41 Best High School Graduation Gifts, According to Parents of Teens

Has she been begging for a Coach purse? Surprise her with a trendy pick for graduation. This quilted plush shoulder bag is available in five colors, all with the signature gold hardware.

A new laptop is a wow-worthy graduation gift, and Apple finally has a MacBook for well under $1,000! The new Neo gives busy students enough computing power and storage for all the streaming, writing, and basic apps they’ll need. Test Engineer, Alec Scherma, tested it for a month and concluded that it’s “ideal for students who need something lightweight with solid battery life for taking notes throughout the day without constantly reaching for a charger.”

RELATED: An Engineer Tried the MacBook Neo for a Month—Here’s His Verdict

Trust me: Teens are obsessed with trendy skincare and makeup brands, like Rhode and Summer Fridays. This value set includes three full-size products: a pocket blush, peptide lip shape, and peptide lip tint in shades of your choice.

If they prefer headphones to earbuds, these comfortable Sony cans are a quality pick. They have noise cancellation tech which is great for noisy commutes or crowded libraries. It can connect to multiple devices at once, so they can switch between their laptop and their phone with ease. They’ll also get a 30-hour battery life, per Sony.

No one ever says, “Yay! Laundry day!” At least you can make the haul to the washing machines less of a hassle with these attractive, personalized bags. Choose from cream or black, 11 fonts, and more than 40 thread colors for the monogram.

For kids headed to college dorm life in a few months, we really like the versatility of this single-serve coffee maker. It can be used with pods (even K-cups) or grounds, and it brews both hot and cold coffee up to 24-ounces at a time. There’s a built-in milk frother (note, it’s not a steamer). Most importantly, it made a well-balanced cup of coffee in our tests.

RELATED: 6 Best Single-Serve Coffee Makers, According to Expert Testing

Give them what they really want—a cake-shaped display that holds 20 rolled-up bills. The stand is easy to assemble, and all you have to do is insert whatever denomination of money you want into each hole (and they don’t all have to be the same!).

Get her a pair of quality earrings she can wear every day. Made from 14K gold and cubic zirconias, these chic huggies pair with any outfit, from weekend jeans to formal dresses.

Between graduation parties and summer hangouts, they’ll be taking more pictures than usual. This instant camera from Kodak prints 2 by 3-inch photos, each with a peel-off back if they want to display them as stickers. Don't forget to buy a pack of extra photo papers to pair with the gift.

Honor this moment with a book dedicated to your grad. Choose from three sizes and layouts, then add up to 240 images. Text is available, too. This is a keepsake they’ll treasure long after they’ve graduated.

With vintage making a comeback, this retro-style watch is trending right now. It’s durable and water-resistant, but also features an LED light, stopwatch, and daily alarm to keep him on track if he’s heading off to college.

Bag charms are all the rage. This bold, bubble letter has dainty multicolored stones that’ll add some vibrant hues to her purse or keys.

This generation has grown up with tech at their fingertips, but they’re also searching for ways to be more present offline, which is why the Brick is such an unexpected and cool gift. In the app, they choose which apps to lock on their phone and for how long. Tap the physical grey brick to lock and unlock apps. It’ll come in handy when studying, for sure.

Beauty influencers have been raving about the Dyson Airwrap for years, and now’s the time to finally splurge. It’s meant to deliver a salon-level blowout at home, and this version even has an app that automates the curling process based on any given user's hair type, hair length, and skill level.

READ OUR FULL REVIEW:I Tested Dyson's Latest $650 Airwrap i.d. Multi-Styler

I gave this book to my daughter before she left for college and can confirm that it’s a really sweet gift. The writing prompts are a mix of fun and heartfelt, and might just inspire a few tears. It’s such a nice way to celebrate a big milestone like graduation.

After a long day of adulting, they’ll want to come home and get comfortable. That’s where this viral blanket comes in—it’s even been Selena Gomez approved. The faux fur blanket is also a favorite among GH editors who call it “fabulously soft.”

RELATED: This Is the Cult-Favorite Lola Blanket That Selena Gomez Has at Home

For short trips home or weekend getaways, busy teens will get a lot of use out of this adventure-friendly backpack. Commerce Editor Isabella Cavallo put it to the test and loved the spacious interior, laptop sleeve, and that it can sit upright on its own. It’s also easy to wipe clean, and comes in 13 colors.

RELATED:I Take Three Modes of Transportation to Work, and This is the Backpack I Use to Carry My Things

Give the LEGO-loving graduate an art project. They’ll not only enjoy building it, but they’ll have something to display on their wall when they’re done. It has 1,810 pieces and is ready to hang, once completed.