Best High School Graduation Gifts for Him

When you’re spending long days in class or at a trade school your phone or tablet battery can be pushed to the limit.

Help them stay charged up when they need it with this 20,000 my charger capable of recharging their iPhone five times or their iPad, three times.

Next to cash, a gift card is probably the next best graduation gift for him. Like cash, he can use it to get what he needs and hold on to it until he actually needs it.

A Visa gift card is the easiest since he can use it anywhere. But you could also go with a gift card from one of these places:

• Amazon
• Under Armour
• Starbucks
• Kohls
• Best Buy

Cash may be an obvious gift, and arguably, for a high school grad it’s the most useful. He can use it for what he needs and simply save it until he needs it.

Plus, if he’s moving far away it’s pretty easy to take with him instead of some larger gift. When giving cash, consider including a thoughtful card with it and write a meaningful message inside.

Keep him safe on the road with a basic car emergency kit. I carried one of these in my car all through college and used it at least a dozen times over the four years.

Most often it was to jump my car or someone else’s so you want to make sure the kit includes good quality jumper cables. This kit covers the basics. If you’re getting this, you may also want to consider buying him a spare key for his car to keep in his form for the time he inevitably locks his keys in the car.

You could also consider gifting him a AAA membership so he always has a back up in case something goes wrong with his car.

 If he’s into board games or just looking for something fun he can do with friends then add these board games to his collection.

1. Settlers of Catan – popular strategy game that can be played in about an hour. 
2. What Do You Meme – a fun and quick game of creating your own memes. 
3. Cards Against Humanity – a fun group game that will have them laughing all night. 
4. Codenames – a challenging team based board game
5. For more suggestions check out this post on the best board games for a college dorm.

A simple pocket knife is an incredibly handy item to carry around. I find myself pulling mine out on an almost daily basis.

This small knife is the exact one I’ve carried around for about 5 years now. It’s inexpensive, sharp, and easy to use. It’s just the right size to keep in a pocket or backpack for when you need it most. Grab it if it’s less than $8.

Or pick up a nice Leatherman.

While you’re at it, you could also pick up a little flashlight like this one for him to keep around in case of emergencies.

A new computer monitor can be the perfect gift if he’s headed to college. It can double as a TV and gives him the flexibility of two screens if he’s going to be using a laptop.

Two screens can make writing college papers substantially easier and faster. This monitor is just the right size and has the best settings for using at as a TV or running it as a gaming monitor in addition to being just right for any other purpose.

He’s going to need a new backpack for college. So give him the gift of a high quality backpack that will actually last all 4 years. A Tumi backpack is one of the best investments I made and lasted me past college and into my professional career.

This North Face backpack will give him all the space he needs to haul books and his laptop around campus.

one of my favorite memories is a road trip with high school friends shortly after graduating. It was one last hurrah before we all headed off in different directions.

As a gift, you could give them a few gifts to help make it happen. Here’s a few suggestions:

1. Gas gift card
2. Borrow a car for the trip
3. Provide a road trip plan of places to go. 
4. Hotel gift card or nights with your points redemption

View top rated gaming chairs under $150.

Give him a Comfortable chair for all the time he’ll spend sitting in front of the computer doing homework, writing papers, and likely doing a little gaming.

A gaming chair is an excellent option even if he isn’t a gamer because they are designed for someone who will spend a bunch of time sitting and they’re much more exciting than the conventional office chair.

This chair even has a footrest and can recline so he can catch a few minutes of sleep in between papers.

If the above suitcase is less than $160 it’s a steal, but I wouldn’t pay more than $190.

Make sure he has what he needs to travel with a new suitcase or set of suitcases.

This 3 piece set will give him everything he needs to travel to school or around the world.

Alternatively, you could give him a great carry on size suitcase that will handle any trip around the world he may throw at it.

Help him stay clean shave or keep his beard fresh with a razor subscription.

There are many shaving subscriptions available now including Dollar Shave Club, Harry’s, and for the man with a beard, the Beard Club.

You can purchase a 1 year subscription for him so he’s taken care of for a while.

Many high school grads lack a good quality jacket so this is a great gift, especially if they are headed to a colder climate. 

Columbia makes some great jackets. This is a fantastic rain jacket and this one is a perfect all around jacket.

If you’re looking for a bit of a nicer jacket, this Carhartt jacket is warm and durable and this North Face jacket is made for wearing for much of the year.

If he has an iPhone adding an Apple Watch is a great high school graduation gift for him. There are quite a few options to choose from at various prices.

You can ask him which version he would like but personally, I like the series 5 Nike version. If he’s really into fitness, a Fitbit may be a better option

View top reviewed laptops under $400.

A new laptop is a must have for just about any guy leaving home. If he doesn’t already own one this can be the perfect graduation gift, granted it is a bit higher priced. There are tons of great options and narrowing it down can be difficult. So here’s just a few of my favorite choices:

• Apple MacBook Air
• HP 1TB 15.6 HD Laptop
• Acer Aspire 5 Slim Laptop

View top rated noise cancelling headphones on Amazon.

