert and bestselling author Michael Hyatt returns with another banger, the Vision Driven Leader. This book will propel your boss to craft a vision for the team or the company, motivate the team to internalize this vision, and then make it a reality.
Hyatt leaves nothing to chance. With his 40+ years of experience as an executive and entrepreneur, he makes everything super-actionable for your boss.
For the boss with rattling keys: Bellroy Key Cover Plus
With Bellroy’s key organizer, your boss can keep up to 8 keys in an esthetic and practical setting. No more nasty scratches on their phone and other valuables. Plus, they can hang on their car key for extra organization.
Bellroy’s Key Cover Plus is made from genuine leather and comes with a magnetic closure for easy access.
For the boss who loves writing things down on paper: Moleskine Weekly Planner
Your boss will love this weekly planner, which comes with calendar grids, to-do lists, and a lot of space for bullet journaling. Moleskine planners are durable and offer a wide range of colors and sizes.
The durable cover and advanced functionality make Moleskin planners ideal for project planning, note-taking, journaling, and keeping a simple to-do list.
For any type of boss who wants focus: Pomodoro timer
A Pomodoro timer can help your boss work in focused blocks of time and increase their productivity. This multi-hexagon timer with 6-time configurations will nicely complement your boss’s desk and ensure they do their deep work. They can use it as a clock, alarm, or Pomodoro timer.
What is the best gift idea for your boss, anyway?
Well, it depends on age, sex, personality, interest, and even your relationship with them. Look at my list and find one gift idea that hopefully resonates with them.
If you don’t know much about your boss, choose a desk accessory. (Make sure that you look at their desk to get an impression.)
Editors pick: the best gift idea for a boss (even if you don’t know much about them)
Show me a boss who doesn’t have a laptop. And show me one who’s using a laptop stand.
My favorite gift idea for a boss is the Nexstand Laptop Stand. I’ve been a heavy user of this laptop stand for years, and still enjoy using it every time I work on my laptop computer for longer periods.
It’s so simple yet revolutionary. Nexstand keeps my computer at eye level and helps keep a healthy posture (which, hopefully, will pay off in the coming years). Its superior folding mechanism and portability make this product a nice gift idea for any type of boss.
Cover photo by Volodymyr Hryshchenko on Unsplash
