16 Gifts Your Mom Will Love

Whether she’s a green thumb or a big coffee lover, these popular gifts will give her the treat she deserves this holiday season.

From smart speakers to fitness trackers, give mom the splurge gifts she really wants this year.
From smart speakers to fitness trackers, give mom the splurge gifts she really wants this year. / Fitbit / Sonos / Amazon; Justin Dodd, Mental Floss (background)
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Moms deserve a lot of love for all their hard work, but it can be tough to know what they might want—especially now that we’ve outgrown the ability to gift them coupons for hugs or impressively horrific crayon portraits. But don’t get too stressed just yet, because we’ve put together a list of 16 of the best gifts for moms.

1. For the Mom Who Loves Caffeine: Breville Bambino Espresso Machine; $300

Best gifts for moms: Breville Bambino Espresso Machine
Breville Bambino Espresso Machine / Breville / Amazon

A lot of moms might rely on coffee to fuel their days, but for ones who really take their java seriously, this Bambino espresso machine from Breville will be a hit come the holidays. The slim device won’t take up too much counter space, and better still, it pre-infuses coffee grinds for better extraction, meaning more robust, balanced flavor which every sip.

Buy it: Amazon

2. For the Mom Who Loves Fresh Herbs: Click and Grow Smart Garden; $75

Best gifts for Moms: Click and Grow Smart Garden
Click and Grow Smart Garden / Click and Grow / Amazon

This handy garden makes it easy to grow herbs, vegetables, and flowers indoors. The device is self-watering, and all your mom really needs to do is remember to plug it in for about eight hours a day so the plants receive enough simulated sunlight. The starter kit comes with three basil seed pods, but you can buy more plant pods through Click and Grow’s Amazon store (or your mom can try her hand at starting her own seeds).

Buy it: Amazon

3. For the Mom Who Feels Nostalgic: Homesick Scented Candle; From $28

Best gifts for moms: Homesick Scented Candle
Homesick Scented Candle / Homesick/Amazon

This candle is designed to help a person recall long-forgotten experiences and places through their signature scents, so it'll be like gifting your mom memories of her hometown. You can buy a version for any U.S. state (and Washington, D.C.), or you can find a candle that brings back memories of specific countries or adventures.

Buy it: Homesick

4. For the Mom Who Appreciates Comfy Footwear: Dansko Lucie Mule; From $83

Best gifts for moms: Dansko Lucie Mule
Dansko Lucie Mule / Dansko

Form meets function with these cozy mules from Dansko. Made from wool that’s been treated with a stain protector, these warm kicks are perfect for moms who love shoes they can just slip on and wear throughout the day. They offer a solid amount of tread and feature a lightweight ethylene-vinyl acetate (EVA) outsole, meaning they have a bit of stretch, too. That same EVA material is embedded in the footbed, helping these mules deliver extra arch support.

Buy it: Amazon

5. For the Mom Who Enjoys Good Tunes: Sonos Move Battery-Powered Smart Speaker; $384

Best gifts for moms: Sonos Move Battery-Powered Smart Speaker
Sonos Move Battery-Powered Smart Speaker / Sonos / Amazon

Give mom the gift she’ll think is too much to splurge on herself with this battery-powered smart speaker, which she can control via the Sonos app, AirPlay 2, Bluetooth, and her own voice. This compact gadget has Alexa built right in, and she should be able to enjoy up to 11 hours of play time per charge.

Buy it: Amazon

6. For the Mom Who Wants to Be Pampered: Farm Fresh Spa Experience Tin; $32

Best gifts for moms: Farm Fresh Spa Experience
Farm Fresh Spa Experience / Uncommon Goods

This spa kit—made by a farm owner in Alabama—is filled with all-natural products that your mom will love. Inside, you’ll find lavender goat’s milk bath tea, whipped shea crème, minty lip balm, and a cocoa butter bath truffle.

Buy it: Uncommon Goods

7. For the Mom Who Loves to Read: Amazon Kindle; $100

Best gifts for moms: Amazon Kindle
Amazon Kindle / Amazon

Book-loving moms will quickly appreciate the convenience of Amazon’s classic Kindle. The screen is glare-free, making it ideal for using outdoors, but the recently updated version also incorporates front lighting for nighttime reading. If you’re open to a slightly more expensive upgrade, the Kindle Paperwhite offers more storage space and a waterproof screen.

Buy it: Amazon

8. For the Mom Who Likes An Easier Coffee Fix: Javy Cold Brew Coffee Concentrate; $25

Best gifts for moms: Javy Cold Brew Coffee Concentrate
Javy Cold Brew Coffee Concentrate / Javy / Amazon

Forget instant coffee—this cold brew coffee concentrate from Javy offers an even simpler and more convenient way for moms to get their caffeine fix throughout the day. Made from artisan roasted 100 percent arabica beans, this concentrated brew packs flavor by the spoonful. One teaspoon alone delivers 100 milligrams of caffeine, and each bottle contains up to 30 servings, so mom will get plenty of bang for your buck here. For busy moms who feel like they need coffee to function, Javy’s blend is a must-try.

