Shopping for the holidays can be hectic, so between planning, traveling, and cooking, it’s easy to forget a few names on your gift list. But even if you’re not pressed for time, a digital gift is a great way to send far away friends and family a great present for the holidays.
Here are our nine favorite digital gift ideas this year.
1. Disney+
As one of the biggest names in streaming, Disney+ has a ton of content that anyone on your gift list will enjoy. A Disney+ subscription gives you access to both classic and modern Disney movies and a ton of Disney original series. But that’s just scratching the surface–there are plenty more Disney+ collections available.
Disney+ also gives you access to shows and documentaries from National Geographic, all three Star Wars trilogies, and some of the biggest movies from the MCU like Avengers: Endgame. You’ll also be able to watch fan favorite shows like The Mandalorian, WandaVision, and Agents of SHIELD.
Basically, if you know someone who can’t get enough of Disney, Star Wars, or Marvel, they’re going to love Disney+. So, this Christmas, why not gift somebody a subscription? You can buy somebody a whole year of Disney+ for the price of ten months.
2. Audible
If you know someone who wants to read more, but just can’t seem to find the time, Audible is a great way to help them get started. You can choose between one, three, six, and 12 month gift subscriptions for your recipient.
Listening to audiobooks makes diving into books less intimidating and more fun. Audible has over 200,000 different titles that cover all genres of literature, from classics to the latest bestsellers. With the premium Audible Premium Plus membership, you’ll get one credit per month to use on any title on the platform. Best of all, any audiobooks you buy with credits are yours to keep forever.
And if you don’t know where to start, all of Audible memberships come with unlimited access to Audible’s Plus Catalog, a selection of over 11,000 titles with unlimited listening while you’re subscribed.
3. Spotify Premium
People love to debate whether Spotify or Apple Music is better, but with over 450 million users, Spotify remains the world’s most popular music streaming service. So if you’ve got a music lover in your circle, Spotify Premium is a great gift that you know they’ll use. You can nab your recipient a full year of the music streamer.
Gifting a Spotify subscription means giving unlimited access to 80 million songs and 4.7 different million podcasts, all completely ad free. And features like curated playlists and Spotify Radio can help you discover more music that you’ll love. So, no matter who’s listening, there’s something for everyone on Spotify.
4. Apple Gift Card
We all know that person who’s a little too excited about Apple’s next big event. If you’ve got an Apple-obsessed friend or family member, you can’t go wrong with an Apple gift card. With the gift card balance, your recipient can buy themselves whatever they fancy most.
You can use an Apple gift card for anything and everything Apple. That includes all purchases on the App Store and iTunes Store plus devices like iPhones, AirPods, and Macs. You can even use it to pay for subscription services like Apple Music, iCloud+, Apple News+, and much, much more.
5. MasterClass
MasterClass is an awesome gift for the person in your life that just loves learning. The platform lets you buy an annual subscription on each of its different tiers, ready to gift to your recipient.
On MasterClass, you can learn skills like cooking, acting, and music. Better yet, courses on MasterClass are taught by some of the biggest names in the industry. The list of celebrity teachers on MasterClass includes former U.S. president George W. Bush, singer/songwriter Christina Aguilera, physicist Neil deGrasse Tyson, and many more.
MasterClass courses are designed to be approachable and engaging. Each course will not only teach you some great fundamentals, but will also help you dive into the mindset of the instructor. So if you’ve ever wanted to pick the brain of your favorite celebrity, MasterClass is a great place to start.
6. RosettaStone
Learning a language is an amazing way to broaden your horizons, and RosettaStone is one of the best language learning apps. You can choose between gifting 12 months of access to a single language, lifetime access to one language, or unlimited access to all 25 of Rosetta Stone’s language programs.
Rosetta Stone combines reading and speaking practice to help you quickly get a grip on the basics of a new language. And for more in-depth lessons, Rosetta Stone even offers group and one-on-one classes with a live tutor.
7. Ancestry
Although many people say family is one of the most important parts of their life, the truth is, most of us don’t know that much about our past. Gifting an Ancestry membership can help someone in your life find out more about who they are, and where they came from.
All you need to do to get started with Ancestry is enter a few bits of basic information about you and your closest relatives. Ancestry will then start searching their database of over 30 billion different records for info about your family’s history.
You might be surprised just how quickly Ancestry can start finding cousins and other long-lost relatives. And Ancestry makes it super easy to message and start connecting with any newly-discovered family members. The gift subscriptions allow you to buy either a six or 12 month subscription for your recipient on each of Ancestry's tiers.
8. Xbox Digital Gift Card
If you’ve got a gamer in your life, sending an Xbox digital gift card their way is the perfect way to level-up their gaming experience. Best of all, you don’t even need an Xbox to use it.
You can redeem an Xbox digital gift card in a ton of different ways. That list includes digital game purchases, hardware and accessories, and even movies and TV shows. You can also use the card to subscribe to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, one of the best subscription services in gaming.
There are a lot of reasons you should get Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, but one of the best is game streaming. You can access Game Pass on pretty much any device that can get online. That means you can jump into the action on your Xbox, PC, or smartphone.
9. The New York Times
Sending a gift subscription to The New York Times will let the news junkie in your life stay up to date with all the latest headlines. But, you might be surprised to see how much more the Times offers.
You can also gift access to The New York Times Games, a subscription which lets you play brainy games like Wordle, Spelling Bee, and over 10,000 different crossword puzzles. There’s also a cooking and recipe subscription, in-depth sports reporting from The Athletic, and buyer’s guides from Wirecutter, all available directly from The New York Times site.
Great Gifts, No Wrapping Paper Required
Times are changing. In the last few years, so much of our lives have gone virtual. If your job can go online without a hitch, there’s no reason that a digital gift can’t be a great present.
So whether you’re last-minute shopping, or want to send something to your loved one that’s on the other side of the world, a digital gift is a great way to spread some holiday cheer this season. And why not take the rest of your Christmas celebrations digital, with Christmas flicks you can rent or buy online.