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No one ever said being a teen was easy. The often overstimulated world of teens involves a trendy song-and-dance balance of school, part-time jobs, sports, social media, and a healthy social life. When shopping for cool gifts for teens, anything you give should reflect their playful-youthful side while serving the opportunity to destress.
We like to find what’s currently trendy ahead of the game — so you can get them the thing they actually want before it sells out. Bonus points if these popular teen gifts spark their budding creativity or future career aspirations.
The Best Cool Gifts for Teens
1. For the One Who Loves to Play Basketball QUIETLY: Silent Basketball
We asked our Grown and Flown parents and they told us that this was one of their kids’ favorites-a basketball that is exactly what it says: silent. It’s the same size as a professional basketball and you can practice dribbling and lay ups without driving everyone else in the house crazy.
2. For the One Who Loves Comfort: Rosyclo Cloud Slippers
Comfort is king when it comes to what all the cool teens wear on their feet these days. The Rosscylo Cloud Slippers make one of the best teen holiday gifts. These slippers feel like pillows under your toes and come in over 20 colors to please even the most discriminating teen.
3. For the One Who is a Homebody: Ugg Tasman Slipper
Last year’s sold-out Ugg was the Ultra Mini, but if you have recently been in a Starbucks line, chances are you’ve spotted a teen wearing the uber-trendy Ugg Tasman Slipper, most likely in the Chestnut color. Naturally, these hip Ugg slipper-clogs make for a cool gift for a teen girl.
Aside from the slipper’s popularity, the versatility of the shoe being an indoor/outdoor shoe and the fact that it comes in an array of colors (classic black to neon green) earn extra gifting points. These are sure to be the coziest gift under this year’s tree.
4. For the One Who Needs More Space: Bedshelfie Bedside Shelf
The Bedshelfie is a practical (but cool) Christmas gift for any teen on your shopping list. Whether your teen lives in a dorm, shares a bedroom at home, or has too much stuff, this shelf that attaches to the bedside allows them to have all their must-have essentials at their fingertips. It’s a win for any college student.
5. For the One Who is a Trendsetter: Everywhere Belt Bag
Chances are you’ve seen teens rocking the luluLemon belt bags. These popular belt bags are convenient and make for one cool gift for teens. This bag is a longstanding bestselling belt bag for lulu and still mighty popular-in 6 fantastic colors-navy and white are trending.
6. For the One Who is an Old Soul: Crosley Voyager Vintage Portable Record Turntable
If it was cool 30 years ago, it is still cool today. Scrolling through social media, it is no secret that today’s teens have obsessions with vintage goods like records and record players. Today’s record players are Bluetooth-compatible, streaming music from their smartphones.
7. For the One Who Loves a Music Festival: Beats Solo Bluetooth Wireless On-Ear Headphones
Every teen has their musical taste. Some teens are obsessed with the coolest Indie bands, chart-topping pop stars, and old-school rockers. That means you can’t go wrong with on-ear Beats Solo headphones that will bring music to their ears (and peace to your own).
These on-ear headphones look sleek and sound great, and there is no cord or tiny secondary ear pod to worry about misplacing. They’re great for tuning in for studying or listening to a podcast during a “hot girl walk.”
8. For the One Who is a Budding Photographer: Minolta Megapixel Digital Camera
These days, teens are reverting to the 90s and taking photos on digital cameras rather than their smartphones to memorialize good times from sleepovers and parties. Earlier this year, cheap digital cameras sold out online, but you can still snag this one from Ninolta for under $100. The camera has 44.0 megapixel, and they can still upload it to their phones so they can post to social media.
9. For the One Who is a Social Butterfly: Fujifilm Mini 12 Instant Film Camera
Stop your social scroll: the Fujifilm Mini 12 Instant Film Camera is a cool gift for teens who love documenting daily life with friends and family. Why? They’ll instantly get cute mini photos that they can use to decorate their rooms or share with loved ones. Aside from the instant gratification that the Fujifilm offers, it comes in many fun pastel colors, which may be the hardest decision you’ll make.
10. For the Beauty Queen: Shark FlexStyle Air Styling & Drying System
Teenage girls care about their hair; it’s an everyday obsession. While many of them might ask for the pricey Dyson Airwrap, the Shark Hair Blow Dryer gets the job done at a fraction of the price. Seen all over their TikTok pages, these hair dryer brushes will dry their hair quickly (so they won’t be late for school) and come with different attachments to style their hair.
