What are years of service awards?

Years of service awards, also called service awards or employee service awards, thank employees for staying with a company to set milestones such as 1, 3, 5, 10, 15, 20 and 25 years. Most programs pair a gift or keepsake with a short presentation by the person's manager.

How much should a years of service award cost?

A common way to plan is to step the budget up with each milestone: around $25 to $50 at 1 year, $100 to $150 at 5 years, $200 to $300 at 10 years and $400 or more at 25 years. Fix the amounts in writing so everyone at the same milestone gets the same care. See our employee anniversary gifts for options with prices.

How do you present a service award to a remote employee?

Ship the gift to their home so it arrives before the date, then present it live on the team call with their manager speaking and a few colleagues adding a line. For a big milestone, book a kit workshop where every guest gets the supplies at home.

Are service awards taxed in the US?

In the US, cash and gift cards are taxable pay. Some physical length-of-service awards can be tax-free within IRS limits and rules, which our employee award ideas guide lists in full. Check with your payroll provider before you set the program.

What do you write on a years of service award?

Their name, the number of years, the company name and one line about what they bring, such as a project or a quality people rely on. For card and speech wording, see our work anniversary messages.

Years of service awards: milestones, budgets and a sample program

Q: Which service milestones should a company recognize?

Most companies mark 1, 3 and 5 years, then every 5 years. The early ones matter: median tenure with a current employer was 4.1 years in January 2026, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, so many people never reach 10.

Years of service awards (also called service awards) thank employees at set tenure milestones, most often 1, 3 and 5 years, then every 5 years. A good program fixes the milestones and a budget for each one in advance, gives every award a real presentation by the person’s manager, and runs from a monthly anniversary list so nobody is missed.

KraftyLab TeamUpdated Oct 20267 min read

See anniversary giftsGet a free quote

A manager hands a long-serving employee a wrapped gift and a framed certificate while coworkers clap in a bright office

What a service award program needs

Five parts. Without any one of them, awards start arriving late or unevenly.

Fixed milestones. Decide once which anniversaries get an award, so no manager has to guess.
A budget per milestone. Write down a range for each step, so two people at 10 years get the same care.
The award itself. A gift, a keepsake or an experience, plus something in writing they can keep.
A presenter and a moment. Their manager says a few words in front of people who know their work.
An owner and a monthly list. One person pulls next month's anniversaries from the HR system and orders on time.

Milestones and budgets from 1 to 25 years

Don’t skip the early years. Median tenure with a current employer was 4.1 years in January 2026, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (opens in a new tab), so 1, 3 and 5 are the milestones most of your people will reach.

The ranges below are our planning suggestion per person, not a survey benchmark. Scale them to your budget, but keep the steps. Each one shows a gift from our catalog that fits the range.

1 year: $25 to $50. A handwritten card from their manager and a small treat delivered to their desk or door.
Gift that fits: Signature Truffle Collection ($32)
3 years: $50 to $75. A gift box and a shout-out in the team meeting; the first milestone many people never reach.
Gift that fits: The Westhampton ($58)
5 years: $100 to $150. The first big step up: a lasting keepsake plus a gift, presented by their manager at an all-hands.
Gift that fits: Quogue Luxury Gift Box (Large) ($108)
10 years: $200 to $300. A choice between a premium gift and an experience, plus a paid day off they schedule.
Gift that fits: Chocolate Experience ($212)
15 years: $250 to $400. A senior leader presents, and the team adds written notes about what they learned from them.
Gift that fits: Chocolate Decadence ($268)
20 years: $300 to $500. A team celebration in their honor, in person or a hosted session on a video call, plus a premium gift.
Gift that fits: Chocolate Connoisseur ($432)
25 years: $400 to $750. The biggest moment in the program: a leader's speech, a gift they choose and something for their family.

Browse every option with prices on our employee anniversary gifts page; each gift can ship to the person’s own address with a personal note. For award names and words to read when presenting each milestone, see our employee award ideas.

