It is that time of year again! The holiday lights are starting to come out of the boxes and up around the neighborhoods, carolers are singing in the city centers, and Christmas cookies are baking in the oven. But you know what this also means? We have to start racking our brains for gift ideas for our favorite people. Ugh, I know it can be a bit stressful… However, I have great news for you! Because you’re reading this, you MUST be looking for gift ideas for college students… right? Well, guess what?! You’re in the right place! Whether you’re a college student parent or a college student yourself, you will find gift ideas from all prices in this perfect student holiday gift guide!

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Top Gift Ideas for Your Favorite College Student:

Let’s start out with the best of the best, shall we? This list of gift ideas will make your favorite college students life so much easier in the upcoming new year. Most are practical, while others are just plain fun! Let’s get into it…

• Instant Pot
  • The Instant Pot truly changed the way I cook in college. It saves me countless hours in the kitchen and so much money! I can now buy all my ingredients in bulk and toss them in the Instant Pot later on! HERE is a great post about how I specifically use my Instant Pot to make my life so much easier and how any other college student can easily do the same.
• Keurig
  • It is no secret that coffee is really what keeps most college students going, but coffee pots can be difficult to use and clean when living in tight quarters. That is why the Keurig (or a similar coffee making machine) is so perfect for college students! PS: Don’t forget to include K-Cups with their gift!
• New Printer
  • College printers don’t need to be fancy, but having something that can print and scan in your dorm or apartment can be so incredibly useful!
• Graphing Calculator
  • If your favorite college student doesn’t have a graphing calculator yet, this should probably be on the top of your list. Especially if they are in any math or science related field!
• IPad
  • IPads are so incredibly convenient to have. Personally, instead of using a laptop on campus, I bring my Ipad. It has the exact same capabilities but is SO much lighter and easy to quickly bring out to type something out or look up a homework assignment. Don’t forget to get an attachable keyboard too!
• Apple AirPods
  • Apple’s new wireless AirPods are the new greatest invention! They make it so simple to listen to music between classes or in the gym without having to worry about and wires.
• Apple Watch
  • I know, I know… another Apple product. But what can I say? They make some great stuff. The Apple Watch is one of the most convenient devices and is perfect for college students. They allow you to easily get alerts when you’re on the go without having to check your phone!
• A New TV
  • TV’s, unfortunately, don’t come with a dorm room, nor an apartment rental. They are a splurge that students usually cannot afford but are cheap enough to make a great holiday gift!
• Freezer
  • Separate freezers are one great way to help your student save money. This will allow them to buy their groceries in bulk and freeze them for later. If you want more ideas about bulk meals, check out THIS POST!
• Mini-Fridge
  • Speaking of freezers, a mini-fridge can be equally as useful! Especially for those who are living in a small apartment or in the dorms.
• Snow Chains or Tires
  • The holiday season is the perfect time to ensure your favorite college student is ready for the wintery weather ahead. Grab them a set of snow chains, or better yet a full set of snow tires! Especially if they live in an area where it snows.
• Essential Oils Gift Set
  • Essential oils are a great way to make a college apartment or dorm smell amazing! They also have countless other uses and benefits too.
• Blender
  • I don’t think I need to explain just how useful blenders are. They are perfect because you don’t need a kitchen to use a blender, like most kitchen appliances. Plus, smoothies are the perfect study snack!
• Polaroid Camera
  • Polaroid cameras make the cutest gifts! They are so much fun to use and a great way to share memories with friends and family throughout the year.
• Tile: Key/Phone/Anything Finder
  • Tile is a brilliant company that has created a series of keychains and other small devices you can attach to your phone, keys, and anything else you constantly find yourself loosing. You can just log into Tile to track it down! EVERYONE NEEDS THIS!
• Snackbox Subscription
  • There are plenty of different types of snack box subscriptions you can find on the internet (here is a great one from Amazon). They are perfect gifts for students!

Related: 99 Incredible Gift Ideas Under $25!

Budget-Friendly Gift Ideas:

Alright, we covered the extravagant gifts, are you ready to tackle some more budget-friendly ideas? I have compiled a list of items that are easy on the wallet but make perfect gifts for hard-working college students!

These budget-friendly gift ideas make great stocking stuffers!

Great Gifts Under $40

• K-Cup Sampler
  • Keurig users know that you’re always running out of K-Cups. It is a constant battle! Especially if you purchase the smaller boxes. Lucky for you, this ensures that K-Cups are the perfect gift!
• Candle Warmer
  • Most dorms and apartment don’t allow lit candles. A great alternative to this is wax or candle warmers.
• Flameless Candles
  • Another great candle alternative is a set of flameless candles. This set has a timer in each candle so they don’t even need to be turned on!
• Hammock 
  • Hammocks are becoming more and more popular on college campuses. Most students will toss them up in between classes to take a cat nap or a quick and comfy study session in. Others will hang them near their dorms or apartments for a nice relaxing break. Colleges are even installing hammock posts around! It’s totally a thing!
• Hiking Gear
  • All hiking gear ranges in price, but most you can find under $40. Check out THIS POST on everything you need to bring with you on your next hike, and you might find the perfect gift idea for your favorite college student! Below I’ve listed some great hiking related ideas, but make sure to check out the post for more details about each item (and a ton of other ideas!):
    • Swiss Army Knife
    • Water Bottle
    • Flashlight
    • Waterproof Fire Kit
    • Trekking Poles
    • Gaitors
• Yeti Travel Mug
  • Yeti is notorious for keeping hot things hot and cold thing cold. And it truly works! Sometimes too well…
• Cozy Throw Blanket
  • There is no such thing as too many blankets. And DEFINITELY no such thing as too many cozy throw blankets.
• Cards Against Humanity
  • This game is, hands down, a college student favorite when it comes to games. Plus, if your favorite college student has their own game, you can always get them an expansion pack! There is no such thing as too many cards.
• Waffle Maker
  • A waffle maker makes the perfect addition to any college student’s apartment.
• Lap Desk
  • Because we college students are constantly studying, our study locations vary. At our desk, on the floor, on the couch, in bed… however, it is often a bit difficult to study without a desk, but this lap desk fixes that!

