Gifts for Grandparents to Share: Ideas for the Two of Them

By the Gift DeskUpdated November 2, 202618 hand-picked ideas

Four we’d choose first

From the whole familySmart Digital Photo Frame~$150
Cozy evenings for twoCheese Fondue Set for Two~$50
Ends the thermostat warDual-Control Heated Mattress Pad~$100
Small and shared, under $15Large-Print Crossword and Puzzle Collection~$13

The short answer

Give them something they’ll use side by side: an Aura Carver photo frame the whole family can send pictures to, a Cuisinart fondue set for two, a GoSports bocce set for the backyard, or a dual-control heated mattress pad so each of them finally gets their own temperature.

Most grandparent gifts are bought for one of them: a gardening tool for Grandma, a book for Grandpa. That’s fine, but when you’re giving one gift from the whole family, or they’re a couple who do almost everything together, the best present is one they share. It sits between them on the couch, it comes out when the grandkids visit, it gets used on the porch together every evening.

We’ve organized this page around how grandparents spend time together: keeping up with the family, evenings at home, getting out of the house, and making the house itself more comfortable. There’s a prose section on choosing one gift for two people, and a run of small shared treats under $30 at the end.

Buying for just one of them? See gifts for grandma and gifts for grandpa. For a December gift, try Christmas gifts for grandma or Christmas gifts for couples, and if they’re getting frail, gifts for elderly parents covers comfort and safety.

Shopping for Christmas?Open the Christmas gift finder

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Keeping the grandkids close

What most grandparents want is more of the family, especially if they live far away. These gifts bring the grandchildren into the house every day, and some of them pull the family’s stories out of the grandparents too.

Our favorite1
Smart Digital Photo Frame
The Aura Carver is a Wi-Fi photo frame that everyone in the family can send pictures to from a phone app, so a new photo of the baby or the soccer game appears on their side table that same evening. Set it up before you give it and preload a hundred photos; grandparents shouldn’t have to touch the settings. It needs a Wi-Fi network in the house to work.
On Amazonabout $150
2
Wooden Recipe Box with Recipe Cards
A vintage-style wooden recipe box with cards and dividers. Give it with a few cards already filled in by the grandkids, asking for their recipes: Grandma’s pie, Grandpa’s chili, the Sunday pancakes. It turns into a family project, and one day it’ll be the most fought-over thing in the house.
On Amazonabout $40
3
Portable 35mm Film Negative Scanner
Kodak Slide N Scan Max Film Scanner
The Kodak Slide N Scan Max turns old slides and negatives into digital photos at the press of a button, with no computer needed. For grandparents with boxes of slides in the closet, it’s an evening project for the two of them, telling stories over every picture. Offer to help with the first batch and the family gets copies too.
On Amazonabout $210

Know exactly who it’s for?

Evenings for two at home

Many grandparents spend more evenings at home together than they did when they were working and raising children. These make those evenings feel like a little occasion: a new game, a meal for two, a small reason to sit at the table instead of in front of the TV.

4
Cheese Fondue Set for Two
Cuisinart 13-Piece Cast Iron Fondue Set
A Cuisinart cast-iron fondue set for a winter dinner of melted cheese and bread, or chocolate and fruit. For a couple who remember fondue from the seventies, it’s a nostalgic, cozy date night at home. Include a bag of good Gruyère and a baguette, and the first dinner is ready.
On Amazonabout $50
5
Cookbook for Two
Good Housekeeping Dishes for Two
Good Housekeeping’s Dishes for Two is full of proper dinners scaled for two people, for grandparents who cooked for a family for decades and still end up with leftovers for a week. It solves a real, daily problem with a little kindness. Mark a few recipes you think they’d like with sticky notes.
On Amazonabout $17
6
Wooden Backgammon Set with Folding Board
YMI Pasadena 15-Inch Wooden Backgammon Set
A 15-inch inlaid wooden backgammon set, the game many couples played on vacation decades ago and still play over coffee. Quick enough for a round after dinner, with a board that looks good left out on the coffee table. A good choice if they already play cards together every night.
On Amazonabout $50
7
Azul Tile-Laying Board Game
Azul is a beautiful tile game that two people can learn in ten minutes and play in half an hour, and it scales up when the grandkids visit. For grandparents who like puzzles and patterns, it’s a fresh alternative to the same card game. The pieces are chunky and easy to handle.
On Amazonabout $35

Getting out together

For active grandparents, a gift that gets them out of the house is a gift of more good days. These are easy outings that suit couples who walk, picnic or like a little friendly competition.

8
Weekend Picnic Backpack for Two
Picnic Time PT-Colorado Picnic Backpack
A Picnic Time backpack with plates, cutlery and glasses for two, ready for the park, a concert or a vineyard. They just add sandwiches.
On Amazonabout $35
9
Backyard Bocce Ball Set with Carrying Case
GoSports 100mm Regulation Bocce Set
A regulation bocce set for the backyard or the beach, gentle enough for any age and competitive enough to get loud when the grandkids join.
On Amazonabout $55
10
Scratch-Off National Parks Passport and Stamp Kit
Passport to Your National Parks Collector's Edition
The official National Parks passport for collecting cancellation stamps at every park and visitor center. A great reason for retirement road trips.
On Amazonabout $40

Choosing one gift for two people

A gift for a couple has to clear a higher bar than a gift for one person: it should suit both of them, not just the one you know best or the one who’s easier to shop for. A simple test is to picture who uses it. If you picture only Grandma, it’s a gift for Grandma, and Grandpa will feel like he got a card.

