The best Secret Santa gifts for 2023, plus clever stocking filler ideas from under £10 (2024)

For the plant lover in your life, and there are definitely a few more since lockdown, you can buy a mini terrarium housing a cactus to carry round on a keychain. There’s the option of a white or orange spiked cactus, personalisation and gift wrapping, with the most expensive option only costing £10.50.

This is the secret Santa present for the murder mystery and puzzle fan in your life. Bonus points if you’ve got someone who loves both. Inside you’ll find 100 mini logic puzzles with clues, witnesses, codes and maps. It’s left up to the reader to deduce the culprit, based on all the information on the page. It’s a tried and tested success with fans of detective shows.

If there’s one universal desire we all share, it’s for a good nights sleep. So this gift is perfect, either for someone interested in wellbeing and self care or for that person who you just can’t think what to get them. Inside the kit, you’ll find a 5ml Deep Sleep Pillow Spray, and a 5ml Stress Check Roll On.

It might seem like the boring option, but sometimes chocolate is the safest bet when you don’t know your secret Santa recipient very well - perhaps a colleague you’re not particularly close to. I’d be delighted to receive this box of reindeer choc from Hotel Chocolat, made with high quality 40 per cent chocolate.

This gin tasting set from Sipsmith is a well priced way to treat someone to three 5cl bottles of gin, equivalent to a double shot each. Considering what you’d pay for a double in a pub, I’d say this is pretty good value for money. Plus, it’s a great way to try different flavours without committing to a whole bottle. We won’t tell if your finger slips and you accidentally order two...

My favourite body wash is bang within the budget at £10 on Sephora. It’s a luxurious, spa-quality shower gel that squirts as gel and turns into foam as soon as you rub your hands together. This Ritual of Ayurveda scent smells like sweet almond oil and Indian rose.

With the cost of heating going up every time you check the news, there’s no better year to gift a hot water bottle than 2023. This Dunelm hot water bottle is reminiscent of the rather more expensive The White Company Faux Fur Bottle, with a soft, teddy-like surface and colour choices of taupe or baby pink.

These hot chocolate stirrers are a bargain for £7.50. The solid chocolate blocks are filled with three different flavours: milk chocolate, salted caramel and marshmallow. All you need to do is stir them into hot milk and watch it form into a perfectly crafted hot chocolate. They’re perfect for anyone who enjoys cosying up with a hot drink under a blanket.

Who knew you could buy a pair of wireless earbuds for less than a tenner? This Groov-e set with Bluetooth connectivity is voice assistant enabled, has touch control and an impressive battery life of 20 hours, including the charge in the case. Obviously they’re not going to live up to the quality of your Apple AirPods or Beats but they’re a good everyday option for anyone prone to losing more expensive earbuds.

With the best toys for Christmas costing extortionate prices these days, it can sometimes be harder to find a budget secret Santa present for kids. But don’t overthink it, you can’t go wrong with this inflatable toss game which comes with one pair of antlers and four hoops. It’s something the whole family can join in with, even Grandad (though best to ask him first).

For either the perpetually lonely or someone who just doesn’t have the patience for a human boyfriend, this Grow Your Own Boyfriend kit from Amazon is just the ticket. Just stick it in water and watch it grow and if you needed any more convincing, in the words of the packaging, ‘he always shuts up.’

Remember that old joke about being so poor you’d get a lump of coal in your Christmas stocking and nothing else? This sack of gourmet cookies and cream marshmallows, made to look just like real lumps of coal is ideal for anyone on the naughty list. Each sack contains eight handmade cookies and marshmallows, rolled in dark cookie crumb and real organic activated charcoal, presented in a cotton sack.

Known as the money plant, this little succulent will last for months with very little fuss. The ideal desk side companion.

For the beginner film photographer, this easy to use point and shoot camera gives you twice as many images per roll and features a built in flash. Portable so you can capture every moment.

Fun for all the family, this version of the traditional Chinese tile game gets a beautiful update with illustrations by Ryuto Miyake, featuring Asian animals from the land, sea and air.

Plan your 2024 with a diary that packs a punch.

There is something about striking up a match against a beautiful box that makes those intimate dinner parties, or simply a winter’s evening at home, a little more special

With scents and ingredients which have been specifically chosen to soothe your astrological flaws, take a long bath with your star sign soap for a deeper clean.

A place for trinkets, snacks, condiments, spices, keys, jewellery… Dinosaur Designs’ beautiful resin bowls come in a rainbow of colours for every use.

Blink twice and you’ll miss it - there’s a slim chance there will be any of this delicious chocolate left by the end of Christmas day.

With contributions from Maya Angelou, Sienna Miller, Stanley Tucci, Chloe Sevigny, Luke Edward Hall and Charlotte Tilbury, this neat book celebrates the individuality of style and why it matters.

A must have in anyone’s stocking, these cashmere socks are sustainably made at a family-run mill in the Scottish borders.

Get the bubbles going with this festive bauble. Notes of cinnamon, clove and orange make it spicy and warming. Save for an end of holiday season soak.

This tiny speaker really packs a punch. Pack it in a suitcase for your next holiday or take it to a summertime picnic in the park. There’s no need to be precious about it - it’s both dust- and waterproof.

Refresh your walls with an art print. Drool Art have designs for all tastes and sensibilities - all you need is a blank space.