White elephant gift exchanges are staples at the average office party or school gathering. These games often mean finding fun gifts for someone you may not know very well — or in some cases at all. Unlike shopping for a close friend or loved one, buying a white elephant gift calls for a little bit more thought and creativity, and usually comes with a tighter budget.
To help you shop and take some of the stress out of your holiday season, we gathered some of our favorite affordable gift ideas, all of which make the perfect white elephant gifts. All of our recommendations below are from NBC Selected staffers and/or based on our previous reporting and product testing.
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The best White Elephant gifts of 2026
I rounded up gift ideas based on our previous coverage and NBC Selected recommendations to help you find the right gift for your white elephant gift exchanges.
This JBL travel Bluetooth speaker previously won an NBC Giftable Tech Award and would make a great present for those who like to travel or who can’t live without music everywhere they go. It has a built-in carabiner that lets you clip the speaker onto anything, plus it is small and lightweight (about half a pound). It also has IP67 dust and water resistance, perfect for the beach, golf course or listening to tunes when you’re in the shower.
This viral puzzle book is a hit with true crime fans and mystery lovers alike. It has 100 original murder mystery puzzles that include clues, witness interviews, codes and maps. The puzzles start easy and gradually increase in difficulty, so they’re a great brain-teasing challenge or travel time-passer for your giftee. The book also comes in eight other volumes, all filled with new mysteries for your giftee to solve.
You can stick the Apple AirTag inside of anything you need to keep track of — like a wallet, passport, bag or more. Once placed, you can use the Apple FindMy app to pinpoint the exact location of your AirTag if it’s within 30 feet, and you can temporarily share its location with trusted contacts and more than 50 airline partners, according to the brand. The app will point to the location via maps if it’s outside that range.
“I love having an AirTag on all of my personal items when I’m traveling,” says NBC Selected commerce editor Cory Fernandez. “It gives me peace of mind and allows me to be in the moment and not worry about my belongings while I’m on vacation.
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Experts told us that candle warmers are safe alternatives to lit candles, and this warmer lamp melts candles from the top down without any flame. The light heats the candle and releases the scent, and includes a 12-hour timer that your giftee can adjust for their preferences. The lamp’s design is also good-looking enough to work on a desk, a table, in a living room and more.
Biodance makes some of our favorite sheet masks, and this set is the ideal gift for anyone that’s looking to dip their toe into K-beauty. It includes four Biodance masks: the Bio Collagen Mask, the Rejuvenating Caviar PDRN Mask, the Hydro Cera-nol Mask and the Sea Kelp Mask. Each mask addresses different skin concerns but are still safe for all skin types, making it a great choice for when you’re not sure exactly who you’ll be gifting it to.
We love Legos on the NBC Selected staff — not only are they great for kids, but they’re a fun, calming hobby for adults (plus the builds can double as home decor). This set includes 259 pieces that make up two water lilies, including the “water-filled” vases. The petal pieces also have a shimmery effect to resemble dewy leaves, and are adjustable so your giftee can pose them in different stages of bloom.
Disposable cameras are a fun and easy way to capture memories in a physical form, and this camera pack includes not one, but two Fujifilm Quicksnap disposables for your giftee to use on their next special occasion. Each camera gets 27 exposures, and includes a built-in flash for better light in darker settings, according to the brand.
This device made our list of best streaming devices. It can be used to watch your favorite TV shows on apps like Netflix, Hulu, Peacock, HBO Max, Apple TV+ and more. It is small and portable, making it easy to plug it into a different TV if needed. The remote has buttons that can take you directly to certain streaming platforms, as well as voice controls if you’d rather direct what you are watching that way.
An NBC Selected Travel Award winner, this little dongle is an essential travel gadget for anyone with Bluetooth earbuds or headphones — it lets you connect to a plane’s seatback TV wirelessly. Although I love my wired Apple EarPods, I regularly travel with Bluetooth headphones and this device is a game-changer. I also love that it’s so easy to use — once you pair your headphones once, it’ll recognize your device whenever it’s near.
Compatible with iPhones 12 through 16, this phone tripod stand can be used as a selfie stick or to prop your phone up to watch things easily. When not in use, this Mag-Safe-compatible stand folds into roughly the size of a credit card. The stand is available in 10 colors — making it easy to find a shade almost anyone will like.