11. For the One Who is a Wellness Guru: Ninja Blast Portable Blender
Colorful smoothies, creamy coffee drinks, and quick protein blended drinks are popular with everyone these days. A powerful portable blender that can fit inside any teen’s backpack for a protein boost anywhere anytime will guarantee they are living in their wellness era. The Ninja is powerful, durable, and compact so that it can stand up to hard use from busy teens.
12. For the One Who is a Kitschy Collector: QANYL Toaster Lamp
If the teen on your list is into the #cluttercore trend or loves cute kitschy trinkets, this anime-ish toaster light is just the gift. Available in three colors—green, pink, and yellow—the light will be an unexpected (but welcomed) gift this season. And we think it’s super cute too!
13. For the One Who is Always Thirsty: Stanley Quencher H2.0 FlowState Tumbler
The tumbler that broke the internet, the Stanley Quencher is still a popular option for any teen who needs an “emotional support water bottle”. Even if they already have one, there are so many colors to choose from that they’d likely appreciate a new pastel or bright-colored option to sip from.
The tumbler’s double-sealed vacuumed walls mean your beverage will stay cold (or hot) for hours, and the dishwasher-safe construction means it’s easy to keep clean.
14. For the One Who Dreams of Being a Builder: Lego Botanicals
The world of Lego makes for endless opportunities for the creative, curious, and design-obsessed teen on your list. If they loved building with these blocks as kids, this more mature Lego kit will give your teen a few hours of fun (and frustration).
15. For the One Who is Crafty: Acrylic Painting Set
What to get the teen on your list who is always dreaming, doodling, painting, and sketching? Their acrylic painting set! This painting set includes a wooden easel, three canvases, brushes, and paints. It’s a one-stop-creative gift that any budding artist will appreciate as they try to become the next Bob Ross.
16. For the One Who is a Swiftie: Redtwo Clay Beads Bracelet Making Kits
Thanks to Taylor Swift’, we are in the era of friendship bracelets. So what if the teen on your list already has beaded bracelets up to her elbows from the Eras concert they attended this year? This bead kit has everything she needs to make (many) friendship bracelets for themed parties. It’d be a perfect gift if they could get tickets for her second leg of the Eras tour.
17. For the Gamer: Gaming Chair
This is the #1 bestseller in video game chairs on Amazon.
18. For the One Who Needs Calm: CUTEKING Weighted Blanket for Adults
Between school, after-school activities, and daily life, teens are stressed. Gift them zen and relaxation at day’s end with a weighted blanket, which feels like a little hug when they’re lounging on the couch. It only weighs 15 pounds so that it won’t feel too heavy on their body, comes in various colors and prints, and is machine washable.
19. For the One Who Likes to Cuddle: Warmies Junior Microwavable & Weighted Stuffed Animals
Microwave for weighted warmth or chill for a cool compress. So cute and so useful.
20. For the One Who is a Night Owl: Hatch Restore
Yes, teens need their sleep. However, getting them to wake up is a struggle. Give the gift that is also a gift to yourself, the Hatch Restore alarm. The aesthetic alarm clock doubles as a sound machine with a gradual sunrise wake-up system slightly less harsh than an alarm. Teens can customize their clock’s features to fit their sleep and wake-up routine for a good night’s rest throughout the school year.
21. For the One Who Loves Party Games: Klask
Half foosball, half air hockey, all fun for everyone.
22. For the One Who Loves to Read: Paperwhite Kindle
I got this for my son and he LOVES it!!! As an alternative, you can get the smaller version-also well-loved-just a bit easier to tote around-the Mini (We love the green at $109.99).
23. For the One Who Loves Listening to Anything: Apple AirPod Pro2
Of course-your teens will never be unhappy with these.
Why you should trust us
We are three moms who have raised 8 young adults and have been working on products lists for over 12 years now, making us experts. When selecting products we survey the Grown and Flown Parents Facebook group of nearly 300,000 parents of teens, tweens and young adults. We do opinion polls, surveys and ask open ended questions. We search for products that combine reasonable price with high quality and are recommended by our large following.
Prices accurate as of date of publication.