If you want to give a graduation gift he’ll use almost daily go with a pair of noise cancelling headphones.

In the last few years noise cancelling headphones have become far more affordable. While the Bose headphones are the top of the line option, the Apple AirPods Pro are another good choice.

I’ve personally been using the Wyze headphones for the last 6 months and they are incredible and come in at less than $75. Definitely check them out as a gift or for yourself.

Give them a little summer reading before they head off to school with this fantastic college help book. Really though, it’s not just for college students but for anyone who will have a roommate at some point.

It’s a quick read filled with helpful tips any graduating high school guy will appreciate as they prepare for roommate life.

Regardless of if his a tech guy or not, an echo device is a great gift. Want to relax to some music, just ask Alexa. Need help with some homework, just ask Alexa.

Want to prank a roommate with a fart noise? Just ask Alexa. If you go with an Echo Show they can even use it to stream video or call someone else with an Echo device.

A single serve coffee maker is the way to go as a high school graduation gift. It takes up almost no space and makes just the right amount for one.

The Keurig mini is a great option and works really well. Hamilton Beach also make a great single serve coffee maker for a bit less than the Keurig.

Check out top rated tool sets under $60.

You never know when he might need a few tools to set up or fix something. This all encompassing tool set is a great option as a one and done solution.

It covers all the basics he’ll need in a pinch. Of course, if he’s headed off to a trade school you may be able to get him more specific tools he’ll use in his future career.

A nice wallet is always a great high school graduation gift for guys. Even better if you find him one that can be personalized like this one.

Personally, I’m a fan of slim wallets since I do t carry much cash on me. This one is what I’ve carried around for a few years and it has held up great.

Send him off to school with a fresh pair of kicks. Some nice dress shoes, boots or sneakers can be a great gift as he heads of to whatever comes next.

If you’re not sure what exactly to buy, a shoe gift card is definitely a safe bet. Pick up a gift card to Nike, DSW, or Footlocker so he can get exactly what he needs.

The gift of Amazon prime is a great high school graduation gift for him. Make sure he can grab those last minute items with free shipping any time he needs.

Plus, you’ll give him access to Amazon music and Prime Video so he can relax with some of his favorite movies and TV shows.

These are easily some of the most comfortable shoes I’ve owned. There are a number of great styles so there’s sure to be one he likes.

As a runner I’m partial to their running shoes but they look great and often end up as my everyday pair of shoes as well as workout shoes.

Get a Free 8×8 Photo Book Here!

A personalized photo book filled with their favorite people is a fantastic graduation gift for him. He’ll enjoy flipping through it whenever he’s missing family and it will likely stay with him for years.

There are quite a few services that make it easy to create them but Shutterfly is probably the most popular.

Another great high school graduation gift for guys is workout gear. You can tailor this to whatever type of sport or workout he’s into. Here’s a few of my favorites:

1. Workout shorts
2. Weightlifting gloves
3. Perfect Pushup
4. Frisbee
5. Football
6. Basketball

Check out top rated bikes for men under $600.

If he is headed off to college without a car this is probably one of the best gifts you could give him.

A bike is easily one of the fastest ways to get around many college campuses and to and from apartment and campus. You’ll want a solid bike and a good bike lock.

However, before you give him a bike as a graduation gift you may want to see if he wants to wait and have it shipped to his first apartment since it’s a huge item to have to move in to college with.

Most people who give a gift include a simple card. But you can take it to another level by writing them a much more personal note.

You could include a personal story when you were their age or a memory you have of being with them. Really, just something that makes it more than a basic card.

Another great gift for gamers is an Xbox Game Pass or PlayStation Plus membership so they can pick up a new game or online service so they can play with their friends as they move far away from one another.

Regardless of if he’s headed off to college or not, cooking skills are one area he may need some help. A good cookbook is a great gift. The Budget Friendly college cookbook is one of my favorites.

Another great cooking gift is cooking lessons whether those are with you or someone else who’s a good cook. Just make sure you teach them a few basic cooking skills and a few simple healthy recipes.

If you’re quite the cook yourself you could gift a few of your favorite recipes.

Help him get started with an investment account by giving the gift of an Acorns account. I’ve used this over the past 6 years and it’s one of my most recommended passive investing tools.

It’s easy to set up and allows someone to save money while barely recognizing it’s gone. You can give them a gift card that will allow them to start investing and benefiting from long term growth.

If he’s a gamer this is a fantastic gift for blowing off steam while in college.

The Switch Lite has the controllers and screen so he doesn’t need to worry about having a television in order to play, which can always be a challenge in a small dorm or apartment.

The Nintendo Switch has been one of the best selling gaming consoles in the last year so this is a great graduation gift for a high school guywho doesn’t already have one.

If you’re looking for something simple you could make for the graduation ceremony, a candy lei is easily one of my favorite options.

I have tons of lei tutorials you can find using the menu but this basic candy lei tutorial will teach you everything you need to know to make your own in just a few minutes.