14 Meaningful Gift Ideas for Mother’s Day That Won’t Break the Bank

Mother’s Day is just around the corner and many of us are starting to think about how we can make this year special for the Moms/mother figures in our lives. With inflation eating at our budgets, it can be hard to come up with ideas that don’t break the bank and yet are still meaningful and show the level of appreciation we’re looking for.

If you live close to the person you’d love to celebrate, an experience can be a great option that will lead to lasting memories. Pro tip, the experience doesn’t have to be on Mother’s Day and, indeed, your experience will likely be more enjoyable and less crowded on literally any other day. If you live far away or have a very busy schedule, giving a present is likely the more realistic scenario. Either way, the lists below give a variety of relatively low (or no) cost ideas for Mother’s Day. If you know you want to give a gift, scroll past the “Mother’s Day Activities” section below.

Mother’s Day Activities

1. Go to a local park or botanical garden for a picnic.
   • This idea is a standby in my family, in part because we have a lot of young children to accommodate. Going to a park can be a great option for allowing children space to play and be loud and messy without stressing the adults out. Even without children, going to a scenic park can be a lovely way to enjoy Spring scenery and create a picnic that looks decadent (think cheeses, strawberries, little sandwiches!) but costs way less than it would at a restaurant.

1. Revisit a place you loved together when you were young.
   • Did your family have a restaurant you always went to as a child that you haven’t been to in years? An activity that you would do each year when the weather was nice? Did you love going to, for example, the zoo or aquarium together and haven’t been in years? I think of a hike that my family did each Summer that we have not done recently but always brings back a lot of memories.
2. Explore flea/antique markets.
   • As a kid, my family and I often went to a little town about half an hour away to look at antiques. We’d almost never buy anything, but it was always fun to explore and often led to throwback memories when we would see things that reminded us of things we or our parents/grandparents once had.
3. Do an outdoor activity or sport like hiking, kayaking, a tennis/pickleball game, etc.
   • It’s hard to have more fun than when you’re playing a spectacularly bad game of pickleball. This can be a great idea for honoring a mom’s love of a particular sport/activity, especially when she may not get as many opportunities to play if, for example, she has kids still in the home.
4. Organize a movie night.
   • Find a movie you both love (bonus points if it brings back nostalgic memories) and stock up on popcorn, candy, and adult beverages of your choice.
5. Sightsee at a nearby town or city you haven’t been to (or have rarely been to).
   • Many of us have a cute little town we’ve always wanted to visit or maybe a city that’s only an hour or two away we never go to. Mother’s Day can be a great excuse to take a little time and explore someplace new.
6. Get creative by going to a local pottery studio, a paint and wine place, a local art gallery, a cooking class, etc.
   • These ideas can range widely in price, but you can often find Groupon or LivingSocial deals for local studios to help defray the cost.

Mother’s Day Present Ideas

1. Create a calendar (or photo album or mug or tote) with meaningful pictures.
   • Yes, it’s a little ways into 2023, but you can DIY your calendar by printing out month templates for free online (and so have your calendar start and end in May or June). Copy pictures into Powerpoint slides that have been resized to your desired dimensions and then print the collages up at your local Fedex store (Shutterfly, some drugstores, and more are also options). I’ve created a calendar like this for over 10 years and it is now a requirement that I make one each year because it’s always such a hit.
2. Offer to babysit.
   • If you are gifting presents to a mom who currently has kids, this is probably the most priceless present of all. The key is to actually make good on it and set a date very soon after giving the present. You can get extra cute about it by making babysitting “coupons”—i.e. good for one night of babysitting. You can get more extravagant by also gifting a gift certificate to a restaurant or the movies for a date night, but babysitting alone is a great gift.
3. A “nice” version of something she loves or wouldn’t normally treat herself to.
   • Of course, this can get into expensive territory if the Mom in question has really nice taste. But maybe she loves coffee and only ever gets herself the cheap kind—a couple of bags of nice coffee could be a big treat (I love Moka Joe‘s). Or maybe she loves her gin and tonics but never gets the gin that costs more than $20. It doesn’t have to be food either—it could be a yoga mat that isn’t slippery, washcloths that are designed for your face, a planner that’s actually a joy to use, etc.
4. New slippers or pajamas
   • I know, this is a pretty generic idea. However, with many people working from home (and, pretty inevitably) in pajama bottoms and slippers, many of us need new pajamas more than ever. Plus, I like to think of pajamas as the clothing version of mugs—you can almost always find a fun pattern that is tailored to something a person loves.
5. A game or puzzle
   • Aside from being a fun gift on its own, a new game or puzzle can be a great excuse for future get togethers and even more fun memories. Games like What Do You Meme, Exploding Kittens, and Telestrations can lead to a lot of laughs and are fun for a range of ages.
6. An item to support a hobby she loves
   • This could be a plant for the gardener (though preferably check with a partner or other family member first to see if there’s something in particular she wants), new pencils for an artist (pencils get used up surprisingly fast), an activewear top or hat for the fitness enthusiast (workout clothes can get stinky fast, so many people regularly need new workout clothes), or a “magazine” subscription to a relevant publication. A lot of print magazines have gone out of business, but still have online platforms that require a subscription to access content. For example, I read tons of articles from Trail Runner magazine but need a subscription to access those articles.
7. Give a signed or first edition book by an author she loves.
   • This could be expensive, but it’s often surprisingly cheap (as long as her favorite authors aren’t all crazy famous people). A lot of authors bulk sign a ton of books when they’re first released, so supply can be surprisingly large. Finding a genuine signed or first edition copy generally often just requires a little digging. Etsy and used bookstores websites can be surprisingly good places to find signed or first edition items.

For more general ideas on giving presents, check out my post on Finding the Perfect Present.

Do you have other gift ideas you love? Let me know in the comments! And if you enjoyed this post and/or feel like it might be useful for others, I would love for you to like, subscribe, or share.