What to buy teen girls
Select independently determines what we cover and recommend. When you buy through our links, we may earn a commission. Learn more.
While some teen girls make a wish list with the specific gifts they’re hoping to receive on special occasions, others aren't so transparent and leave you struggling to find the right present. Without guidance, buying gifts for teen girls can be stressful — what’s considered “cool” is constantly changing, and teens tend to change their mind about their favorite hobbies, passions and preferences at a moment’s notice.
If you’re wondering what to gift the teen girl in your life this year, we recommended a handful of options across categories like beauty, apparel and home decor. And for more gift-giving help for everyone from moms to sisters, make sure to check out all of our gift guide content.
Best gifts for teen girls in 2022
Below, we rounded up some of the best gifts for teen girls this year. We recommended products from brands we’ve previously covered, as well as items we’ve used ourselves or think will appeal to a majority of teen girls, depending on their interests. The gifts we recommended span various categories and cover multiple different price points.
Eucan Home Sunflower Mug & Saucer
Teens can use this mug and saucer set to enjoy their favorite beverage, and they may even want to leave it out on their desk or side table as a piece of decor. The teacup comes with a matching sunflower-shaped saucer to rest the mug on top of or use as a plate if you’re enjoying a treat with your coffee, tea or hot cocoa. The set is microwave-safe and dishwasher-safe, according to the brand, and you can purchase it in colors like butter, silver, baby pink and more.
Eucan Home Sunflower Mug & Saucer
Eucan Home Sunflower Mug & Saucer $ at Eucan Home
Veja Recife Logo Sneaker
White sneakers are always in fashion, and the specific white sneaker model du jour is the Recife Logo Sneaker from Veja. (Yes, Velcro is trendy again.) These sneakers have a leather upper with a recycled polyester lining and rubber sole — the "V" logo on the shoe comes in different colors, including black, pink and light blue.
Veja Recife Logo Sneaker
Veja Recife Logo Sneaker $ at Nordstorm
Veja Recife Logo Sneaker $ at Bloomingdales
Joby Beamo MagSafe Ring Light
Ring lights can instantly elevate the video quality on Zoom calls and TikToks, but they are usually too bulky to bring outside the house. If you know a teen who takes their content creation seriously, this ring light is a great gift: According to the brand, it's the first MagSafe ring light, and it easily attaches to any iPhone that has the technology (if they don't have a MagSafe iPhone, it comes with a metal ring sticky adapter to attach to any phone). It has four different brightness levels and a built-in mirror so they can check their appearance before hitting record.
Joby Beamo MagSafe Ring Light
Polymer Clay Flower Ring
Y2K fashion has seen a massive resurgence (largely thanks to TikTok), and any trendy teen girl will appreciate a gift that feeds into the frenzy. These handmade clay rings are a subtle nod to the zeitgeist of the early aughts, with pastel coloring and a fun, whimsical vibe.
Polymer Clay Flower Ring
Polymer Clay Flower Ring $ at Etsy
Birthdate Co. The Tarot Candle
As your teen burns this candle and the wax melts away, they’ll find a gold-plated Tarot card charm hidden inside. They can remove the charm with tweezers and add it to a chain to wear as a necklace or bracelet or place it on a keychain, the brand says. The soy wax candle has a 40-hour burn time, according to Birthdate Co., and is scented with hints of bergamot, cardamom, verbena and eucalyptus. It comes in a reusable black tin.
Birthdate Co. The Tarot Candle
Birthdate Co. The Tarot Candle $ at Birthdate Co.
Jiggy Puzzles Flamingo Playground by Karen Lynch
Those who like to get lost in a puzzle can put together this 450-piece option and use the included glue to preserve their masterpiece when it’s finished. The puzzle has a flamingo design and measures 14 inches by 18 inches when assembled. The puzzle pieces come in a reusable glass jar and come with a print of the art to follow as you’re assembling.
Jiggy Puzzles Flamingo Playground by Karen Lynch
Jiggy Puzzles Flamingo Playground by Karen Lynch $ at Jiggy
Verloop Flower Stripe Big Knit Scarf
Verloop’s scarf acts as thermal wear during the colder months and adds a fashionable touch to jackets, sweaters and more. It has a daisies and stripes pattern that comes in vibrant lilac, stone blue or wine red colors and your teen can wear it long or wrapped up like a cowl, the brand says. The scarf is designed with hypoallergenic yarn and is machine-washable on a cold, gentle cycle, according to Verloop.
