Birthday gifts for colleague: what people actually spend
The 4 ideas here run from $0 to $100, and 3 of them come in under the $55.65 people say they spend on an adult's birthday gift — per Empower, 2025.
This is the national figure for an adult's birthday gift, not a breakdown for a colleague — no published survey we could find breaks spending down by relationship, and the per-relationship numbers you will see elsewhere carry no source.
How the figure was collected — survey, sample and the date it was run.
- How much money should you give for a birthday gift for your colleague?
- No published survey we could find gives a figure for a colleague specifically. The closest published number covers any adult: $55.65 (Empower, 2025). 3 of the 4 ideas here come in under it.
- How much do people spend on a birthday gift?
- $55.65 on average for an adult, per Empower (2025). The 4 ideas on this page run from $0 to $100, so 3 of them sit under that figure.
A gift for your boss, where the amount says the most
When the office is collecting, and what to put in
At work, the ceiling matters more than the floor
The exception: a milestone or a leaving present
The dashed line is the going rate — $55.65. Bars show each idea's price range; the exact figures are under every idea below.
Under $25
A gift for your boss, where the amount says the most
Upward gifts are the hardest case on this site, and the difficulty is not taste. Anything generous given upward, to the person you report to, reads as an attempt to buy something, whatever was intended.
$0–$25
checked
Under $25
When the office is collecting, and what to put in
The collection is the most common form of workplace gift and the one people most often get wrong in both directions — by opting out, and by contributing conspicuously more than everyone else.
$5–$20
checked
Under $25
At work, the ceiling matters more than the floor
Most gift pages worry about spending too little. This one is the opposite: at work the risk is spending too much, and it is a real risk rather than an etiquette footnote.
$10–$25
checked
$50–100
The exception: a milestone or a leaving present
The ceiling on gifts for colleagues has one clear exception. A retirement, a departure after years, or a landmark birthday moves the gift into a different category, and the small-and-safe rule stops applying.
$40–$100
checked
Also worth a look
Prices are bands with the date we last checked them, not exact figures — why we publish them that way.