Graduating from high school is a huge milestone -- it's the first step into real "adulting," and for some grads, it means they'll be moving far away from family for the first time in their lives. Whether your graduate will be starting a new job, heading off to college or taking a gap year, a thoughtful and practical gift can help prepare them for whatever life throws their way. Cold, hard cash is always appreciated -- but the best graduation gifts are considerably more practical than a wad of bills -- and won't immediately get blown on food and gas.
From laptops and headphones to cool kitchen gadgets and travel accessories, we've put together a list of our editors' top picks for the best high school graduation gifts. And if you're looking for a gift for the college grad in your life, be sure to check out our ultimate college graduation gift guide.
Best laptop gifts for grads
MacBook Neo
The MacBook Neo, a CNET Editors' Choice Award winner, is a worthy laptop for a young adult on a budget, and it's our top choice for college students. It has the same look and feel as Apple’s other MacBooks, and if you already have an iPhone (which many students do), it will work seamlessly with it. The Neo’s A18 Pro chip isn't as powerful as the M-series processor you'll find in the MacBook Air or Pro, but it’s enough to deliver what most students need from a laptop.
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Dell 15 laptop with Microsoft college offer
When your grad is heading off to college, they need a laptop that works hard and plays hard. The Dell 15 is a stylish, efficient, affordable option for all-purpose computing, from paper-writing to gaming to winding down with a movie. This model runs on Windows 11 and comes pre-loaded with Microsoft’s ultimate college bundle, which includes a year of Microsoft 365 Premium for papers and presentations, Xbox Game Pass Ultimate for fun and a design-your-own Xbox controller -- a $500 value.
HP OmniBook 5 14
The HP OmniBook 5 14 is a CNET Editors' Choice Award winner and our pick for the best Windows laptop for students. Why? For one thing, the battery life is unbelievable. In addition to lasting a record-setting 28 hours in our testing, the OmniBook 5 14 offers a simple, elegant design and easy-to-carry weight -- plus, an OLED display that delivers stellar contrast and vivid colors. It also supplies an ample 32GB of RAM and a roomy 1TB SSD, neither of which is a given in a laptop that is often available for less than $1,000. For students and others constantly on the go, the OmniBook 5 14 is a fantastic pick at a great price.
Asus Zenbook A14
For anyone who'll be walking all over campus, the last thing they want is a brick in their backpack. If you're shopping for a student who will be traveling on foot or on bike every day, consider the Asus Zenbook A14. Weighing less than 2.2 pounds, the Zenbook A14 is the lightest Copilot Plus PC we've tested, and it's the second-longest running, offering a battery life of more than 24 hours. You might expect an ultra-lightweight laptop to feel flimsy, but the Ceraluminum shell feels durable, and the 14-inch OLED display is excellent. Resident laptop expert Matt Elliott had some nitpicks about this one (read his full review), and some apps may run into a Windows-on-Arm compatibility issue. But if portability is paramount, then the lightweight, long-running Zenbook A14 is the pick.
Lenovo Chromebook Duet 11
The Lenovo Duet 11, a recipient of a CNET Editors' Choice Award, is a pen-enabled tablet-laptop combo that's perfect for commuting, taking to classes, or using as a secondary computer. It's not only ultra-affordable, but it's small, so it's easy use anywhere to email, take Zoom calls, play mobile games or watch shows. It's got good battery life, reaching almost 11 hours in our streaming video rundown tests. And it has USI Pen 2.0 support, which means it can be used for sketching or taking notes.
Best headphone gifts for grads
Beats Studio Pro
For college-bound grads who aren't staying at home, chances are they'll need to deal with noisy roommates. The Beats Studio Pro are some of the most popular noise-canceling headphones of all time. While they're not as highly rated as the AirPods Max, they're a lot more affordable, and this latest iteration offers improved sound quality and noise cancellation over their predecessor. Read our full review to find out what makes these headphones great with some caveats.
Apple AirPods Pro 3
Apple's AirPods Pro 3 earbuds have excellent noise cancellation, strong voice-calling performance and sound quality that rivals the very best. Few earbuds excel in all three of these areas -- and the Pro 3s manage to do so while packing in some cool extra features, like the ability to monitor heart rate and a live language translation feature, which will come in handy for any international travels. In his review, CNET audio expert David Carnoy called them the best wireless earbuds for any Apple user (for Android users, there are better options out there).
