24 Inexpensive Gifts for Co-workers That Still Have Heart

For co-workers who are also friends, a travel mug that sums it all up is a great gift. The Lifecapido travel tumbler features the touching sentiment, "Chance made us colleagues, but the fun and laughter we share made us friends."

The insulated tumbler comes with a no-spill lid, two metal straws, and cleaning brushes. It will keep drinks hot or cold for hours. The tumbler is hand wash only.

Perfect for the co-worker with a sweet tooth, a box of Toblerone Tiny Swiss Chocolates makes a much-appreciated gift. The bite-sized pieces are great for keeping at your desk and having a little afternoon treat.

The 9.7-ounce box of individually wrapped chocolates feels generous, even though it makes an inexpensive gift for co-workers and employees.

If your co-worker tends to brown bag it every day, a reusable lunch bag makes a wonderful and affordable gift idea. An insulated bag can keep food cold for hours without refrigeration, and the tote bag is stylish and fun.

The insulated lunch tote from Das Trust comes in eight different colors and patterns, so there's something perfect for everyone. It's a simple, practical gift that's affordable and fun at the same time.

For the co-worker who always jots down notes or uses little reminders, the perfect gift is a desktop dry erase whiteboard. They can make notes, doodle, or leave messages with ease and style.

The Lulu Office Dry Erase Whiteboard comes with everything your co-worker needs to enjoy a little extra organization. There's a stand, four magnets, an eraser, and even dry erase markers.

Everyone needs a reminder about their awesomeness sometimes, and this co-worker gift is a perfect choice for that colleague who might forget their value. The pink and gold mug says, "Sometimes you forget you're awesome, so this is your reminder."

The mug makes a great gift for bosses too, as well as clients, customers, or anyone else you work with. The pink color may not appeal to all recipients, however.

Sure, the traditional pad of Post-Its is useful, but you can go one better. If you have a co-worker who loves to doodle, you can't beat the gift of rainbow scratch notes.

This two-pack of 125 scratch art notes comes with five wooden styluses for scratching off the black coating on the paper. Your co-worker will love writing notes, creating little works of art, and doodling during meetings or on breaks.

If you have a colleague who's a fan of Office Space, the best inexpensive co-worker gift you can buy is a red Swingline stapler. The iconic office item is sure to get a laugh, and it's useful at the same time.

The stapler takes standard staples and can handle up to 25 sheets - plenty for most TPS reports.

If you work in an open office, listening to music can be kind of a challenge. A great pair of ear buds makes the perfect inexpensive gift for co-workers who love music.

These sephia SP3060 ear buds have a noise isolating feature to help your co-worker focus on her music instead of the conversation in the next cubicle. They also have a tangle-free cord and come with their own carrying case.

Working from home is great, but it can be challenging to come up with gift ideas for co-workers who work remotely. An activity book can be the perfect choice.

The Work From Home Adult Activity Book has tons of fun and funny activities to do during coffee breaks or long meetings. For instance, there's Zoom bingo, trivia questions, and word searches.

A desktop bonsai kit makes an amazing co-worker gift, and it's an inexpensive option many people will love. It's a great choice if your co-worker has natural light by their desk.

The Planter's Choice Bonsai Starter Kit contains everything (except soil) needed to start four bonsai trees for a miniature desktop forest. This makes an awesome gift for gardeners, but no previous experience is needed to grow these little trees.

If your co-worker is always talking about their dog, this desk sign is the perfect gift. You can flip through 30 different messages, each delivered by an adorable pooch. Messages range from cheerful things like "Smile" or "I love my team" to practical sayings like "Back in 5" or "Can I help you?"

This is a great way for you co-worker to demonstrate their mood and make other people smile, and it's an awesome and affordable gift.

That mid-afternoon cup of coffee or tea can get cold quickly, especially if you have a busy schedule. Give your co-worker the gift of coziness in the form of a desktop mug warmer to keep beverages nice and hot.

The Mr. Coffee Mug Warmer plugs in and heats up a beverage in two minutes or maintains the temperature of an already hot beverage. It's easy to wipe clean.

