11 Amazing Free (Or Super Cheap!) Holiday Gift Ideas

No secret here, we love the holiday season! Celebrating your friends and family feels even more special this time of year, but finding the perfect gift for them can be a challenge. If you’re stuck in the same cycle of giving candles or socks every year, try some of these creative ideas instead. The best part? These gifts are totally free (or totally budget-friendly)!

Treating your friends doesn't have to break the bank -- sometimes the best gift is spending time together. Check out these easy, thoughtful gift ideas and then find even more ways to treat your friends.

1. Slumber Party & DIY Spa Day

If you and your friends are in need of some serious pampering on a serious budget, invite them over for a slumber party and DIY those spa treatments! Try out a homemade sugar scrub or lip balm with everyday ingredients you can find in your kitchen. There are also plenty of affordable products you can buy if you’re in a hurry. Treat yourselves to a day of rest -- you deserve it!

2. Make a Collage of Your Favorite Squad Photos

Your Instagram page is probably flooded with pictures of all the amazing times you and your best pals have had together. Turn those digital memories into physical ones by making a photo collage! This is the perfect way to celebrate your friendship and remind each other that you’ll always be there, even if you’re miles apart.

3. Make an IOU Activity Booklet Through Treat Yo Friends

If craft projects aren’t your thing, there’s an even simpler way you can make your friend’s holiday season special. What's better than "treat yo self"? Treat Yo Friends, a DoSomething campaign powered by Takis. Print out an “IOU” activities booklet and give your friends to some quality one-on-one time! Fill the pages with any activity -- big or small -- and your friend can cash in on a day of fun whenever they need it. It’s a gift that keeps on giving!

4. Have a Book Swap

Start your own mini book club this holiday break! Grab a few friends and lend each other your favorite reads. Whether you’re a ‘notes in the margin’ kind of person or a ‘no dog-ears allowed’ type, this is a simple and meaningful gift you all can bond over.

5. Make a Personalized Playlist

Mixtapes may have gone out of style, but this is the next best thing. Using your favorite streaming platform, build your friend the perfect playlist. Get creative! Give it a throwback theme or use songs that start with the first letter of your friend’s name. It’s a quick and easy gift, but still says you care.

6. Be Your Friend’s Stargazing Tour Guide

Great gifts don’t always have to be things -- shared experiences are just as special! Spend a night under the stars and learn to spot constellations with free apps like SkyView. All you need is your phone, some blankets, and travel mugs filled with hot cocoa to make the most of a beautiful winter night.

7. Give Cookie Recipe Jars

Nothing says holiday season like freshly baked cookies! These recipes in a jar are super cute and super easy to create. Grab an empty jar and fill it with all the necessary ingredients for your friend’s favorite cookies. If you’re lucky, they’ll let you be the taste-tester when they’re done.

8. “Open When” Letters

It may seem cheesy, but a handwritten note is one of the most special gifts you could give. Write a handful of notes that your friend can open on different occasions -- when they feel sad or stressed, when it’s their birthday, or when they need a hug. It’s a simple, thoughtful way to show you have your friend’s back no matter what.

9. Knit Something Special

No need to spend hours studying up on knitting tutorials, but if this is a skill you’ve been hiding in your back pocket, show it off! Knit your friend a scarf or a hat with their favorite color of yarn to keep them bundled this holiday season.

10. Ice Cream Pint Hugger

If your best friend loves to indulge their sweet tooth, an ice cream pint koozie is the perfect gift and movie night accessory. You can DIY this or grab it from Etsy for just $10!

11. Plant Friends Kit

This is the cutest pick for your friend with the green thumb. Order this kit -- complete with plant, googley eyes, and soil -- or use it as inspiration to put together your own.