Beats Powerbeats Pro 2
If the student you're shopping for is a runner or a regular workout fiend, give the Beats Powerbeats Pro 2 a good look. Fitness enthusiasts tend to prefer earbuds with ear hooks to prevent their buds from falling out of their ears during intense workouts. Unfortunately, many of those earbuds don't offer the greatest performance, but the Powerbeats Pro 2 are an exception, featuring very good sound quality, along with strong noise cancellation and voice-calling performance. In short, they're versatile, also performing well as everyday earbuds. It's also worth noting that while the Powerbeats Pro 2 have some Apple-exclusive features, Beats does have an app for Android users that makes these more Android-friendly than AirPods.
Sennheiser HDB 630
If your grad takes music listening seriously -- maybe they're a future music or theater major -- or if they just spend a lot of time in their headphones listening to music or playing games for fun, check out Sennheiser's HDB 630. Editor David Carnoy called these the best new headphones for audiophiles because they deliver clean, detailed sound with powerful, controlled bass. They also have strong battery life, lasting up to 60 hours. Using Sennheiser's BTD 700 USB-C Bluetooth transmitter, you can plug into a PC, smartphone (yes, even iPhones) or a tablet for a reliable, high-quality Bluetooth streaming option.
While their noise canceling isn't up to the level of what you get from Sony, Bose and Apple flagship headphones and earbuds, it's still decent, and so is the voice-calling performance.
Best travel gifts for grads
Kindle Paperwhite
The Kindle Paperwhite is a good option for grads who like to read while they travel. And if they're moving into a smaller space, that means there will be less room for their precious piles of books. The Paperwhite is a great choice for bookworms who are attached to their physical book collections and want a similar experience. It features warm light settings, a long battery life and is completely waterproof.
JBL Go 4
With its compact size and sturdy carrying strap, the JBL Go 4 is a well-designed Bluetooth speaker your grad can take anywhere they go. There are certainly better-sounding, longer-lasting speakers out there. (Find our complete list of the best Bluetooth speakers for more options.) But the Go 4 puts out decent sound for its size and can last up to 7 hours. So if the priority is to find something decent they can stash in a bag and pull out for spontaneous hangs on the quad, it'll be hard to beat this cute little speaker. Bonus: it's available in multiple colors and has an IP67 water-resistance rating, which means it's dustproof and can survive being fully submerged in water. All in all, it's one of the top micro Bluetooth speakers out there.
Twelve South Airfly Pro 2
If going off to college means a lot of flying is in your grad's future, this unexpected gadget will be the gift that keeps on giving. One of the problems with flying with wireless earbuds is that most in-flight entertainment systems don't have a Bluetooth option, so you're forced to watch movies on your own devices (or remember to bring wired headphones). That's where a Bluetooth transceiver like Twelve South's AirFly Pro 2 comes in handy. You plug it into the in-flight entertainment system's headphone port and it wirelessly links to your Bluetooth earbuds, allowing you to get lag-free sound from the system. The device is rated for over 24 hours of battery life and will make all that travel to and from school that much easier.
Nomatic travel backpack
For anyone heading off to school, needing a new backpack is a given. Also pretty likely: not a lot of space in their dorm room for luggage. The cleverly designed Nomatic travel backpack has the solution. It works as a daily backpack for carrying around campus. The main compartment has enough room for a lunch, a jacket, books and whatever else they might need, like a hard case for sunglasses. But it also works as a small travel bag for weekend trips home. There's a zipper around the outside that expands the size to give enough space for shoes and clothes for a day or two. What's unique is that when you expand the bag, it reveals another zipper that opens the backpack like a clamshell for easy packing. At almost $300, this isn't a backpack a recent grad is likely to splurge on for themselves. That's part of what makes it such a great gift.
- Birdie personal safety alarm: $28
- Fujifilm Instax Mini EVO instant camera: $235
- JBL Charge 6 portable Bluetooth speaker: $200
Best kitchen and home gifts for grads
Casabrews 30C675DKIT
If your grad likes to make a daily run to Starbucks, they'll appreciate the Casabrews 30C675DKIT Espresso Machine. Our CNET kitchen experts tested more than 20 espresso machines, and this one was their favorite affordable model. It churns out Starbucks-worthy cappuccinos, espressos, lattes and more. It's easy to use and doesn't take up much counter space. And the steaming wand produces a thoroughly Insta-worthy milky froth.
