Best Survival Gift Ideas for Preppers [2023]

Best Survival Gift Ideas for Preppers [2023]

This page is updated frequently as we find even better gifts for survivalists and preppers. Check back whenever you need to find a gift for that tough-to-buy-for prepper in your life (or to update your own wish list).

The gift of preparedness is one of the best gifts you can give someone. Whether you are looking for presents for the Average Joe or the most prepared guy you know, we have you covered.

Preppers may seem hard to buy for but with the wide range of survival interests, there are plenty of great gift ideas to pick from.

These are sorted by price point, so you can get the exact gift you are looking for within the right price range.


Contents (Jump to a Section)


Special Occasions

Get ready for a specific holiday or event on your calendar with our expert-curated gift guides:

These are great because they are tailored specifically for Mom or Dad, and the Christmas guides include specific price points, stocking stuffers, and even white elephant suggestions.

If you’re looking for a broad list or maybe the best survival gift ideas in general, we got you covered below by price point.


Survival Gifts Under $25

Survivalists and preppers appreciate a thrifty find, and none of the gifts below will break the bank. Plus, all of these gifts are great to have more of. This means you don’t have to go sifting through their survival gear inventory to make sure they don’t already have it. If that is the case- even better!

Anyways, let’s get started with our favorite cheapest gift options:

Everlit Emergency Mylar Blanket

Mylar Emergency Blankets

Mylar blankets are versatile, small, and lightweight. They are an auto-include in almost every type of survival kit. You can’t have too many of them and they never expire, making them an excellent preparedness gift for anyone.

*Price at time of publishing; check for price changes or sales.

We know these specific ones are the best because they are our top pick for mylar blankets in our survival blanket review roundup.

Bayite Toggle Hole Ferro Rod

Bayite Toggle Ferro Rods

We are in love with these things. The Bayite toggle ferro rods are meant to be added on any drawstring. The two holes on each ferro rod let you pop one on clothes and packs so you have a firestarter ready to go anywhere.

*Price at time of publishing; check for price changes or sales.

They instantly upgrade anything with a string on it, so it is easy to see why this was our portable pick in our latest review roundup of the best ferro rods.

Rite in the Rain EDC Pen

Rite in the Rain EDC Pens

Pens have been a longtime go-to gift for retirements, birthdays, and more. Kind of boring. But when you put a survival spin on it, you’re giving one of the best pens you can find. This thing will write anywhere- even underwater and in space!

*Price at time of publishing; check for price changes or sales.

This is our top pen from our review roundup and comes in at half the cost of the original space pen. It’s another tool you can’t have enough of.

Fallkniven DC3

Fallkniven DC3 Sharpener

Grab the best portable sharpener you can find for your gift and you won’t regret it! Fallkniven has a great reputation for knives and sharpeners out of Sweden, and this little diamond sharpener will keep edges sharp on the go.

*Price at time of publishing; check for price changes or sales.

It fits perfectly in a pocket or a bug out bag, and is our top EDC pick from our sharpener review roundup.

Sawyer MINI Personal Water Filter

Sawyer Mini Water Filter

The Sawyer Mini is an incredibly versatile personal water filter that everyone interested in survival or prepping can’t get enough of. Clean drinking water is always a priority, so this gift is always a winner.

*Price at time of publishing; check for price changes or sales.

Sawyer edges out Lifestraw for our small filters but not the larger ones. You can see why in our survival water filter review roundup.


Survival Gifts Between $25 and $50

This sweet spot of gift-giving price points offers a huge range of gear with practical survival applications.

OKC Rat 1 Folding Survival Knife

OKC Rat 1

Ontario Knife Company developed the Rat 1 with well-renowned Randall’s Adventure & Training (known for their ESEE survival knives). It is universally recognized as one of the best sub-$50 survival knives you can get.

*Price at time of publishing; check for price changes or sales.

It is a perfect gift for anyone and is the top budget pick from our folding survival knife review roundup.


Prepper Gifts Between $50 and $100

Give serious survival gear and top-notch prepping equipment at this price point. Our gift ideas here are usually the top performers from our review roundups and include the gear we use and rely on every day.

ESEE Izula Knife

ESEE Izula

ESEE is the best of the best when it comes to survival knives and is universally loved largely due to their no questions asked return policy. They are actually impressed if you can beat one of their knives up enough to break it.

*Price at time of publishing; check for price changes or sales.

It is the perfect gift for those into bushcraft and wilderness survival as it topped our fixed survival knife review roundup.

Nesco Snackmaster Dehydrator

Nesco FD-79 Snackmaster

Besides just making great dehydrated snacks, this little countertop dehydrator can also help out with a prepper’s pantry. It is one of the best small appliance gifts you can get a prepper and will probably kickstart a new hobby (if not addiction)!

*Price at time of publishing; check for price changes or sales.

The Nesco is also our budget pick from our best dehydrator roundup if you want to check out the other pricier models.

Mission Darkness Faraday Bag

Mission Darkness Faraday Bag

A faraday bag is a unique bag used for EMP protection or general privacy by shielding the electronics you place inside. This one is big enough for a laptop and it’s another one of those things that preppers cannot get enough of.

*Price at time of publishing; check for price changes or sales.

This specific model beat the competition in our faraday bag review roundup.


Prepper Gifts Over $100

If you have a bigger budget or are looking for something to get your significant other you might find some good ideas in this section. When you throw aside a budget there are plenty of awesome prepping supplies and survival gear to consider.

Leatherman Signal Survival Multitool

Leatherman Signal

Leatherman has been making multitools for a while, but this is the first one explicitly made for survival. While you don’t necessarily need one for survival (a regular multitool works in a bind) this beauty sure is nice to have as a gift.

*Price at time of publishing; check for price changes or sales.