The good shared gifts are things they do together (a game, a meal, an outing), things that make their shared space better (warmer bed, a frame in the living room), or things that connect both of them to the family. Anything personal to one of them is better given separately, with something small for the other.

And if the family is giving together, it’s worth sending one person over to set it up. The best gift for grandparents is often your time, with the present as the excuse.

A warmer, easier home

Small comforts make a real difference as people get older, and they’re appreciated by both partners at once. These fix the daily annoyances that grandparents tend to put up with rather than complain about.

11
Dual-Control Heated Mattress Pad
A Serta heated mattress pad with a separate controller for each side of the bed, so one of them can be toasty while the other stays cool. For couples who have been arguing about the blankets for forty years, it’s a small miracle. Measure their mattress before ordering; this one is a queen.
On Amazonabout $100
12
Squirrel-Proof Tube Bird Feeder
Our pick: Brome Squirrel Buster Standard Bird Feeder
The Brome Squirrel Buster closes when a squirrel climbs on, so the birds get the seed. Hang it outside the kitchen or living room window, and it becomes the show they watch together over breakfast. Fill it before you leave and bring a bag of seed.
On Amazonabout $55
13
Sibley Birds Field Guide
The Sibley Guide to Birds, the field guide birders trust, for identifying what visits the new feeder. Grandparents who start naming birds tend to keep a list and compare it on the phone with the grandkids. Pair it with the feeder for a complete gift.
On Amazonabout $20
14
Desktop Weather Station with Outdoor Sensor
La Crosse Technology Advanced Weather Station
A La Crosse weather station with an outdoor sensor, showing temperature, humidity and the forecast on one clear display. For grandparents who check the weather three times a day and discuss it each time, it’s the most used screen in the house after the TV. The numbers are large and easy to read across the room.
On Amazonabout $55

Small shared treats under $30

For a card from the grandkids, a stocking or a little extra with a bigger family gift. Each one is meant to be shared at the kitchen table.

15.
Large-Print Crossword and Puzzle Collection
A large-print New York Times crossword book they can pass back and forth over coffee, arguing about seven down.
On Amazonabout $13
16.
Gourmet Jam and Preserves Trio
Bonne Maman Preserves Variety Pack
Bonne Maman preserves in a variety pack for weekend toast and scones. Simple, lovely, and gone by Easter.
On Amazonabout $25
17.
Swiss Chocolate Collection Gift Tin
Lindt Swiss Luxury Selection Gift Box
A box of Lindt Swiss chocolates to share after dinner. Good to ship to grandparents who live far away.
On Amazonabout $20
18.
Christmas Cactus Plant
A Christmas cactus that blooms every winter and can live for decades. Many families have one passed down from a grandparent.
On Amazonabout $30

Shop this guide by price

What makes a gift right for both of them

Picture both grandparents using it. If only one of them comes to mind, give it to that one and find something small for the other.
Set up anything with a screen or an app before you hand it over, and leave a one-page note with the basics.
Choose things that make the house warmer, easier or more full of family. Most grandparents already have enough things to dust.
Gifts from the grandchildren matter more than their price. A recipe card in a child’s handwriting can be the best part of the box.
If they’re hard to shop for, ask the gift finder for a couple who love their garden, their grandkids or a quiet evening game.

Questions people ask

What is a good gift for grandparents from the whole family?

A digital photo frame like the Aura Carver, which everyone can send photos to from their phones, is hard to beat. A recipe box filled with grandkids’ requests or a scanner for old family slides also work well as a family project.

What do you get grandparents who have everything?

Shared experiences and comforts rather than more things: a fondue set for dinners for two, a bocce set, a dual-control heated mattress pad, or a bird feeder with a field guide for watching the birds together.

What are good gifts from grandkids to grandparents?

Anything with the grandchildren in it: photos sent to a digital frame, recipe cards written by the kids, a game to play together when they visit. Small, handmade or personal beats expensive.

What can I get my grandparents for Christmas?

A photo frame with a year of family photos, a fondue set for a winter dinner, a heated mattress pad, a large-print crossword book, or a Christmas cactus that will bloom every year. See Christmas gifts for grandma and Christmas gifts for grandpa for one of them.

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Keeping the grandkids close

Know exactly who it’s for?

Evenings for two at home

Getting out together

Choosing one gift for two people

A warmer, easier home

Small shared treats under $30

Shop this guide by price

Under $25

$25–$50

$50–$100

$100+

What makes a gift right for both of them

Questions people ask

Related gift guides

Keeping the grandkids close

Know exactly who it’s for?

Evenings for two at home

Getting out together

Choosing one gift for two people

A warmer, easier home

Small shared treats under $30

Shop this guide by price

Under $25

$25–$50

$50–$100

$100+