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Family gift exchanges are an inevitable part of the holidays. Whether you love or loathe family get togethers, you still need a gift to make everyone look bad show your family how much you care. These family gift exchange ideas will knock their socks off and keep them talking about your awesome gift all year long.
What Do You Buy for a Family Gift Exchange?
I’ve been to way too many family gift exchanges to know that the best gifts are the ones that can be enjoyed by a variety of people. These gifts are great for a family gift exchange where you don’t know the relatives you’re shopping for that well, are playing some gift exchange game like pass the parcel, or are looking for something to give to an entire family rather than individuals.
Push Pin World Map
If your family member loves to travel this push pin map is the perfect gift. They can mark off all the places they’ve been and hopefully one day get it all marked off. Now you’ll have to go visit to check their progress.
Family Card Game
Not Parent Approved is a family card game that plays like Cards Against Humanity but is appropriate for kids. The description says “even grandma can play” but my grandma plays CAH so…
Croquet Set
Who doesn’t love to play croquet? For some reason it’s one of those things that everyone wants but no one will go out and buy for themselves. Kids of any ages will have fun with this one so it’s perfect for young families.
Cookie or Cupcake Decorating Kit
I like the idea of giving food gifts at family gift exchanges but you should skip the grocery store holiday candy or nut assortments and opt for something more fun. These cupcake and cookie decorating kits are great because they come with everything you need to have a fun all ages activity and treat after.
Luggage Set
Travel is a part of life, especially around the holiday season. Get them something they actually will use for your family gift exchange present and they’ll thank you for it for years.
Matching Family Shirts
If you’re buying gifts for one of those families at the family gift exchange then this is the present for you. Matching t-shirts! In case there was confusion about which was which in the family. (Side note: I’m one of those families.)
Electric Smores Maker
Mmm, s’mores. Another great gift exchange idea for a family or something that’s a great option for a Yankee swap style game.
Personalized Family Garden
If you want more thoughtful and sentimental gift ideas for a family gift exchange you can go for something nice and personalized like this flower garden. It’s filled with everyone’s birth flowers so it’s pretty but thoughtful too. Great for parents and grandparents!
My Family Cookbook
Record all those beloved heirloom recipes in one place with this cookbook. Perfect to pass down to the kids later. You could also pre-populate it with some family recipes for a personal touch.
Outdoor Decorations
Decorating for the holidays is a lot of fun, but it’s also expensive. Get your family members some fun outdoor decorations to bring them holiday cheer.
Our Story Personalized Sign
If you know which family you’re buying for at the gift exchange you can get them something personalized like this Our Story Personalized Sign. Engrave the plaques with special dates like anniversaries or kids’ birthdays.
Karaoke Machine
Give them a gift that turns into drunken karaoke at family gatherings and ear bleeding solos from the kids! This karaoke machine is Bluetooth so you can use your own music with it.
Tabletopics Family Gathering Questions
This little cube is full of interesting conversation starters for family gatherings so you can hopefully avoid talking about how you got passed over for that promotion again this year.
Nerf Guns
Who shot first, grandma or uncle Steve? You can’t really shoot your family over the holidays but this is a close second.
Photo Frame Collection
It’s always nice to have family photos around the house, get them started with this photo frame collection. What’s even better is they come with art already inside for people like me who never get around to actually putting photos in.
Dewalt Drill Set
There is an epidemic of lack of good tools in people’s homes. Help with the cure buy getting them a good quality drill set so they can finally complete all those DIY projects you know every family has.
Coffee Maker
Most people already have a coffee maker in their home, but this one makes both a pot of coffee and uses k-cups. Perfect for busy, heavily caffeinated gift recipients.
Personalized Stocking Holder
If your family gift exchange is right before the holidays a personalized stocking holder would make a great present. With 4 hooks this one is family friendly, too!
Write in Calendar
Save them buying calendars every year with this dry-erase wall calendar. It comes with markers for colour coding and will hopefully keep them organized for years to come.
Icee Machine
Even if it’s a holiday gift exchange it’s never too cold for an Icee! Nothing sounds better to me than the idea of making one at home whenever you want. This machine is such a fun gift to give to a family with kids… Or anyone who enjoys Icees, actually.
Amazon Echo
They start at only 50 bucks and can have a really big impact on someone’s life. Control music with just your voice, make phone calls, control other smart home devices, and make hands-free notes and shopping lists.
Personalized Christmas Ornaments
Whoever you give it to will love this ornament: Your brother Jimmy and his beautiful family, grandma with all the grand kids, or even aunt Margaret and her 5 cats could all be immortalized in clay.
Family Tree DNA Testing
Find out if you’re actually related to each other or track down your heritage with this DNA testing kit. It’s a cool way to find out your family’s ancestry without doing time consuming genealogical work.
Ultimate Movie Night Gift Basket
Everyone loves movie nights and with this gift pack it’s all ready to go for them to have the best one ever. You don’t even need to know what movies they like to watch because it comes with a Redbox rental.
Mini Dinosaur Waffle Maker
Come on, this is adorable. I don’t care how old you are, mini dinosaur waffles are the best way to start the day. If you wanted to do a nice gift basket you could wrap this up with a mixing bowl and some waffle mix for a great family gift exchange group gift.
Bonus: Prank Gift Box
If you’re shopping for a family, no matter what you get, try wrapping it in a novelty gift box. They’re either going to get a laugh or be really disappointed they didn’t all get matching Snuggies.
Hopefully what you get back back out of this family gift exchange is equally as exciting as everything on this list. At the very least you’re going to be the life of the party thanks to these gift ideas for a family gift exchange!