This survival-oriented multitool topped our review roundup of multitools.

MIRA Safety Gas Mask

MIRA CM-6M

Do they need an upgrade from their second-hand army surplus masks? This is it, and this is the top-tier CBRN rate mask they want. It’s a one-size-fits-most with the adjustable head harness so it’s the one thing you can buy them to wear that they won’t want to return.

*Price at time of publishing; check for price changes or sales.

Of course, this is our top pick from our gas mask review roundup as well.

SentrySafe Steel Safe

SentrySafe Steel Safe

Help them keep documents and stuff safe in a fireproof waterproof steel safe. It’s not a flashy gift, but it’s about as practical as they come and anyone interested in being prepared can appreciate that.

*Price at time of publishing; check for price changes or sales.

You could even add extra gifts inside the safe to turn this gift into a presentation they won’t forget.


Subscription Boxes and Gifts

Subscriptions are gifts that can deliver all year, and there are a lot of options to consider for survival-themed boxes. You can also go a little more old-school and pick up a magazine subscription. Why give once when you can deliver a gift all year long?

Recoil OFFGRID Magazine

Recoil OFFGRID

Give the gift of knowledge, entertainment, and getting unplugged with a magazine. While there is nothing wrong with survival and prepping websites (obviously), there is something to be said about holding and reading books and magazines.

OFFGRID offers a ton of survival tips and gear reviews- perfect for the prepper on your list.

*Price per month at time of publishing; check for price changes or sales.

This magazine came in at the top of our recent top 10 survival magazine list and was an editor’s pick.

Battlbox Survival Subscription Box

BattlBox

BattlBox is the survival subscription box to beat, and if your survivalist doesn’t have one of these showing up every month they would be stoked to get one. It can get pricy at the high end but there are several options to pick from.

*Starting price per box at time of publishing; check for price changes or sales.

With premium gear and no trash, these boxes are curated by the best and consistently bring value.

Crate Club Subscription Box

Crate Club

Crate Club is a self-contained supply drop loot box that outfits you with a better loadout each month. With a tactical survival focus the gear it comes with cuts no corners and will instantly find a home in the lucky recipient’s best kits.

*Starting price per box at time of publishing; check for price changes or sales.

It costs a bit more than other boxes, but premium always has a price and maybe whoever you’re buying for is worth it.


Novelty and Gag Prepper Gifts

You don’t have to just give preppers beans, bullets, and bandages. There is a huge array of gear that we appreciate, and most of us even have a sense of humor! Here are a few gift ideas that your favorite survivalist may not already have, but are always useful in SHTF situations.

Compawipes Compressed Toilet Paper Tablets

Compressed Toilet Paper Tablets

During emergencies, everyone rushes out to clear the shelves of toilet paper. Plus, the jokes about wiping your butt are endless for those with a refined sense of potty humor. But these little things are cool. With a little water, they expand into usable wet wipes.

*Price at time of publishing; check for price changes or sales.

It’s like watching science in action each time you get to use one of these, and they’re not bad at cleaning up either!

Hidden Book Diversion Safe

Diversion Safe

A diversion safe may seem like a silly concept at first, but it can be effective. Stash whatever you need inside, and you can even include other small gifts for a nice gift bundle.

*Price at time of publishing; check for price changes or sales.

A dictionary is believable for most people, but you could also opt to go for:

Travel Bidet

Travel Bidet

Any handheld bidet will do, but this is one of our favorites. It’s silly at first glance because it is another toileting item, but when you consider practical applications in survival situations this thing is a real workhorse!

*Price at time of publishing; check for price changes or sales.

Hygiene is important, and this gift is definitely a conversation starter!

Throwflame XL18 Flamethrower

XL18 Flamethrower

Looking for an expensive gift for a hardcore zombie prepper? Look no further…

*Price at time of publishing; check for price changes or sales.

A few reasons they’ll love it:

  • Shoots over 110 feet
  • ‘Napalm compatible’
  • Two color choices!

Survival Gift Ideas to Avoid

The most well-known personal water filter brands are Lifestraw and Sawyer, and the Sawyer Mini outperforms Lifestraw Personal slightly with more versatility. Check out our water filter review roundup. It’s a solid pick for any prepper and is useful in almost any survival kit.

Chinese Survival Kit

Chinese Survival Kits

Oh man, these things are just junk. Yet they sell like hotcakes. They are always on some sort of perpetual sale or ‘limited deal’ but are not worth their weight at the dump.

You can typically find these on Amazon between $20-$50 (like I said, always on sale).

Everything in these kits is cheap garbage that is the exact opposite of equipment you would want to rely on for survival.

The only time we would recommend these kits is maybe to kids playing in the woods.

You can get a good pre-made survival kit relatively cheap, or build your own.

Cringe Prepper T Shirts and Stickers

Shirts, Flags, & Bumper Stickers

Most preppers and survivalists don’t like to advertise.

It’s called the ‘grey man concept‘ and it is a mantra that helps people unassumingly stay under the radar.

Gifts that put their survival skills and prepper mentality on display for all to see probably will not end up getting used or appreciated. Besides, most things that you find directly preparedness related are cringeworthy.

Don’t get us wrong- there are plenty of other shirts, flags, and bumper stickers related to 2A, politics, or other ‘prepping-adjacent’ swag that your gift receiver may love to get. Just not prepping.


The Final Word

Whether you are polishing up your own list or looking for survival gifts for a friend or loved one, hopefully, you have found something that will work great. Preparedness makes a great gift, but just spending time with your loved ones is more important than gift-giving. If you need more help finding the perfect gift, check out our holiday-specific guides or our entire in-place survival kit list.

Keep exploring, stay prepared, and be safe.


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24 Survival Gift Ideas