How do I pick a friend gift that they'll be sure to love?

“Purchases with meaning are a great way to show a friend that they are special to you," says Marim Naficy, founder and co-CEO of Minted. "In particular, gifts that can be personalized are super unique—customization provides a special connection to the recipient.” She also advises that gift buyers “think about their recipient’s favorite memories—a vacation, pet, favorite place to travel” and adds that “places that have been especially meaningful to their friendship can also serve as useful gifting inspiration.” Think about what matters to your friend the most, what they enjoy, and what their favorite memories of your friendship might be as you select a gift.

What types of gifts are always crowd-pleasers?

Naficy says that Minted’s most popular gifts are those that are personalized with photos of you and your friend, with their name or nickname, with a quote or text that has special meaning for the two of you, or with images/coordinates from a place that has been significant to both of you. She also notes that limited-edition custom prints are popular gifts, as well as customizable bags and accessories. "Select a tote, clutch, or bag in a print or pattern that they’ll love and add a chic foil-pressed leather name tag, seamlessly customized with their name or initials for a truly personalized touch," says Naficy. "Or, for fun, customize the name tag with something fun and special like a nickname or memory.”

The 20 Best Friend Gifts in 2022

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Commerce Photo Composite — Brides / Amelia Manley

Through thick and thin, your best friends have always had your back. They make you laugh when you’re down, answer the phone no matter what time it is, and love you unconditionally. If you're engaged, they were the first to pop the champagne when you answered “yes!”, have calmed your wedding-planning nerves, and are traveling from near and far to help make your big day special.

These amazing humans deserve a huge “thank you” for their advice, time, and emotional support, don’t you think? Whether your BFFs like to enjoy good cocktails, indulge in self-care, or are extra-sentimental, you’ll want a gift that perfectly expresses what they mean to you.

Read on for our favorite best friend gifts.

Red Fern Studio Maid of Honor Sister Bracelet

On the outside, this beautiful bracelet is printed with a delicate fern pattern, sure to catch the eye of everyone around. On the inside, it holds a hand-stamped message just for your friend. Whether you order it in silver, gold, or rose, they are never going to want to take this bangle off. Luckily for them, it goes with literally everything. The bracelet also comes with a protective bag and a cleaning cloth so they can always keep it looking as good as new.

Gifts by Kelly H Personalized Heavy Glass Tumbler

Whether you’re having water or an old fashioned, every beverage tastes better when it’s served in a fancy glass. The glitzy, metallic script on these tumblers would make anyone feel like Jay Gatsby himself. These glasses come in their own gift box, and, if you’re buying them for someone in your wedding party, you can personalize them with your wedding date and the person’s name and position.

River Roots Collective Bridesmaid Frame

You know the camera loves you two, so you’re sure to take some fantastic pictures together on your wedding day. Pick your favorite and give it to your partner in crime in this lovely rustic frame. Choose the wood tone you like best and add a personalized message so they’ll never forget how much you love them.

Seline Lounge Bridesmaid Pajama Set

These luxurious satin pajama sets are so comfy and stylish—your squad will be thrilled to say “I woke up like this.” They come in a variety of different colors and sizes, so you’ll be sure to find something that looks fabulous on everyone. Have your friends’ initials or names embroidered on the front pocket for that extra special personal touch.

Mark & Graham Small Travel Jewelry Case

If you’ve ever watched your friend waste hours untangling necklaces and bracelets, you can be sure they’ll jump for joy when you give them this chic jewelry case. Crafted of vegan leather, it comes in 17 shades and has multiple compartments for rings, necklaces, bracelets, and earrings. If you want your darling to feel extra fancy you can even add a foil-debossed monogram.

Anthropologie Faux Fur Pommed Throw Blanket

It's cozy blanket season, and this one is the coziest of them all. Give your BFF the best with this cute and ultra-soft fleece throw. It’s trimmed with pom poms for a great, boho look. When they’re not walking around the house with it wrapped around their shoulders, it will look fantastic draped across the back of their couch or favorite chair.