Buy it: Amazon

9. For the Mom Who Appreciates a Warm Cuppa: Ember Temperature Control Smart Mug; $126

Best gifts for moms: Ember Temperature Control Smart Mug
Ember Temperature Control Smart Mug / Ember / Amazon

Whether your mom loves coffee, tea, or even hot chocolate, this mug will make sure that her favorite drink stays at the perfect temperature for hours at a time. The mug even connects to an app that lets you customize settings and receive notifications when your drink has reached the ideal temperature.

Buy it: Amazon

10. For the Mom Who Likes to Mix Things Up: Minute Cocktail Sugar Cube Trio; $30

Best gifts for moms: Minute Cocktail Sugar Cube Trio
Minute Cocktail Sugar Cube Trio / Uncommon Goods

A delicious cocktail doesn’t have to require an extensive collection of mixers and mix-ins. Your mom will love these sugar cubes that can easily turn any boozy drink into a Manhattan, Moscow mule, mint julep, or mojito. Each $30 kit comes with 18 sugar cubes in three different flavors—you can select from either the “dark and bold” cocktail set or the “light and refreshing” trio.

Buy it: Uncommon Goods

11. For the Yoga Mom: Instructional Yoga Mat; $39

Best gifts for moms: Instructional Yoga Mat
Instructional Yoga Mat / Grand Basics / Amazon

Active moms who can't live without their yoga routine will love this mat that comes with images of 75 poses to follow along with on one side and 75 stretches on the other. It's easy to follow and can help moms of any experience level.

Buy it: Amazon

12. For the Mom Who Loves to Cook: Marcato Atlas 150 Pasta Machine; $120

Best gifts for moms: Marcato Atlas 150 Pasta Machine
Marcato Atlas 150 Pasta Machine / Marcato Design/Amazon

While this Italian-made pasta machine doesn’t exactly fill in for a luxury vacation, it’s pretty close. This machine will help your mom cut pasta dough for lasagna and fettuccine, with 10 thickness options from .6mm to 4.8mm. Special attachments for making other pastas like pappardelle, mafaldine, and vermicelli are sold separately.

Buy it: Amazon

13. For the Mom Who Always Wants Flowers: The Bouqs Monthly Flower Subscription; From $44 Per Month

Best gifts for moms: The Bouqs Monthly Flower Subscription
The Bouqs Monthly Flower Subscription / Bouqs

Moms deserve to be celebrated all year round. With a monthly flower subscription from the Bouqs, you can have something special delivered right to mom’s door every month. These farm-fresh blooms are available in a variety of options, with plan prices starting at $44 per month. You can choose how often you’d like a bouquet delivered, plus customize the size of the arrangement and get free shipping with every order. The next time she gripes about only getting flowers once a year, you’ll be able to set her straight.

Buy it: Bouqs

14. For the Mom Who Appreciates Precious Moments: Aura Carver Smart Digital Picture Frame; $249

Best gifts for moms: Aura Carver Smart Digital Picture Frame
Aura Carver Smart Digital Picture Frame / Aura Carver/Amazon

Capturing your family’s most treasured moments over the years via camera is easy; figuring out what to do with those photos after they’ve been taken is another. This smart digital picture frame from Aura can save moms the stress of figuring out which snapshot to showcase next because it syncs up easily with iOS and Android devices, allowing users to send up to about 10,000 pictures right from their phones. From there, the brand’s proprietary AI software handles the rest, clustering similar photos together in an ever-changing lineup of spotlighted pictures. The end result? Mom can see all her favorite memories of you and the rest of the fam and never have to whittle her choices down to just one or two.

Buy it: Amazon

15. For the Mom Who Wants to Know More About Her Roots: AncestryDNA Testing Kit; $59

Best gifts for moms: AncestryDNA Testing Kit
AncestryDNA Testing Kit / AncestryDNA

For moms who want to learn more about their roots, this AncestryDNA testing kit can be a great gift. The company can trace her origins over more than 1500 regions around the world and is constantly refining its process, so the results are as accurate as possible. It’s simple to use, too: All she has to do is provide a saliva sample in the included container, send it back to AncestryDNA via a prepaid package, and then in six to eight weeks, she’ll get her results. If she’s been eager to delve into genealogy, this kit can be a great way to kick off the process.

Buy it: Amazon

16. For the Mom Who Appreciates Fitness: Fitbit Inspire 3 Fitness Tracker; $80

Best gifts for moms: Fitbit Inspire 3 Health &-Fitness-Tracker
Fitbit Inspire 3 Health &-Fitness-Tracker / Fitbit / Amazon

Counting steps doesn’t have to be a hassle, and it won’t be with the new Fitbit Inspire 3. Don’t let that thinner size fool you, though—the Inspire 3 is loaded with nifty features, including automatic sleep tracking, personalized sleep profile, heart rate monitoring, and special sensors that’ll track mom’s stress levels.

Buy it: Amazon

A version of this article originally ran in 2020; it has been updated for 2023.