Nutribullet personal blender
If your graduate is moving away from home, their healthy eating habits may very well take a nosedive. A Nutribullet blender will help them easily pack fruits and veggies into their daily diet. It's easy to use, powerful and involves way less cleanup than a standard blender. And it comes with a flip-top lid so they can take their smoothie on the go.
Blueair Mini Restful sunrise clock air purifier
One way to make a distant dorm feel a little bit homier is with an air purifier. You can check out our list of the best air purifiers CNET experts have personally tested. But the newest release from Blueair -- the Blueair Mini Restful -- might be the perfect match for a dorm room. At less than a foot tall and 7 inches wide, it's compact and won't take up too much precious space. And it can clear irritants like dust, pollen and smoke from a 140-square-foot space in under 13 minutes and up to 607 square feet in one hour. What it makes it cooler than most air purifiers, though, is that it also has a sunrise alarm clock feature, with a gradual light and soothing sounds -- such as rain or birdsong -- for gentler morning wakeups. Plus, it charges with a universal USB-C charger and the filter is rated to last a full nine months.
Panasonic HomeChef 4-in-1 microwave
Balancing class schedules, sports practice, late-night performances or work-study shifts, it's not always easy for busy students to make it to the dining hall for a sit-down meal. And let's be honest: the food might not be all that tempting when they get there. An in-room microwave can allow a student to be a little more independent when it comes to mealtime, and it can help fuel their late-night study sessions. The Panasonic HomeChef 4-in-1 microwave oven has an impressive array of functions -- air fryer, convection bake, broiler and microwave -- that makes it possible to do way more than microwave a bag of popcorn. At $580 though, it's definitely on the high end of the price scale. If that's more than you want to spend, check out our list of the best microwaves for some simpler, stylish and much more affordable options. If your grad will be living in a dorm, be sure to check student housing requirements and make sure it's an approved appliance.
Best gift cards for grads
DoorDash gift card
Nothing can replace Mom or Dad's home cooking, but a cash-strapped graduate would love having more food options beyond the dining hall. College students may not always have the option to cook food in their dorms. So if you're looking for high school graduation gifts, this could be perfect.
DoorDash is a popular choice for food delivery, and it's our top pick among food delivery apps, thanks to its numerous restaurant options and easy app interface. You can purchase gift cards for any amount between $25 and $500, customize it with a graduation theme, and send it to your graduate via mail, text or email.
Airbnb gift card
A lot of grads like to take a "senior trip" with their friends after graduation. It's a fun tradition -- but not one that every new graduate can afford. Help them out by surprising them with an Airbnb gift card. You can choose any amount between $25 and $2,000, and send them off on the adventure of a lifetime.
Uber
A lot of colleges don't allow students to bring their cars to campus their first year. Uber is perfect for a student who needs to get from point A to point B but doesn't always want to rely on public transportation. Plus, they can use Uber Eats for food delivery.
Amazon gift card
Yeah, it might not be the most original gift. But with prices ranging from $5 to $2,000, it's probably the most flexible. And since your grad will be able to use it on everything from tech and books to room decor and snacks, it's about the most versatile too.
Best personalized gifts for grads
Personalized picture frame
Personalization Mall specializes in personalized gifts for all occasions, including high school graduations. If you're looking for a keepsake that will help capture the day forever, this is the perfect high school graduation gift idea. There are a number of frames available, with prices starting at just $20.
Apple AirTag (2nd Gen)
If your grad is a bit messy and disorganized, that's only going to get worse once they leave home. An AirTag makes a great gift for anyone who's constantly misplacing things. These little item trackers can be slipped into luggage, backpacks and wallets or attached to keys, bikes and more. And if you order them through Apple, you can even personalize them with your grad's initials for free.
Homesick candle
If the new grad in your life will be moving to a different state, a Homesick Candle will give them a sweet reminder of home. These 13.75-ounce candles are created with a natural soy wax blend and fragrances tied to the geography of each state. So no matter where your grad ends up, they can light this up and let the nostalgia kick in.
Cameo video message
The grad in your life no doubt has a favorite movie, TV series or sports team. Any grad would smile ear to ear to see a personal video from their favorite celeb or reality star congratulating them on their graduation day. Cameo lets you seek out the person you think would most delight your grad and pay for a quick video from them. Prices vary quite a bit, but the end result is always pure joy.