The Qi Shangri-La Rose Tea

Help your favorite tea drinker restore their mind and body with a box of this Shangri-La Rose tea. Its soothing citrus, fruit, and honey flavors will calm the mind and contains a lot of beneficial ingredients—like iron, calcium, and Vitamins A, C, and E that have been said to help promote silkier hair and more radiant skin.

Cobble Hill Nevertheless She Persisted Puzzle

Does your favorite “nasty woman” love a good challenge? Then this 1,000-piece puzzle is just perfect for her. When completed, the “Nevertheless She Persisted” puzzle forms a collage of 24 incredibly influential women—bell hooks, Frida Kahlo, and Ruth Bader Ginsberg, to name a few. Their names and some of their most empowering quotes are included in this tribute to the kind of women who change history for the better.

Cooluli Mini Beauty Refrigerator

Are they serious about their skincare regimen? If so, this tiny refrigerator is exactly what they need. It’s small enough to fit on practically any surface, but it’s large enough to fit a quartz roller, serums, creams, and more. Get it in pink, blue, white, black, or red.

Minted Heart Snapshot Frame

Minted Heart Snapshot Mix Photo Art — Courtesy of Minted

If a picture is worth a thousand words, this heart-shaped collage is the perfect way to tell the story of your friendship. Choose 30 photos that capture the two of you at your finest, weirdest, or most adorable, and give your bestie a memento that they'll hold dear forever. The heart snapshot comes in a variety of sizes and can be ordered with or without a frame (sold separately) which makes it the perfect gift for any budget.

Parachute Cloud Cotton Robe

Parachute Home Cloud Cotton Robe — Courtesy of Parachute

This luxurious robe will make your special someone feel like royalty. Relaxed, pants-less royalty. As its name suggests, the cloud robe is unbelievably soft. It’s made of premium 100% long-staple Turkish cotton and features fluffy, 2-ply gauze. It comes in a variety of sizes (from small to extra-large) and soothing hues (like rose pink, surplus green, and gray), and it even has pockets!

Minted Dip-Dyed Canvas Tote

These dip-dyed canvas bags are made of made of natural cotton and are both adorable and functional. With ten gorgeous colors to choose from, you can coordinate them with your wedding palette or your friends’ favorite shades. Add custom, embossed tags; fill them with matching canvas clutches and draw-string pouches, glass deco bottles and candles, and favor boxes from Minted’s website; or give them by themselves. Either way, your best buds are gonna love carrying these around.

Metal Signs and More Personalized Sunglasses

Give your friends a confidence boost with these personalized sunglasses and prepare yourself for the fabulous photos to follow. The glasses are handmade from bamboo and PC, and you can select black, blue, or orange lenses. Engrave the left and/or right sides of the frame with your wedding date and their names or, if relevant, their role in the wedding party.

Butter by Keba Body Butter

Who doesn’t want the gift of soft, smooth skin, especially with fall and winter right around the corner? Made from shea butter, essential oils, and other natural ingredients, this moisturizing balm is just the thing to smooth dry or cracked hands. Even better, it comes in a variety of delightful fragrances—from mild basil, lemon, and rose blend to a bold combination of coconut, orange, and coriander.

Huda Beauty Nude Obsessions Eyeshadow Pallette

This eyeshadow palette may be tiny, but it packs a punch. From fun and sexy metallics to warm and cool mattes, this is the perfect grab-and-go eyeshadow kit. It even comes in three varieties (light, medium, and rich) to accommodate all skin tones. No matter what your friend’s skin tone or preferred look is, this palette will have them covered.

Book of Us Personalized Best Friend Book

Give your right-hand (wo)man a gift as unique as the bond you share. This custom book about your friendship is a gift that they will cherish forever. Not a writer or an artist? Don’t sweat it. With a few clicks, Book of Us helps you create personalized avatars for you and your best bud. Then you select and arrange your characters (and their antics and adventures) in whatever order you see fit.

Blu Anchor Creations Best Friend Wine Glass

Do you and your BFF moonlight as each other’s therapists? Do you hate all of the same things, especially the fact that you live way too far apart? Then these glasses will be the perfect reminder that you’re “never too far to wine together,” as the message painted on them reads. From now on, happy hour will be a time to remember that, though you may live in different states, your love for each other (and wine) is as strong as ever.