Great Gifts Under $15

• Student Printable Planner
  • This is planner includes over 50 incredibly useful planning pages, including monthly and weekly calendars, study plans, budget sheets, assignment tracker
• Car Ice Scraper
  • This may not be the most glamorous gift, but it certainly may be the most useful! Waking up to an ice-covered car is no fun( I would know! Denver’s winters are absolutely no joke). Ice scrapers make a great (and useful) gift for your favorite students living in colder areas!
• Portable Charger
  • Portable chargers are hands down the most convenient gift you can give a college student. They are perfect for those long days on campus when finding a power outlet is difficult and you desperately need your phone or other devices.
• College Cookbook
  • I do have to say, even with the internet, college-specific cookbooks are lifesavers! They make quick meals even easier and always include the best tips!
• Pen Pouch
  • Well, you can never have too many pen pouches) or enough pens, for that matter). But this pen pouch is so cute and functional, it makes the perfect gift!
• Colorful Pen Set
  • Like I said, one can never have too many pens! This makes the perfect, budget-friendly pen set option and is great for any student.
• Infusion Water Bottle
  • Adding fruit to your water can make is so much more fun and interesting!
    

    Related: 99 Incredible Gift Ideas Under $25!

Books make great gifts! The top books every college student should read:

My last list in this student holiday gift guide is… books! Every student needs a good book collection and these books have proven time-and-time-again to be ever so valuable! They cover topics including productivity, career development, time management, and so much more.

• Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity by David Allen: If you buy any book, get this one. Allen packs this best seller with countless productivity tips as well as an entire productivity system you can implement today. It truly is a must-read for everyone!
• The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen R. Covey: This is another amazing and must-read book. In fact, this book paired with Allen’s Getting Things Done is often seen on popular career book lists, and for good reason! Covey covers the life-changing habits that you can incorporate into your everyday life that has been proven time and time again to increase productivity and better your overall wellbeing.
• The Miracle Morning by Hal Elrod: This book has been growing in popularity over the last year or so. It is a detailed account of how your morning routine can truly change the way you live your life, and what exact things you can do to start your day strong.
• The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do In Life and Business by Charles Duhigg: This bestseller is another great read! It covers the science of habit formation, how to create new habits, how to cut out unhealthy ones, and what habits you should consider adding. He argues that the true key to productivity and living a healthy lifestyle is understanding how habits work.
• Smarter, Faster, Better: The Transformative Power of Real Productivity by Charles Duhigg: Another bestseller and great book by Duhigg. It covers eight key productivity concepts including goal setting and decision making, that set productive individuals and companies apart from the pack. All of his arguments, like The Power of Habit, are backed by science-based evidence. Incredibly enlightening!
• Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman: This book, written by a world-renowned psychologist, goes over the two main ways in which humans think: quickly and slowly. Our quicker instincts are more emotional and intuitive while our slower thoughts are more logical. Having a better understanding of the way we think makes it easier to understand processes, such as decision making, that are vital to productivity.
• Eat That Frog!: 21 Great Ways to Stop Procrastinating and Get More Done in Less Time by Brian Tracy: Eating the frog is a metaphor for taking care of your most challenging tasks first. This principle is the basis of this great book, exploring many ways in which you can learn how to not get everything done all at once, but instead getting the most important things done first. Learning how to prioritize is one of the best ways to master productivity and this book is a great way to explore this concept.
• Official GRE Super Power Pack by ETS: Most students have graduate school on their mind. This is the perfect study manual to use when studying for the Graduate Record Examinations (you know, those awful exams most of us have to take to get into grad school…). This book includes practice exams, tips, individual practice questions, and so much more!
• Now What? by Nicholas Lore: In my Ultimate Guide to Choosing a Career, I talk about how this book completely changed my life. It helped me in a time I desperately needed guidance in choosing a career and took me on an incredibly long, challenging, but an amazingly rewarding journey that landed me in the life I live today (yeah, back in college again but I still love it 😉 ). Anyways… this is an incredible book that walks you through every step you truly need to take in order to find and work towards your dream career!
• Do What You Are by Paul D. Tieger, Barbara Barron, and Kelly Tieger: Do What You Are is another fabulous career exploration book that focuses on personality types and what specific careers might work best for each individual. This pairs perfectly with Now What? and is a great resource to use over and over again.
• What Color is Your Parachute? by Richard N. Bolles: This book is perhaps the most famous career exploration book. Although it was written in 1970, it has been revised every year since and continues to be a best seller for career explorers! It covers topics of how to choose your dream career and how you might fit in our ever-changing economy.
• The Pathfinder by Nicholas Lore: The Pathfinder is another great career book by Nicholas Lore. It covers topics including how to design your future dream career, how to reach your goals, career questions to ask yourself, and so much more.

Related: 21 Life-Changing Books for 20-Something’s (that will teach you everything school didn’t!)

Further Reading:

Looking for some more great gift ideas? Check out my other gift guides to help you out!

• 99 Gift Unforgettable Ideas Under $25 
• The Ultimate Valentines Day Gift Guide
• 62 Meaningful Graduation Gift Ideas

Well, that is it! That is all I’ve got! I sure hope this student holiday gift guide gave you some fabulous ideas for this year’s holiday season. If you have any other great ideas, comment them below!

Looking for more college essentials? Check out my top College Backpack Necessities!