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A Portable Breast Pump
Pumpables Genie Advanced
A Fantastic Mug
East Fork The Mug
A Weighted Blanket
Gravity Blanket
Comfy Earbuds
Google Pixel Buds A-Series
The category of “mom” encompasses a tremendous amount of variety. There are moms like me, who are coming out of that first year haze of diapers and no sleep, and are slowly reclaiming their hobbies and free time. There are moms who are balancing teenagers and threenagers simultaneously (and those mothers are stronger than I will ever be). And there are moms who might have an empty nest, but you’re still calling them to ask how long you really cook chicken for. This guide has something for hopefully all of them, spanning tools that make motherhood a little easier, to things she can enjoy when the kids are finally in bed.
Looking for more true tools of motherhood to gift your favorite mom? We’ve got guides on everything from breast pumps and strollers to the best baby gear for that first year.
Updated November 2023: We’ve added new items to the list, including a new breast pump, the Tivoli Audio Pal BT Radio, Pixel Buds, Kindle Unlimited, and more.
Adrienne So and other members of the Gear team have contributed to this guide in the past.
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Photograph: Pumpables
A Portable Breast Pump
Pumpables Genie Advanced
Pumping breast milk isn’t easy, but a great breast pump makes it much faster and more comfortable. Our favorite portable pump is the Pumpables Genie Advanced (9/10, WIRED Recommends). It has a silicone shield over the standard plastic nipple shield, making it the most comfortable to use out of the pumps we’ve tried. The pint-sized motor makes it easy to actually bring anywhere to pump, too, so she can throw it in nearly any bag and take it on the go.
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Photograph: East Fork
A Fantastic Mug
East Fork The Mug
WIRED writer Jaina Grey recommends this mug for coffee lovers, and I can’t get it out of my head. I might be a tea drinker myself, but I want it! It’s beautiful! Your mom deserves a gorgeous vessel for her caffeine of choice, too. Plus, the beauty of it helps distract from the fact that my tea got cold … again. Oh well, at least the baby didn’t stick his hand in it this time.
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Photograph: Gravity Blanket
A Weighted Blanket
Gravity Blanket
From the moment you start on your mom journey, sleep becomes a limited and valuable commodity. A weighted blanket is filled with tiny little beads and feels a little like a bean bag. It uses the principle of deep pressure stimulation—the same principle by which Temple Grandin calmed anxious cows—to induce relaxation. And no, it won’t cure all of a new mom’s sleep woes, but it will remind her to pull the covers over her lap and take a moment to breathe.
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Photograph: Google
Comfy Earbuds
Google Pixel Buds A-Series
Once she’s snuggled under her blanket, hand her a pair of brand-new earbuds. We really like the Google Pixel Buds (8/10, WIRED Recommends) for the comfy fit, solid sound, and good looks. Plus, they’re not so pricey that it’ll be a big deal when one gets lost. They have five hours of listening time and an IPX4 sweat-resistance rating for workouts. These headphones pair instantly with Android devices.
For iPhone Users: The Pixel Buds will pair with iPhone devices, but we honestly prefer Apple’s AirPods Pro (2nd Generation) (8/10, WIRED Recommends) for iPhone users. You will be more upset if you lose them, though, since they’re almost three times the price.
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Photograph: Cyrill
A Strappy Phone Case
Cyrill Classic Charm Mag Case
This phone case is both cute and useful. We love it for iPhone 14 owners like myself. The case comes with two strap lengths, crossbody and wristlet, that are easy to switch out. I’ve actually found the wristlet length to be perfect for quickly grabbing my phone when I’m off to chase my toddler down the hall, or to keep my phone handy when I’m wearing a pocket-free outfit. You never know when daycare might call, after all. Plus, it looks nice, gets plenty of compliments, and most folks assume it’s a regular wristlet when they see it dangling from my arm.
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Courtesy of ConcernedApe
A Soothing Videogame
Stardew Valley
Look, you don’t always have a ton of downtime as a mom, whether you’ve got a newborn who only wants to contact nap or older kids who always need to be driven somewhere. Stardew Valley is a great game to enjoy in those short time windows to relax. The music is lovely, the game is simple, and your house is always clean. While it isn’t a new game, new content has been added time and time again (and another big update is in the works now!).
If you’re looking for something newer, Fey Farm is a similar concept, but in a magical island town. It has a longer tutorial period, which is nice to help slowly onboard you to all the abilities you have in this game, from the mechanics of running your farm to fighting off magical vines with your staff.