Aged and Infused Liquor Infuser

These infusion kits will make your bestie feel like a master mixologist. Featuring all-natural, dehydrated ingredients, there are six tempting flavors to choose from, including Rose Ceremony, Just Peachy, and the spicy-pineapple blend, Island Time. Just fill the glass container with a favorite spirit, wait a week, and get ready to serve up some delicious drinks.

Knack Build Your Own Spa Kit

Life may be keeping you from sending your dearest to the spa right now, but it can’t stop you from sending the spa to them. With Knack’s build your own spa kit, you get to choose items from four different categories. Scroll through products for gifts and spa accessories that set the mood. Your bestie will be saying “ahhhh” in no time.

Infmetry “Message in a Bottle” Glass Favor Bottle

Infmetry âMessage in a Bottleâ Glass Favor Bottle — Amazon

Give your bestie their daily dose of love by leaving them some messages in a bottle. This cute and quirky gift is filled with capsules containing blank scrolls of paper just waiting to be filled with your messages. Share a fond memory. Remind them that they are brilliant and beautiful and perfect. Draw the world’s tiniest, most ridiculous picture. However you choose to make this gift your own, It’s sure to be the cure for your friends’ blues or the pick-me-up they need.

What to look for when buying gift for your best friend

Personalized gifts

Good gifts are both personal and unique. Anyone can buy a Visa gift card or a nice piece of jewelry, but those items won’t necessarily make your friend feel special or appreciated. A meaningful gift shows them how much you value them and the time you’ve shared with them.

Something that celebrates a special memory the two of you share makes an excellent, one-of-a-kind present. Frame a picture of the two of you at a particularly memorable concert and include a short, sweet note about the experience on the back. Create a visual timeline of your friendship by arranging photos of the two of you in chronological order. Choose a text that means something to both of you and have it made into word art. Anything that shows that you remember and cherish the time you’ve spent together will make a touching and heartfelt gift.

Attention to detail

If your friend isn’t the sentimental type, there are other ways to tell them you care. Give them a gift that shows you listen to them and pay attention to the events in their life, likes and dislikes, what they already have and what they still need. If they’re about to go on a big trip and you know their suitcase is falling apart, get them a nice, high-quality bag. If they love to cook or bake, get them that kitchen gadget they want but haven’t purchased yet. If they’re a wine connoisseur, get them a bottle they wouldn’t usually buy for themselves. Anything that demonstrates that you see them and know what’s going on in their life will be deeply appreciated.

FAQ

How do I pick a friend gift that they'll be sure to love?

“Purchases with meaning are a great way to show a friend that they are special to you," says Marim Naficy, founder and co-CEO of Minted. "In particular, gifts that can be personalized are super unique—customization provides a special connection to the recipient.”

She also advises that gift buyers “think about their recipient’s favorite memories—a vacation, pet, favorite place to travel” and adds that “places that have been especially meaningful to their friendship can also serve as useful gifting inspiration.” Think about what matters to your friend the most, what they enjoy, and what their favorite memories of your friendship might be as you select a gift.
What types of gifts are always crowd-pleasers?

Naficy says that Minted’s most popular gifts are those that are personalized with photos of you and your friend, with their name or nickname, with a quote or text that has special meaning for the two of you, or with images/coordinates from a place that has been significant to both of you. She also notes that limited-edition custom prints are popular gifts, as well as customizable bags and accessories.

"Select a tote, clutch, or bag in a print or pattern that they’ll love and add a chic foil-pressed leather name tag, seamlessly customized with their name or initials for a truly personalized touch," says Naficy. "Or, for fun, customize the name tag with something fun and special like a nickname or memory.”

Meet the Expert

Marim Naficy is the founder and co-CEO of Minted, the one-stop-shop for invitations, custom artwork, personalized gifts and more.

Why Trust Brides

Mckenzie Eggers has several close friends she loves to spoil, so she knows a thing or two about shopping for your nearest and dearest. She recently bought a woven, hanging planter for a plant-loving friend’s new home and was told it was just what the back patio needed.

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