10 Ideas for Secret Santa Gift Exchanges under $20

I tend to participate in a LOT of Secret Santa gift exchanges every year, with them being popular at work and among friends. So I’ve stocked up on a bunch of gift ideas that all ring in for under $20, and I want to share with you because…’tis the season! So while this post isn’t entirely food related, you can consider all of these goodies DCC-approved.

• Magazine subscriptions - these ring in at under $20 on Amazon and people are always SO thrilled with this one. All you need is your Secret Santa’s home address, and here’s a gift that keeps giving all year! I once was in an exchange where my Secret Santa pick was a total sports fanatic, so I got him an ESPN magazine subscription. I’ve also done this for ladies and chosen Women’s Health or Cooking Light.

• Workout classes - you can often find good deals around the holidays for workout studios offering a 2 for $20 deal, or at Gilt City or Groupon. My friends that are students LOVE this gift since they often don’t want to pay for the boutique studios on their own

• Gifts from your hometown - does your hometown have a special traditional sweet treat or mascot or alcoholic beverage? For example, in Spokane where I travel to for work, everyone is crazy about huckleberries up here so I’ll grab a bag of huckleberry salt water taffy and there’s a good story behind the gift, even if it isn’t super tailored to your giftee’s personality.

• Specialty coffee beans - you can find these from a local roaster and they often have fun holiday blends, and you can get them a nice coffee mug to go with it

• Non-traditional gift cards - gift cards are not a cop out and they are always appreciated. Here are some more non-traditional (i.e. not Starbucks) ideas:
  • If they eat out a lot, money lunch spot near their office
  • If they are a gel manicure maniac like me, money towards a salon in their neighborhood
  • If they are always taking photos, money for Shutterfly to get some printed
  • If they are a cook, money to Sur La Table <- I got this last year and LOVED it. Sur la Table always has great sales
  • If they are excited about the upcoming Academy Awards season, money towards an AMC or Fandango

• Nice bottle of wine in a wine sweater - you can never go wrong with a bottle of wine, and these wine sweaters make them SO festive. You can often find the wine sweaters at Party City or TJMaxx and I’m sure they sell them in the alcohol stores themselves

• Snuggies - I adored mine for many years until it turned into something that was half napkin/half apron (gross, I know). This can be partially a gag gift, but you’d be very surprised with how useful these are and how people grow to appreciate them!

• Games - Cards Against Humanity, Bananagrams, you name it. This is especially appreciated by folks who like to entertain

• SOS travel packs - holidays are often the time for travel and vacations! If your Secret Santa has been talking non-stop about her upcoming vacation to Hawaii or ski trip, buy them a toiletry bag and fill it with stuff for their trip that they may have forgotten to purchase - eye masks, Emergen-C, snacks, hand/feet warmers for the skiiers, aloe gel for the beach go-ers

• Planners for the upcoming year - some people are old fashioned and don’t use Outlook our iCal, or they just like to write everything down! I like Moleskine since they are such a classic brand, but PaperSource and Papyrus have really nice options too

There you have it - happy gift giving! Any that I missed that should be added to the list?

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