Hydro Flask makes some of our favorite reusable water bottles and mugs. This one features the brand’s signature TempShield insulation to keep beverages hot for up to six hours and cold for up to 24, according to the brand. It’s insulated for optimal temperature control and has a splash-resistant, press-in lid. Want to add an extra-nice touch to this gift? Pair it with a bag of coffee beans or a box of tea.
Help someone keep their tech organized on the go with this pouch from Calpak. The zipper bag has multiple mesh pockets specifically designed for cords, chargers and other accessories, as well as elastic bands that can hold things like a smartwatch, earbuds or other items. The bag is also slightly padded to provide protection.
Sometimes the best white elephant gifts are the things you may not buy for yourself, but that are super fun to own — this floor lamp is the perfect example. It has a range of color bases and combinations that can be controlled via the accompanying app, and is compatible with voice assistants like Alexa and Google Assistant. It can also be synced to change with your music, making it great for anyone who loves to entertain.
A game where the goal is to make other players laugh the hardest? Yes, please. Cards Against Humanity comes with black and white cards. The dealer gives each player 10 white answer cards, then deals a black card with either a fill-in-the-blank statement or question. Each player has to pass a white card to the dealer — whoever’s funny answer makes the dealer laugh the most wins the round.
This karaoke microphone, which comes in more than a dozen colors, connects to your phone via Bluetooth and allows you to play songs (and sing along) from any app. You can adjust the music and microphone volume and skip to the next tune right from the microphone.
One of the most gifted items on Amazon, think of Bananagrams as a cross between a classic crossword puzzle and Scrabble. Each player gets the same number of tiles and places them facedown. To start, someone yells “split” and everyone turns their tiles face up and tries to arrange them in their intersecting word grid. When someone uses up all their tiles, they yell “peel,” and every player has to take another tile from the bunch. The first person to use all their tiles in a grid wins.
A laptop bed tray table made our list of dorm room essentials, but it’s also useful for people out of college. This lap desk can work on your computer while in bed or on the couch or as a dining tray, and is highly-rated. It has a soft wrist pad and retractable blockers to protect your laptop from falling if you want to use the desk at an angle. It also folds flat, making it easy to transport and store.
This reading journal from Papier is perfect for a book lover; it allows you to jot down novels you want to read, take notes and write down favorite quotes from anything you’re in the middle of and has journal prompts that will help you think even more deeply about whatever you’re currently skimming. There is even a curated list of books Papier recommends at the back for those what-should-I-read-next moments.
Speaking of book lovers, nighttime readers will appreciate this compact light. The rechargeable LED-powered light can be clipped onto a book to provide enough light to read. According to the brand, it has three color temperatures to choose from, and one full charge gives up to 80 hours of runtime.
Gift an at-home spa experience for the back and neck with a Necktek massager. This one comes with hand straps to easily adjust the massager, a head pillow and the option to deploy heat to soothe tired muscles. It has eight deep-kneading nodes that provide bidirectional massage to really get into tight muscles.
Stick this tool in the freezer and then roll it over your face gently to de-puff and soothe. The stainless steel barrel stays cool for an extended amount of time and the ergonomic grip makes it easy to hold, according to the brand. You can also use it with your favorite serum to help it glide more easily over skin.
Few people wouldn’t appreciate getting this caffeinated gift in a White Elephant exchange. The set comes with three 12-ounce bags of Free Rein’s best-selling coffee — a light, medium and dark roast. You can purchase the set with either ground or whole beans. The coffee is made in Texas and was founded by a working cowboy.
College students, busy moms and breakfast lovers — this breakfast sandwich maker will delight a wide variety of people. Using this appliance, it takes just five minutes to toast an English muffin or bagel, cook an egg and warm up some meat (think Canadian bacon or a pre-cooked sausage patty). Also helpful: The cooking plates can all be removed and are dishwasher-friendly, making cleanup a breeze.
Why trust NBC Selected?
Bethany Heitman is a commerce editor at NBC Selected., who writes about beauty, wellness and lifestyle. Ashley Morris is an associate SEO reporter at NBC Selected who covers skin care, wellness, lifestyle and more, including stories on the best Korean skin care and reviewing the Lola CD Player. To find the best white elephant gifts, we scoured the web for universally-loved present picks, including some NBC Selected staff favorites.
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