For co-workers who might need a little extra encouragement sometimes, there's no better gift than a pack of motivational cards. Give them the whole pack or give a card or two every day for a couple of months.

The Global Printing Products Motivational Cards come in a pack of 100. They have sentiments like "Make your dreams happen" and "You've got this." Everyone needs a little boost sometimes, and these can be a great solution.

If you sometimes share a glass of wine or a cocktail with co-workers, the "Because Work" wine glass can be the perfect gift. It pokes fun at the stress of work and the need to unwind, and it's guaranteed to prompt a smile.

This isn't an ideal gift if you don't know whether a co-worker drinks alcohol or if they like wine, so you should know your colleague well to give this.

If you have a co-worker who works remotely and has a cat that randomly appears in Zoom meetings, this is the gift to buy.

This adorable book by Heidi Moreno features comic-style drawings of people dealing with cats and working from home at the same time. It's sure to make people smile, and it's a sweet gift that shows you know a bit about the person receiving it.

If you work in a situation that can be hard on the hands, or if you live someplace where winter weather can dry your skin, you can make your co-worker happy with the gift of a hand repair kit.

The Burt's Bees Hand Repair Kit is a spa day for the hands. It includes two kinds of hand cream, cuticle cream, and a pair of cotton gloves.

Tinkering with building bricks is as much fun for adults as it is for kids, and some people get really excited about building new structures and designs. If you work with engineers, architects, or anyone else who loves to build and create, a brick building coffee mug makes a great gift.

The POXIWIN Build-On Brick Coffee Mug comes in four different color combinations. Each one comes with three randomly selected packs of bricks to use for building on it.

For co-workers who love a tasty afternoon snack, a gift box of cookies makes a great present. Barnett's Chocolate Cookie Gift Box includes six different kinds of chocolate cookies, each topped with something delicious. It's packaged beautifully for gift-giving.

The only downside to this type of gift is that you need to know about any dietary restrictions your co-worker might have. Be sure your co-worker isn't gluten-sensitive, diabetic, or on a diet.

Whether your co-worker is part of the office bowling league or they simply like to play with things on their desk, a tiny desktop bowling set can make a fantastic gift.

The SYZ Mini Bowling Set includes a little bowling lane, ten bowling pins, and a miniature ball. In between phone calls or meetings, your colleague can enjoy a little playtime.

A little caffeine pick-me-up is a must for afternoons in the office, and you can give your co-worker the gift of variety when it comes to caffeinated beverages. A tea sampler pack is a wonderful gift for almost anyone.

The Taylors of Harrogate Specialty Tea Sampler includes 48 bags of assorted varieties of tea to try, perfect for someone who likes to branch out from stale afternoon coffee.

If you work with someone who hates unnecessary meetings, give them the gift of a T-shirt that sums up their frustration.

The Hanes "This Meeting" T-shirt comes in sizes medium through XX-large. It's easy-care cotton and fits like any standard T-shirt.

Everyone loves barbeque, whether you're grilling a steak, a veggie burger, or a portobello mushroom. A set of different flavors of barbeque rubs is a great gift for a co-worker who enjoys grilling or cooking.

This set of five rubs from The Modern Gourmet covers lots of different cuisines, including Mexican, Cajun, Southwest, Caribbean, and Memphis. It works on both meat or veggies, so it's a great choice even if someone is a vegetarian.

A water bottle makes a classic gift that's affordable and practical, and no one can have too many. It's a great way to show co-workers you care.

The Nalgene water bottle comes in tons of beautiful colors, all of which are BPA-free. You can choose the color they'll like best.

Everyone deals with stress, and some jobs and situations can be especially anxiety-producing. A set of stress relief and self-care cards can be the perfect, inexpensive gift for co-workers under pressure.

This set of 52 cards has exercises that are easy for everyone to do. Some cards prompt mindfulness in practical ways, and some suggest deep breathing techniques. This is a gift that shows you really care about how your colleagues are doing.