The 30 Best Gift Cards for College Students

What can’t you get from Amazon? Let your recipient decide what they need, from a Nutri-bullet to a couch to a projector screen for their dorm room (or parent’s house because of COVID).

Possibly the best, easiest gift card to give anyone.

Every college kid survives on coffee and Red Bull (is Red Bull still a thing? It’s been a while since I’ve been in college.) A Starbucks gift card is perfect for all-nighters or just to jump-start their morning before an 8 am class. 

Whether it’s for breakfast, lunch, or dinner (or all three), pizza is truly an anytime meal. With endless combinations and the $5.99 Mix & Match Deal, this gift card will keep its young, broke recipient from going hungry.

Whether the money will go to a new laptop, a big screen TV, or the new PS5, the Best Buy gift card is perfect in aiding someone to study or to avoid studying.  It’s really either/or at this point. 

While you may have seen prices drop during the pandemic, one thing that seems to be as costly as ever are Ubers, something that feels necessary if you’re still not comfortable with riding the train. With the Uber gift card, you can help ease the cost of transportation and a stressed college’s kid mental at the same time.  

Who has the time or energy to cook now, much less when you’re in college and already strapped for cash and time? This eases the mental burden of “What should I make tonight for dinner?” and as a bonus, it can help support small businesses and the economy.

For the person whose favorite take out spot isn’t available on Seamless, give them a GrubHub gift card. No one will ever tire of lazily ordering food through an app. 

I always wish I had more time to read, but with Audible, catching up on the newest books (and podcasts!) has never been so easy.  There are thousands of options and audiobooks are perfect for when you want to change up your commutes, workouts, or boring laundry sessions.

There’s always something a dorm room is missing...and if not a dorm room, then the basement of your parents’ house. I recently copped a Keurig coffee maker from my local BBB and it was a game-changer for my mornings. This is a great gift to help young adults buy all the things they need as they transition to adulthood. 

Gyms have been in the state of shutting down-opening back up-then shutting back down again for the past few months so they might want to hold off on using this gift card, but ClassPass allows them to try out different work out classes until they find the one they love. If you have someone in mind who hasn’t found their perfect fitness routine or get bored quickly, this gift card might do the trick.

The gift of music is always a great idea.  Whether it’s for workouts, cleaning, studying, relaxing, or a million other activities, having access to your favorite songs and artists always makes tasks better, and the premium service allows you to listen commercial-free. 

Everyone found themselves spending a lot more time indoors in 2020 and there’s only so long a person can be productive before they are completely exhausted.  If they already don’t have a Netflix account, quickly purchase and send their way because sometimes the only road to feeling better is to sit on your couch and watch 100 hours of TV and movies.

Not everything you want to stream is available on Netflix and for that, you need Hulu Plus. This is especially helpful for shows that are still on the air and for some of the harder to stream movies (I’m looking at you, Halloweentown.) 

If the person you have in mind is more of a creative soul (or maybe they are tired of doing 10,000 piece puzzles), a gift card to Michaels will allow them to unleash all of their artsy dreams!  Whether they like drawing, painting, scrapbooking, building or creating anything at all, Michaels has all the things. 

Groceries are already so expensive and eating healthy is usually the last thing on a college kid’s mind. A gift card to Whole Foods makes being mindful of what you’re eating so much easier and they might even be inspired to buy a vegetable or two.

Maybe they like reading but audiobooks aren’t their jam.  No worries, a Kindle gift card makes it easy for them to just download books straight onto their Kindle or their iPad (just have them download the Kindle app!) 

The Adidas gift card makes a great gift for the college kid in your life, whether they’re an athlete or just really enjoy fitness. They can pick up a new pair of sneakers or workout gear and can save their money for other more important things, like books.  Or drinks.  

If they’re trying to get the new PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X (because who isn’t? My brother has been trying for weeks!), this GameStop gift card can help them offset the hefty price tag.  Even if they aren’t trying to get a new console, this card is a win for any gamer. 

It doesn’t matter how many clothes someone has, they can always buy more. Consumerism, amiright? H&M has tons of affordable options, whether someone needs “interviewing-for-an-internship” slacks or “living-on-the-couch” sweatpants.

There’s something so magical about seeing an organized closet.  I personally follow tons of organizational IG accounts so whether they have Home Edit goals (or maybe you just want to be able to find all your sweatshirts), The Container Store has endless options for decluttering their clutter. 

If the college student in question is about to graduate, giving a gift card from a retailer can help them furnish their new apartment. Macy’s has a variety of items for every aspect of their post-collegiate life from plates for their new kitchen to towels for their new bathroom. 

Another great retailer option! Not only is Nordstrom stocked with home furnishings, but they have a great assortment of clothing, shoes, travel, and grooming items from top brands.

Target owns the market on Things You May Need and Things You Didn’t Know You Needed Until Right This Very Second. From electronics to furniture to toiletries to food, a Target gift card will be a favorite for any college kid. 

The best thing about a Visa gift card is that it’s just like giving cash, but it allows the recipient to feel like they can put it towards something more expensive. It’s practically accepted everywhere so there’s no danger in someone struggling to figure out where to use it. 

One thing I remember very vividly from my college days is always having to spend money on gas. Even when all my friends threw in, it felt like we were always having to stop somewhere to refill the tank because anywhere we really wanted to go was always the exact furthest point from where we were. This gift card allows there to be at least once less, “So who’s throwing in for gas?” round of collections.

Every girl needs instant access to Sephora as the brand offers tons of valuable beauty products that you'll benefit from daily. Whether it's makeup or skin care, a gift card from Sephora will come extremely handy.

Athletic gear and college campuses go hand-in-hand. If you need some comfy yet stylish outfits for class, then look no further than Finish Line. There's a variety of brands available on their online category, and the prices are reasonable.

Please don't pretend these don't come in handy. Sometimes in college you get into jam and when that happens, a $5 pizza (that is also very good) is the way to go. With many convenient locations across the U.S., a Little Caesars gift card is a very thoughtful gift for a college student.

This is often an overlooked gift. With concerts, games, and plenty of other live events back in action, a Ticketmaster gift card would be a college students dream. Just make sure you put enough on there for a plus one!

Electronics and college are another thing that frequently go together, and unfortunately it's always something during your university years. You never know when you are going to need a new laptop, repair, or a pickup for one of your courses, and a Best Buy gift card could go a long way towards helping out.