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Retirement gifts

Retirement gifts from the company and the team

A good retirement gift is one quality gift, a card everyone signs and a send-off the whole team can join. Below: real gifts from $22 to $432, sorted by who's giving.

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From the company or from the team?

Often both: the company thanks them for the career, and the people they worked beside give something personal.

A retirement gift from the company

  • Scale the gift to years of service, and use the same scale for every retiree.
  • Have a senior leader hand it over at the send-off, not a courier.
  • Add a signed letter from that leader naming what they built.
  • Cover the send-off event as part of the company's gift.
  • Check your gift policy with HR before you pick an amount.

A retirement gift from coworkers

  • One pooled gift, with optional and private contributions.
  • One card that goes to every team they worked on, not just the current one.
  • Something for the life ahead, not a reminder of the job.
  • Give it at the party, or time it to land in their first week of retirement.

Retirement gifts by budget

Real gifts and prices, before shipping and branding, grouped by who is usually giving.

Under $40: from one coworker

A small gift and a handwritten card from you. Plenty for a coworker you sat near or worked with on a few projects.

$40 to $100: pooled by the team

The usual size for a team gift. Ten or more people chipping in keeps it to a few dollars each.

$100 to $200: from a department or their manager

For someone a whole department will miss, or a manager thanking a long-time team member.

$200 and up: from the company, for a long career

The company's own thank-you after decades of service, handed over by a senior leader.

Every gift opens our partner store, where you can order online. Sending to a long list or adding your logo? Get a free quote with volume pricing instead.

Retirement gift ideas for the next chapter

Things to add to the box or the card, from the team or the company. Buy these wherever you like.

  1. 1.A first-Monday delivery. Time a gift to arrive on the first workday they get to skip.
  2. 2.A weekday pass. For the park, museum or botanical garden they could only visit on weekends.
  3. 3.A watch or a good clock. The traditional company retirement gift still lands when a leader presents it.
  4. 4.Retirement business cards. Their new job title, chosen by the team: Chief Porch Officer, Head of Naps.
  5. 5.A filled-in first-year calendar. Each teammate suggests one thing to do in one month of the year.
  6. 6.Binoculars or a travel camera. For the birding trip or the road trip they've talked about for years.
  7. 7.A standing invitation, in writing. To the team's holiday party and summer outing, every year they want to come.

Make the send-off part of the gift

An hour with the whole team, including people in other offices and former colleagues who join from home.

A live host runs each one online, on Zoom by default (Teams, Meet or Webex on request). Hosted games book about 2 weeks ahead; kit workshops need about 3 weeks so a kit reaches every guest, with continental US shipping included. Planning the party itself? Our retirement party ideas cover the run of show, games and toasts.

More options: kit workshops shipped to every guest and hosted team games.

What to write on the retirement card

Two or three specific lines beat a long poem. Each person adds their own.

  • Name one thing they built.

    A process, a team, a client they kept, a new hire they trained.

  • Mention what comes next.

    The trip, the grandkids, the garden. It shows you listened.

  • Sign with how you know them.

    "Priya, from the 2019 launch team" helps when the card has 40 names.

Need the words? Copy one from our retirement messages and wishes, sorted by coworker, boss and employee.

How to give a retirement gift

Order early, keep the card moving, and hand everything over in one moment.

  1. Order 2 to 3 weeks before the send-off. Allow 4 to 6 weeks for 100 or more gifts or anything branded, like a company-wide thank-you.

  2. Start the card the same day. Pass it to former teammates and other offices too; a digital card works for remote people.

  3. Ship it to the office or their home. Each gift ships on its own with your note inside, to the US and internationally.

  4. Hand over the card and gift together. At the party, after the toasts. If the gift ships home, the card says it's on its way.

Retirement gift questions

How much should you spend on a retirement gift for a coworker?

There's no fixed amount. From one coworker, a gift under $40 and a handwritten card is plenty. A team pool usually lands between $40 and $100, and a department or a manager may go to $100 to $200. Our gifts start at $22. Keep contributions optional and private.

What is an appropriate retirement gift from a company?

A quality gift scaled to years of service, presented by a senior leader with a signed letter that names what the person built. Use the same scale for every retiree so nobody compares. Many companies also pay for the send-off, such as a hosted game or workshop for the team.

What is a good retirement gift for a coworker?

Something for the life ahead rather than the job: a chocolate gift box to open at the party, a pass to a place they can now visit on a weekday, or a calendar the team fills with ideas for their first year. Pair it with a card where each person writes one specific memory.

Who pays for a retirement gift, the company or the coworkers?

Often both. The company gives its own thank-you for the career, and coworkers pool for a personal gift. If only one happens, a company gift plus a team card is a common pairing. Check your company's gift policy with HR first.

When should you give a retirement gift?

At the send-off, after the toasts, together with the card. If the retiree prefers no party, give it on their last day or time it to arrive at home in their first week of retirement.

How far ahead should we order a retirement gift?

About 2 to 3 weeks before the send-off for a smaller unbranded order, and 4 to 6 weeks for 100 or more gifts or anything with custom branding.

Can you send a retirement gift to a remote employee?

Yes. Each gift is packed and shipped to its own address, home or office, in the US and internationally, with your note inside. Timing and regional shipping charges depend on the destination.

What do you write in a retirement card?

Name one thing they built or did for you, mention what they plan to do next, and sign with how you know them. Our retirement messages page has wishes to copy for a coworker, a boss or an employee.

Send them off in style

Tell us who is retiring, your budget and the date, and we will come back with a gift and send-off plan and a quote.

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