Is there an important holiday, work anniversary, birthday, or other special occasion coming up? Are you looking for cool gadgets, cutting-edge subscriptions, and some of the best tech gifts for your developer friend or a programmer in your life? Have you left your preparations until the last minute?
Well, it’s time to start panicking! Or not, because we’re here to help.
The problem: what should you be gifting your favorite developer this holiday season? We know it’s not the easiest feat, so we reached out to our Arc Dev community to find out what they’d like to receive (with a few suggestions from Arc team members well).
We hope the list below provides some gifting inspiration. Let’s go!
Note: the links used in this article are not affiliate links, and Arc does not officially endorse any of the specific products mentioned.
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Clothes (Because Video Calls)
Help your favorite developer show off their personal fashion sense in their next Zoom call. You guessed it: clothing.
The classic is, of course, the T-shirt. We’ll let you decide whether to go with cheesy slogans, dank memes, Baby Yoda, or something a bit more classic. If they travel a lot, consider investing a little more and giving them a superfine merino wool one!
Read More: 5 Virtual Team Building Ideas for Remote Workers (& Why It’s Important)
Creature Comforts, Please
We’re hoping that the suggestion of medicated neck patches to fix neck soreness from long coding sprees was a joke, but the truth is that working in an uncomfortable environment can lead to injuries. Remote developers have the ability to build their setup how they please, and suggest:
- Standing desks (at a range of price points starting from IKEA’s most basic model)
- Cable management systems (for a basic go-to, try Velcro’s One-Wrap)
Bulletproof Your Battlestation
When your computer setup is critical to your career, it makes sense to protect it. One category of very practical gifts that developers always appreciate is accessories that help them avoid disasters. Try the following:
- Laptop protective case (for MacBooks, check out the Tech21 case)
- Surge protection, such as the Belkin or Monster power strips
- An external SSD that can take a battering/dunking (preferably with TB3 support) like LaCie’s offer
Read More: 5 Reasons Why Your Engineering Management Style Isn’t Working
Time to Unwind
One of the biggest struggles of being a remote developer isn’t getting started with your work — it’s being able to stop! Encourage your software engineer or developer to take a break and recharge with a nap-worthy sleep mask, a great book completely unrelated to software development, or some coaching sessions (maybe they always wanted to learn an instrument or a language, or would love a copy of Creative Cloud?).
Want to give them some more flexibility on the book front? Try an Audible subscription!
Quiet or Loud (but Nothing in Between)
Our Arc Devs are split on whether or not they want to have noise when chasing after the magic of flow state: some love it, some hate it. So we’d definitely suggest knowing your friend well for this one.
A popular productivity suggestion from our Arc Devs was a paid-up subscription to a music streaming service like Spotify.
Noise-canceling headphones are also considered a must by most developers. Again, do your research regarding the preferences of the coder, hacker, or other tech enthusiast you’re shopping for, as headphones are a highly personal choice.
Classic choices here include Bose and Sony’s wireless active noise-canceling options. If you’re looking for the best tech gifts for a programmer but want to keep it budget-friendly, you won’t be dissatisfied with the Anker Soundcore Life Q20 Hybrid. It’s a full-sized over-the-ear set of headphones perfect for all-day wear.
If the developer you have in mind also does a lot of business calls, consider a headphone set with a decent microphone (their colleagues will thank you!).
Read More: Developer Retention: How to Keep Your Software Developers Happy
Time for a Change of Scenery?
There are plenty of benefits to being able to work remotely. But if your favorite developer has been at risk of cabin fever lately, give them the chance to get out of the house sometimes! A subscription to a co-working space can provide a nice change of scenery, with the added benefit of some networking opportunities on the side.
Regarding networking, make it easier for your developers to share their contact information. Gift them a digital business card for easier networking and efficient contact management.
Accessorize, Accessorize, Accessorize
People will stare, make it worth their while.
Harry Winston
The quotation above may have been about wearing diamonds, but if you’re spending all day in front of a computer, it may as well both look and run amazingly.
Whether it’s the Ultimate Hacking Keyboard, a set of Joker-themed keycaps, or a fancy mouse, there are loads of options out there. But our Arc Devs warn caution on this one: accessories/cosmetics are highly personal, so if in doubt, ask.
Read More: Diversity & Inclusion in Remote Work: 12 Things You Need to Know
You Can’t Buy Time, But You Can Save It
We all want more hours in the day to relax and have fun. Saving time through productivity is the way to go, and Arc Devs suggest the following:
- A paid subscription to Rescue Time or Be Focused — also available through a subscription to SetApp
- Hiring a virtual assistant to help them out
- Paid project management apps (find out what they currently use!)
Back to School
Arc Devs love staying on top of their software engineering game, so a huge percentage of their suggestions were learning-based gifts. Some of the best included:
- If they love reading programming books, consider an e-reader (programming books can be massive!)
- A subscription to an e-learning platform suited to the developer’s knowledge level, like Pluralsight, Coursera, O’Reilly Learning Online, Egghead, Pirple, Codecademy, etc.
- Tech-stack specific courses and certifications, like Vue School, Testing Javascript, Linux Foundation Training, AWS certification, Kubernetes certification, or Algorithm training
- Tickets to upcoming conferences/conventions as well as bootcamps/hackathons (if you’re encouraging a new and/or shy developer, offer to accompany them!)
- Internet of Things-linked gifts, such as a Raspberry Pi 4, MicroPython Pyboard, classic Arduino, Netduino, etc. (these can also work well for a parent-child holiday project)
Read More: How to Integrate Freelance Software Developers Into Your Current Team
Spoil Their Pets Too
One of the big perks of working remotely is being able to spend more time with pets! The Arc team loves spoiling their four-legged (and otherwise) friends and showing them off in the #pets Slack channel.
If the developer has a dog, consider gifting a toy that is designed to keep the dog occupied for a long period of time, like the Kong Wobbler or the Ruffwear Gnawt-a-Rock.
If the developer is owned by a cat (not the other way around!), chances of finding a toy to keep the cat occupied for a long period of time, let alone just off the keyboard, are a bit trickier. There are many great reviews for the Snugglycat Ripple Rug, so keep this in mind as an option!
Show Me the Money!
When in doubt, cash or gift cards are always welcomed. For a spin on this, or for those who don’t like physical gifts, consider donating to your developer’s favorite charity in their name. We strongly recommend that everyone does their own research to select a suitable charity, but here are a few ideas to get your thoughts flowing:
Read More: How to Create a Remote Work Culture That’s Supportive, Positive & Fun
Over to You
If you’re still struggling with gift ideas for a developer after reading through the list above, we suggest a break and a coffee (come to think of it… that’s another good gift for a developer!). Have we missed anything? Let us know in the comments below.
You can also try Arc, your shortcut to the world’s best remote talent:
⚡️ Access 350,000 top developers, designers, and marketers
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