Our 44 Favorite Gifts for Under $30

Tech category director Martin Cizmar has used these leather mittens for two seasons in a row, both on the slopes and in the yard. They're durable, warm, and water resistant, and they'll be even better if you hit 'em with a bake-in leather treatment. These gloves and over a dozen other items are featured in our roundup of Gifts for Dads.

No kitchen is complete without a good cast-iron skillet. This option from Lodge is tried-and-true, and affordable to boot. It comes preseasoned, which will help with the cast-iron learning curve. Read more about it and get additional recommendations in our guide to the Best Gifts for Home Chefs.

The WIRED Gear team recommends basically every pair of Darn Tough socks we've tried, but this pick comes from our list of Gifts for the Perpetually Cold. Darn Tough socks are warm, comfortable, durable, and backed by a lifetime warranty. This pair is perfect for hikes in subzero temperatures, but also really comfortable if you're just trekking from the couch to the fridge.

Not to toot our own horn, but we think this tote bag from the WIRED merch store is pretty slick. At 15” tall, it provides a bit of extra storage space over a standard-sized tote bag.

Featured in our guide to the Best Viral TikTok Gadgets, this tiny waffle maker won't take up too much space on your counter—it only measures 4 inches across. It's available in a wide range of fun colors and comes with a recipe guide. Aside from waffles and waffle-adjacent food, this mini maker can crank out hash browns, crispy eggs, quesadillas, and more.

These box cutters make excellent gifts for shopaholics (or product reviewers). The durable finger-safe ceramic blades won't cut you, and they're cheap to replace when they eventually break down. This box cutter has an ergonomic design that makes it easy to condense boxes and open packages. Reviewer Louryn Strampe is also a fan of the Slice Utility Knife, though it's a bit more expensive.

The Go Air Pop are a great pair of cheap earbuds that fit well, come in cool colors, and have an AirPod-beating eight hours of battery life. They don't sound quite as good as Apple's finest, but they perform more than well enough for listening to music and podcasts, especially as a pair you don't have to worry too much about. The included charging case has a built-in USB cable, which means you'll never hunt through a drawer for one.

The Dreamegg D11 is our favorite sound machine for portability. While it's aimed at the parents of babies, there's nothing stopping adults in need of some soothing sounds from using this. Its small size makes it easy to take with you on the go, and there are 11 sounds for you to try, from a fan to lullaby music and more. From Amazon it stays within our $30 budget, but it’s higher directly from the brand.

This PS5 accessory is an absolute must-have. Using the included cable is such a hassle, especially if you have more than one controller. With the dock, I simply pick my controller up to use it and place it back down after every gaming session. Simple. There's really not much else to it. It's an essential gadget for those who like the easy life.

Of course, tea isn't just for warming up the cold among us. There's iced tea too. This tea pot from Hario is our cold-brew choice in our Best Tea Accessories guide. Get your loose leaf in there, whack in some water, then pop in the fridge the day before you need it. In the morning you'll have your cherished iced-tea fix.

If you have an iPad, Apple and Logitech sell elaborate keyboard cases. But if you don't want or need to mess with an attached case, this simple portable keyboard from Logitech is one of our top iPad accessories. The K380 is a compact and quiet, yet tactile, keyboard that's easy to sling in a bag or stow away at a desk. The more fun and colorful shades are often on sale for under $30, but if you want a standard gray, then it's over $30. We might be breaking our own rule by including it, but we made that rule up anyway. If you're in the market for a case, here's a good one from Spigen.

This small tool bag is a great option to whip out when a household DIY situation hits. It may just be fabric but it's built to resist bumps and the like. There are 22 pockets on both the inside and out to accommodate all the home tools you need. Check out our guide to the Best Home Tools for more.