Choosing the Christmas gift for a teacher comes up every year, usually a few weeks before the holidays. The common gifting choices are mugs and candles, and teachers get a lot of these, and most parents know that, but coming up with something new isn’t always easy.
A better alternative is to see what teachers spend their money on, as it makes the gift practical and it’s easier for parents who are running short on time before winter break.
Is a gift card a good gift for a teacher?
Yes, a gift card is an excellent gift for a teacher, as teachers already buy supplies for their classroom out of pocket. The spending for those supplies is larger than many parents think.
A spring 2025 survey by Adopt a Classroom found that 3,700 teachers spent an average of $895 of their own money on classroom supplies during the 2024–2025 school year, and the median school budget was just $200. Parents who shop at gift-card.com can let the teachers choose what to spend the card on. It could be for classroom supplies or something they need themselves.
Out of the teachers surveyed, 82% reported purchasing supplies like paper, pencils, and markers, and 66% reported buying food for students. The survey only reflects teachers who responded, and a few high spenders can push the average up, so you should see it as a general trend.
The best holiday gift for a teacher is a gift that they select themselves, like a Target card or a Multi Choice card, as the teacher can spend it on something useful to them.
A teacher gift card that arrives by email before winter break
A good last-minute gift to send to a teacher in the US is a gift card from Gift-card.com that shows up in the inbox and is ready to use before winter break. You can order it on the day before the last day of the school year, as the delivery is digital.
The Multi Choice card is suitable for parents who don’t know where the teacher goes for shopping. They’re emailed a card number to send, and the teacher could choose from over 500 brands, and the amount ranges from $10 to $750. A Target gift card is a great choice if what they want to buy is classroom essentials.
Each district has its own guidelines on gifts, so it’s always best to check before you buy.
A note makes the card feel personal
A few lines and a drawing from your kid could make a card more thoughtful. Instead of twenty little gifts from different people, the teacher could get one present, with a few dollars collected from every family used to buy one card as a class gift. If the teacher gift only crossed your mind this week, Teach Mama’s guide to teacher gifts for the last minute parent has a quick craft to pair with the card.
A digital gift card from the US storefront of gift-card.com is something a teacher can spend on the classroom or on themselves, and it reaches them by email before the last day of school.