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Photograph: Tivoli Audio
Portable Tunes
Tivoli Audio Pal BT Radio
What I love about Tivoli’s Pal BT radio (7/10, WIRED Recommends) is that Mom can either use it as a Bluetooth speaker for her latest playlist, or just switch on the radio when she doesn’t want to overthink it. Plus, it’s cute! And portable, so she can move it around to wherever she is in the house to jam to her favorite tunes (or, if we’re talking about my mom, to listen to NPR).
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Photograph: TP-Link
A Smart Plug
TP-Link Kasa Mini Smart Plug EP10
Of all the smart devices you can buy, some of us on the team find smart plugs to be the most useful. They don’t have a camera or a microphone, and they easily integrate with dumb devices to solve actual pain points and save energy.
Is Mom always the one who ends up trudging downstairs, after she’s already gotten in bed, to unplug Christmas lights and make sure your house doesn’t burn down? Plug those lights into a smart plug and let her turn them off while lying down. Done.
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Photograph: Amazon
A Decked-Out Travel Stroller
Joovy Kooper
Every mom has a stroller, but she might be missing a compact travel stroller for throwing in the car or visiting grandparents. The Joovy Kooper is lightweight, easy to fold, and comes with pockets for mom and a full tray for kiddo, making it one of the better featured strollers you’ll find—especially for the price, which is why it’s our favorite lightweight stroller. It folds down flat enough to throw into the backseat among weekender bags and a cooler, though it doesn’t stand up as nicely as other strollers.
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Photograph: Amazon
Insanely Comfy Leggings
Prana Becksa Leggings
These Prana leggings are one of the few things I was able to wear after giving birth. The wide waistband was forgiving on my postpartum body, and downright flattering now that I’m past that stage. The ribbed fabric is soft and comfortable to wear all day, and handles everything from all-day hikes to adventures to the park. Plus, it has pockets—and putting things in said pockets doesn’t drag the waistline down. A true miracle.
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Photograph: Best Buy
A Recipe Reader
Google Nest Hub Max
Nothing annoys me more than when I’m using my phone for a recipe, and am constantly trying to unlock my phone again while my hands are a mess. There’s a solution to this, though: a smart display. These can guide you through recipes step by step, without having to touch your dough-covered hands to a phone or elbow your tablet again to try and wake it up.
The Google Nest Hub Max (8/10, WIRED Recommends) can do that with ease. You can ask Google Assistant to look up hundreds of recipes for you, and use both its voice and 10-inch screen to guide you through the ingredients and steps. It also doubles beautifully as a digital photo frame to fill with photos of her kiddos.
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Photograph: Aura Frames
A Digital Photo Frame
Aura Carver
If you finished reading the above paragraph and thought, “Wow, my mom would love the photos part of that!” then you might want to get a true digital photo frame. Aura’s Carver frame is our favorite. It’s easy to use, and multiple family members can add photos, so it’s not all on Mom to take the pictures and upload them. This is also your friendly reminder to take photos of your mom!
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Photograph: Amazon
(Almost) Infinite Books to Read
Kindle Unlimited
It’s always really nice when folks try to guess what book I’ll read next and buy it for me. Unfortunately, they’re not always right. I can’t guarantee if a fantasy novel or gory murder mystery will be my next reading obsession.
I love when I get gift cards or subscriptions to shop for whatever book strikes my fancy. Kindle Unlimited is a great subscription for a large variety of books, or you can grab a gift card to her favorite bookstore of choice (definitely check what kind of ebook reader she has first—you don’t want to give an Amazon gift card to a Nook user!) You may feel like it’s less personal, but you can always print out the gift certificate and put it in a cute card or even pair it with something book-themed. Personally, I’d love this gorgeous Kindle sleeve.
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Photograph: Shark
A Bougie Robot Vacuum
Shark AI Ultra 2-in-1 Robot Vacuum and Mop
With kids around, you need to vacuum more often, but also have less time to do it. Forget about mopping, it’s a lost cause. (Don’t look at my kitchen floors, thanks.)
Save your favorite mom in your life from worrying about her floors with Shark’s AI Ultra 2-in-1 (8/10, WIRED Recommends), which can both vacuum and mop around the house for her. It’s the Best Vac-Mop Combo we’ve tested, and can quickly (and accurately!) map her home. She can then use Shark’s app to designate where to vacuum and where to mop. The mopping doesn’t leave floors wet, and she can send the robot vac-mop to spot clean specific areas when needed.