45 company swag ideas people actually keep
Corporate swag ideas by budget and by moment: new hires, conferences and remote teams. Plus what to skip and how to order without the usual surprises.
A lot of branded swag ends up in a drawer or a donation bag. The pieces that survive have three things in common: people use them every week, the quality matches what they’d buy themselves, and the logo is small enough to wear outside work.
What makes swag worth keeping
- They use it every week. Bottles, bags, hoodies and desk gear. Not things that live in a drawer.
- It's as good as what they'd buy. One quality item beats three cheap ones.
- The logo is small. Tone-on-tone, on a sleeve or a tag. A huge logo turns a gift into an ad.
- It fits. Real size ranges, fitted and straight cuts, and a choice when you can offer one.
Company swag ideas by budget
Per-person ranges before shipping. Pick one great item from the range you can afford rather than three from the one below.
Under $15 a person
For big headcounts, events and everyday thank-yous.
- 1.Die-cut stickers. Laptops and water bottles need them. Design one people want even without the logo.
- 2.Fun socks. A bold pattern with the logo small at the cuff. Offer two sizes.
- 3.Enamel pins. Cheap to make, collectible, and they end up on bags and lanyards.
- 4.Webcam cover. Tiny, useful on every laptop, and the logo is right there on camera.
- 5.Cable organizers. Silicone cord wraps for the bag that always has a tangle.
- 6.Phone stand. Foldable and flat enough to mail. Lives on the desk for years.
- 7.Heavy canvas tote. Thick enough for groceries, with a small logo, so it leaves the office.
- 8.Dot-grid notebook. A good A5 notebook gets used. A cheap spiral one doesn't.
- 9.Lip balm and SPF. A giveaway people actually use at summer and outdoor events.
- 10.Local coffee or tea. A small bag from a roaster near your office. Gone in a week, remembered longer.
- 11.Luggage tag. Sturdy leather or silicone, for teams that travel.
$15 to $40 a person
The sweet spot for team swag people keep using.
- 12.Insulated water bottle. Used every day, which is the whole point. Pick one that fits a car cup holder.
- 13.Insulated travel mug. One with a lid that actually seals.
- 14.Soft T-shirt. A tri-blend in fitted and straight cuts, full size range. Boxy cotton gets donated.
- 15.Embroidered cap. A small, tone-on-tone logo on a washed cotton cap.
- 16.Beanie. Knit-in or patch logo, one size fits most, great for fall and winter events.
- 17.Wireless charger. A pad that stays on the desk next to the laptop.
- 18.Portable battery pack. Small enough for a pocket. Check airline rules before shipping internationally.
- 19.Laptop sleeve. Felt or neoprene in a neutral color. Ask for laptop size first.
- 20.Desk mat. A large felt or leather mat makes a desk look finished.
- 21.Compact umbrella. Used every rainy day, and the logo travels with it.
- 22.Chocolate gift box with logo ribbon. Boxes and collections from $32, with your logo on the ribbon and a note inside. See branded gifts
Over $40 a person
For milestones, leadership offsites and the swag people wear every week.
- 23.Premium hoodie. Heavyweight, a modern fit and a small chest logo. The one people wear on weekends.
- 24.Quarter-zip pullover. Smart enough for client meetings, comfortable enough for flights.
- 25.Fleece or puffer vest. The classic offsite gift. Ask for sizes; vests run differently by brand.
- 26.Backpack. A laptop compartment, a quiet logo and a strap that doesn't dig in.
- 27.Weekender bag. For milestone anniversaries and leadership teams.
- 28.Throw blanket. Knit or fleece, for home offices and cold conference rooms.
- 29.Over-ear headphones. Noise cancelling for open offices. Skip the logo on the ear cups.
- 30.Premium chocolate collection. Larger boxes from $108, branded on the packaging, shipped to each address. See branded gifts
New hire swag
A welcome kit sets the tone before the first login. Send it to arrive before day one.
- 31.A welcome box with a handwritten note. The note from their manager is the part they remember.
- 32.A hoodie or tee in their size. Ask for sizes in the offer paperwork, not after.
- 33.A desk setup kit. Desk mat, cable organizers and a webcam cover for remote starters.
- 34.A card the team signs. A digital card with one line from each teammate.
- 35.A first-week treat. Something sweet to open on day one. Our chocolate gifts start at $22. See branded gifts
The kit is one part of a good first week. See our guide to new hire onboarding activities for the rest.
Conference swag that doesn't get left at the hotel
Booth swag competes with fifty other tables. These get picked up and kept.
- 36.A phone charging station. Run it at the booth and people stay long enough to talk.
- 37.Multi-device charging cables. One cable with three tips. Everyone forgets theirs.
- 38.Stickers with a clever design. Made for the audience: a joke only engineers or marketers get.
- 39.Laptop-size totes. Attendees carry them through the hall, so your logo walks the floor.
- 40.Local snacks. Something from the host city, eaten on the spot and talked about.
- 41.Socks in a bold color. Easy to spot across a hall, and fun to wear.
Swag for remote teams
For people you rarely see in person, swag is the office. Ship it to every home.
- 42.A webcam light. Clip-on and small. Everyone on the call looks better.
- 43.A snack box for a team meeting. Same box to every home, opened together on camera.
- 44.A make-it-together kit. A candle, terrarium or herb garden they build with the team on a hosted call.
- 45.A shared gift day. One gift to every home in the same week, so the team talks about it.
Swag they make themselves. In a kit workshop, every guest gets a kit at home, then a host leads the team through it on a call. They keep what they make. Book about 3 weeks ahead so kits arrive; see all team building kits.
Prefer a gift to merch? Our corporate gift boxes start at $22, and custom logo gifts add your logo ribbon, branded inserts and gift tags. Each one ships to its own address.
Swag to skip
If you wouldn't keep it, neither will they. These are the usual suspects.
- Cheap pens. They run out in a week and say the same about your brand.
- Stress balls and fidget toys. Fun for an afternoon, then the trash.
- USB drives. Many security teams tell people never to plug in a drive they didn't buy.
- Plastic sunglasses and lanyards nobody asked for. Single-use and forgettable.
- One boxy shirt cut. If it only fits a few people, the rest never wear it.
- Giant logos. People won't wear a billboard outside work.
- Another mug. Most people already have too many. A sealed travel mug is the exception.
- Anything that needs batteries you didn't include. It goes in a drawer and stays there.
How to order company swag
Six steps that prevent the classic problems: wrong sizes, late boxes and a pile of shipping fees.
- Set a per-person budget, shipping included. Shipping a single item to a home can cost as much as the item, so budget for it up front.
- Pick one to three items. A hoodie and a bottle beat a box of eight forgettable things.
- Collect sizes and addresses. One short form: shirt size, laptop size if it matters, and a shipping address.
- Send vector logo files. Ask for a digital proof, and a physical sample for big orders.
- Plan about 4 weeks. Custom branded items take about 4 weeks; allow longer for 100 or more pieces or international shipping.
- Ship to homes, not the office. Hybrid teams leave office boxes unopened. Send each one to where people work.
Using swag as a reward? Pair it with our employee recognition ideas and employee incentive ideas, or get a free quote for branded gifts or a team event.