Verloop Flower Stripe Big Knit Scarf
Verloop Flower Stripe Big Knit Scarf $ at Verloop
Etsy Personalized Name Keychain
Keychains make great stocking stuffers during the holiday season, and you can add a personal touch to this option by adding your teen’s name, or a word or number that’s meaningful to them — before I went to college, for example, a friend got me a keychain with my hometown’s zip code. The keychain is made from acrylic and has rainbow lettering. You can choose the keychain’s tassel color and pick a symbol to add after the custom word, like a smiley face, rainbow or heart.
Etsy Personalized Name Keychain
Etsy Personalized Name Keychain $ at Etsy
Tower 28 Essentials
Tower 28, one of our favorite AAPI-owned brands, offers a wide variety of beauty and skincare products you can gift teens. The Essentials bundle comes with four products: tinted sunscreen, tinted balm, lip jelly and facial spray. When you order the bundle, you can choose the shades for the tinted sunscreen, tinted balm and lip jelly.
Tower 28 Essentials
Tower 28 Essentials $ at Tower 28 Beauty
Olive & June The Mani System
Gift teens everything they need to do their nails at home with Olive & June’s Mani System. The brand is one of our favorite women-owned businesses — after first using their products in 2020, I stopped going to the salon altogether because of how much I enjoy using the nail polish and nail care accessories. The Mani System comes with a top coat, a nail file, a buffer and a clipper, as well as a polish removal pot, a brush to clean up smudges and a cuticle serum. Olive & June’s Poppy — a polish bottle handle — is also included. You can choose to add up to six bottles of nail polish in your preferred colors to the box as well.
Olive & June The Mani System
Olive & June The Mani System $ at Olive & June
Dado 8-Inch Disco Ball Planter
Teens with a green thumb can hang this disco ball pot in a window to provide a unique home for their indoor plants. Light reflects off the planter and shines across rooms, and it comes with a chain and hook to hang up. I bought this planter for my apartment, and it’s one of my favorite pieces of home decor. I especially love that each planter comes with a personalized note telling you who packed it.
Dado 8-Inch Disco Ball Planter
Dado 8-Inch Disco Ball Planter $ at Amazon
Papier Gratitude Attitude Journal
Papier’s Gratitude Attitude Journal has pages filled with prompts that encourage your teen to reflect on their day and practice mindfulness. The journal includes five months’ worth of entries to fill in, as well as morning and evening prompts to complete. Some pages also have positive affirmations and inspiring mottos on them, as well as interactive activities.
Papier Gratitude Attitude Journal
Papier Gratitude Attitude Journal $ at Papier
Girlfriend Collective RIB Set Bundle
Whether they enjoy virtual fitness classes or prefer to go on daily runs, you can add to your teen’s activewear collection with this set from Girlfriend Collective. The set comes with a bra and bottoms, both of which are designed with fabric that has a ribbed finish to give the fabric texture. To build the set, you can pick from the brand’s Tommy Cropped Bra, Paloma Racerback Bra, Dylan Tank Bra or Devon Compressive Cami, and select either the High-Rise Bike Short, High-Rise Run Short or High-Rise Legging.
Girlfriend Collective RIB Set Bundle
Girlfriend Collective RIB Set Bundle $ at Girlfriend
Chamberlain Coffee Hot Chocolate Starter Pack
With Chamberlain Coffee’s Hot Chocolate Starter Pack, cocoa lovers can make their favorite beverage hot or over ice. The set comes with a bag of the brand’s Cocoa Grizzly Hot Chocolate as well as a double-walled mug and electric milk frother, which can help mix the cocoa into water or milk.
Chamberlain Coffee Hot Chocolate Starter Pack
Chamberlain Coffee Hot Chocolate Starter Pack $ at Chamberlain Coffee
Hedley & Bennett Poppy Gold Apron
If your teen is a chef or baker in training, they may need an apron to wear while whipping up dishes in the kitchen. This cotton twin apron from Hedley & Bennett, one of our favorite Latino-owned businesses, has an adjustable neck loop to customize its size, as well as a waist tie. The machine-washable apron is also designed with a pocket to hold utensils.
Hedley & Bennett Poppy Gold Apron
Hedley & Bennett Poppy Gold Apron $ at Hedley & Bennett
Hatch Restore
Teens who need some extra help getting out of bed in the morning may benefit from Hatch’s sunrise alarm clock, which is one of the best options you can buy. The clock wakes you up with a gradual sunrise light and sounds like morning birds, flute music or chimes. It pairs with a companion app you can use to customize its settings, and the alarm clock doubles as white noise machine.
Hatch Restore Sound Machine and Smart Light
Hatch Restore Sound Machine and Smart Light $ at Bed Bath and Beyond
Hatch Restore Sound Machine and Smart Light $ at Amazon
Hatch Restore Sound Machine and Smart Light $ at Pottery Barn Kids
Catch up on Select's in-depth coverage of personal finance, tech and tools, wellness and more, and follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter to stay up to date.
