For whoever is doing the shopping

Gifts for someone going to uni that they will actually use

Short answer

The gifts that survive first year are the boring ones. A doorstop, an extension lead with USB sockets, a fire blanket, a first aid kit with a thermometer, and a tin opener that works. Buy the dull things nobody thinks of. Skip anything sentimental, breakable, or that needs an ingredient list.

Every year the same thing happens. The car gets packed with duvets, mugs and a framed photograph, and then two weeks later they ring home to ask which drawer the washing powder goes in. Here is what actually gets used, from someone who wrote a whole book about the questions people are too embarrassed to ask.

The ten things that actually get used

1. A doorstop

   Halls doors are fire doors. They are heavy, they slam, and they lock behind you. For the first fortnight an open door is how they meet the eleven people they are going to live with.

   Everyone else props theirs open with a shoe.

2. An extension lead with USB sockets

   A halls room typically has two plug sockets and both of them are behind the bed. Laptop, phone, lamp, kettle if they are allowed one. The maths does not work without help.

   This is the item that gets borrowed and never returned, which is a compliment.

3. A fire blanket

   Under a tenner, hangs on a hook by the hob, and does one job you hope it never has to do. A shared student kitchen at 2am is exactly the situation it was invented for.

4. A first aid kit with a thermometer in it

   Plasters, antiseptic, paracetamol, ibuprofen, and something that answers the question they will genuinely not know the answer to: is this a fever or am I just hot.

   Freshers' flu is real and it arrives around week three.

5. A tin opener that actually works

   The cheap ones fail on the second tin. It is always a tin of chopped tomatoes and it is always eleven o'clock at night.

6. Rubber gloves and a bottle of bathroom cleaner

   Nobody has ever bought these for themselves at eighteen, and every shared bathroom needs them by the middle of October. It is a deeply unromantic present and it will be one of the most used things on this list.

7. A small toolkit

   A screwdriver with swappable heads and a set of allen keys. Student furniture is flat-pack, and flat-pack furniture always comes apart before it goes back together.

8. A torch. A real one, not the phone

   For the fuse box, the meter cupboard, and the evening the power trips and the light switch is on the wrong side of a dark hallway. Phone torches are for finding keys, not for finding an RCD.

9. A laundry bag and a full-size bottle of detergent

   Not a bin bag, and not the travel-size bottle. They will do their first wash in week one and there is a reasonable chance the detergent goes in the wrong drawer, which is a thing nobody has ever explained to them either.

10. Ringfenced taxi money

    Twenty pounds, in a card, with the words "this is for a taxi" written on it. Not for a kebab, not for a round. The most useful safety gift there is, and the one that never appears on any list.

What not to buy

• A framed family photo. It goes in a drawer by November and then they feel guilty about it every time they open the drawer.
• A slogan mug. There are already nine in the flat and none of them belong to anybody.
• A cookbook with more than four ingredients per recipe. The shopping for it costs more than the meal and it will be attempted exactly once.
• An air fryer. By week two there will be four of them in the kitchen and a cleaning rota that nobody follows.
• Matching bedding sets. Halls beds are frequently an awkward size and rarely a double. Check before you buy, or do not buy.
• A plant. It is not a gift, it is a hostage.
• Anything engraved. It cannot be swapped, sold or quietly lost without a difficult conversation.

How much to spend

Most people land somewhere between twenty and fifty pounds, and spending more than that rarely buys a better present. The reason is that this is not really a gift-giving occasion, it is a kit-list occasion. Ten small practical things at a few pounds each will get used every week of first year. One expensive object usually gets left at home after Christmas.

If you want one thing rather than ten, buy the first aid kit. If you want one thing that also raises a laugh when they open it, you know where the buy button is.

Going-to-uni gifts FAQ

What should I buy someone going to uni?

Buy the dull, practical things nobody thinks of: a doorstop, an extension lead with USB sockets, a fire blanket, a first aid kit with a thermometer, a tin opener that works, and ringfenced taxi money. These are the items that get used weekly. Sentimental gifts get packed away, and anything breakable does not survive the car journey.

What do students actually need in halls?

Halls give them a bed, a desk and a shared kitchen. What they do not give them is a doorstop, enough plug sockets, cleaning kit for a shared bathroom, or any way of opening a tin. Those four gaps are where a useful gift lives.

How much should I spend on a going-to-uni gift?

Most people land between 20 and 50 pounds, and spending more rarely buys a better gift. Ten practical items at a few pounds each beats one expensive object, because the practical things get used every week and the expensive object gets left at home over Christmas.

What is a good gift for a school leaver who is not going to uni?

Almost everything on this list, because it is about leaving home rather than about university. Someone moving into a first flat or a house share needs the stopcock, the fuse box and the washing machine explained just as much as a fresher does, and usually sooner.

What should I not buy someone going to uni?

Framed photos, slogan mugs, plants, engraved anything, matching bedding sets, and cookbooks with long ingredient lists. Also an air fryer: by week two there will be four in the kitchen and a rota that nobody follows.

Last checked 2026-08-10.