Moms are people, too. They love their kids but also have plenty of their own hobbies (cooking! running! gaming!), and they deserve gifts that honor them as people, not just as parents. Gifts for Mom shouldn’t be about giving her a vacuum or anything related to the stereotypical cleaning tasks of parenthood—a perfect gift for your mom will show you know how she likes to spend the rest of her hours when she isn’t parenting.
This guide has the best gift ideas around for all kinds of moms and the activities they might love, whether it’s a holiday like Mother’s Day or Christmas or you’re in a need of a fun birthday gift for your mom—or, God forbid, your mother-in-law. (Unless your mother-in-law is great! In which case, mazel tov!)
Looking for mom gear to help your favorite mama out? We have guides on everything from breast pumps and strollers to the best baby gear for that first year. Don’t forget to check out our guides for coffee lovers, working from home, and being constantly cold if you’re looking for something a little more specific.
Updated November 2024: We’ve added new gifts to this guide and updated pricing.
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Photograph: Brenda Stolyar
For the Reader Mom
Amazon Kindle (2024, 11th Generation)
Amazon has four new Kindles, refreshing the entire line in a bigger way than it ever has before. There are three updates to its existing lines with a new Kindle, Kindle Paperwhite, and Kindle Scribe, plus the first-ever color Kindle, the Kindle Colorsoft (7/10, WIRED Recommends). And you know what Mom wants? A new Kindle, probably. I have the 2022 Kindle and while WIRED reviewer Brenda Stoylar says it’s not that different from the new basic Kindle, I’m absolutely putting the matcha green color on my Christmas list. If you know a mom who loves to color code her notes, she might love an upgrade to the Colorsoft, which allows for colorful highlights as she reads.
If she doesn’t need an all-new Kindle, I love using the Lamicall Tablet Holder ($28) to hold up my Kindle for me as I read. I have wrists cysts (nicknamed Mommy’s Wrist cysts!) that usually make it painful to hold even a lightweight Kindle up for too long, but this handy holder takes that pain away. It latches onto nearby tables or furniture, or you can gift the floor stand ($70) version.
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Photograph: Beis
For the Sporty Mom
Beis The Sport Carryall
Maybe Mom has picked up a new sport hobby, like pickleball or a dance class. Maybe she already loves these things but carries all her gear—whether that’s paddles and balls or dance shoes or a yoga mat—in an old tote bag or a falling-apart gym bag from who knows when. As a mom with a new sporty hobby (aerial dance!), I found myself constantly scrounging for a tote bag to carry my water bottle and various accessories, until I tried the Sport Carryall from Beis. It’s got lots of pockets and a yoga-mat-friendly design for the days I remember my mat for stretch sessions, or the same pocket can become a pickleball paddle holder. It’s a great bag that can be used for both whatever her current hobby is and transform with her when she discovers her next sporty obsession.