What to give: five award formats

Physical keepsake. Lasts on a desk for years; pick something that suits the person, not just the logo.
Gift from a short list. Three or four options per milestone gives choice without a giant catalog.
Experience. A class, a tasting or a day out; memorable, and easy to share with the team.
Extra time off. One paid day at 10 years and more at 20 is often the award people talk about most.
Cash or a gift card. Simple, but taxable as pay in the US and soon forgotten; pair it with a real presentation.

In the US, tax treatment depends on the format: cash and gift cards are taxable pay, while some physical length-of-service awards can be tax-free within the rules in IRS Publication 15-B (opens in a new tab). Our award guide lists those rules. Check with your payroll provider before you set the program.

How to present a service award

Plan it the month before. Pull the list on the 1st and order gifts that day, so they land before the date.
Let the manager present. HR runs the program; the person who knows their work says the words.
Tell one true story. One project, one save, one person they trained. Specific beats long.
Bring in a few colleagues. Ask three to five people for one line each and read them out or put them in a card.
Pick the right room. Team meeting for 1 and 3 years, all-hands from 5, a leader in the room from 10.
Match the moment to the person. Some people love a stage, others want a quiet lunch; the award is for them.

Need the words? Our work anniversary messages are sorted by milestone and tone.

Service awards for remote and hybrid teams

Ship the gift to their home so it arrives before the date, then present it live on the team call: camera on, manager speaking, two or three colleagues adding a line. Never let the box be the whole award.

A remote employee at a home desk laughs as he opens a box of chocolates while coworkers on a video call raise their mugs

For 10 years and up, or a quarterly round of milestones, a shared experience works well: a kit workshop where every guest gets the supplies at home and a live host runs the session on your video call. Today’s prices:

Kits need about 3 weeks for US addresses, so book when you pull the month’s list. See more on our experience gifts and team building kits pages, or get a free quote with a full plan within 24 hours.

A sample service award program

Copy this into your handbook and fill in the brackets. It fits on one page.

Purpose: Thank employees for their years with [Company] at set milestones, the same way for everyone.
Who is eligible: All full-time and part-time employees. Tenure counts from the most recent hire date.
Milestones: 1, 3, 5, 10, 15, 20 and 25 years, then every 5 years after that.
Budget: [$40] at 1 year, [$60] at 3, [$125] at 5, [$250] at 10, [$325] at 15, [$400] at 20, [$600] at 25.
Extra at 10 years and up: [1] paid day off at 10 years, [2] at 20 years, to use within 12 months.
Presentation: Manager presents at a team meeting for 1 to 3 years; at the monthly all-hands from 5 years; a leader joins from 10.
Remote employees: The gift ships to their home to arrive before the date, and the presentation happens on the team call.
Owner: [People team name] pulls the list on the 1st of each month and orders that week.
Leave and rehires: Approved leave counts toward tenure. Rehires within [12] months keep their earlier years.
Taxes: Payroll reviews each award type once a year with our tax adviser.

What it costs: say a 200-person company has this many anniversaries in a year. With the amounts above, the gifts come to $5,470, before the paid days off.

1 year: 24 people × $40$960
3 years: 16 people × $60$960
5 years: 10 people × $125$1,250
10 years: 5 people × $250$1,250
15 years: 2 people × $325$650
20 years: 1 people × $400$400

Service awards are one layer of recognition. To plan the rest, see how to build an employee recognition program.

Mistakes that make service awards feel empty

Handing the award over weeks after the date, or by mail with no word from anyone.
The same logo item at every milestone, so 10 years feels like 1.
Skipping 1 and 3 years, when most of your people are at that stage.
Counting tenure differently by team, so two people with the same years get different awards.
A speech about the company instead of the person.
Forgetting remote employees, or presenting to them on a muted call.

Celebrating the company’s own birthday instead? See our company anniversary ideas. Someone retiring after a long career? Our retirement gifts page can help.