Leaving Gifts for Men: thoughtful ideas beyond the usual

A man on your team is leaving and you need to get him something. If your first instinct was "whisky," you're not alone. That's the instinct of roughly 90% of people buying leaving gifts for men, which is why roughly 90% of men leaving a job end up with whisky they didn't want, a novelty mug they'll never use, or a generic gift card with "all the best mate" scrawled on the envelope.

Men get the short end of the leaving gift stick more often than people realise. Not because nobody cares, but because the cultural assumption is that men don't mind. He'll be fine with whatever. He's not going to get emotional about a gift. Just get him something blokey and move on.

The result? Less thought, less effort, shorter card messages, and a general sense that the goodbye was a formality rather than a genuine moment.

This guide is for doing it properly. Leaving gift ideas for men that are chosen because of who he is, not because he's a man - plus practical advice on what to write, how much to spend, and how to avoid the "panic whisky" default.

For the complete guide covering every situation and budget, see our full leaving gifts for colleagues guide.

Quick answers

What's a good leaving gift for a male colleague?

The best leaving gift for a male colleague is something based on what he's actually into - not a default "for him" gift. If you know his interests, go specific. If you don't, a gift with choice lets him pick something he genuinely wants. The message you write in the card matters at least as much as the gift.

How much should you spend on a leaving gift for him?

For a group collection, £5-10 per person is standard (usually totalling £30-100). For an individual gift, £15-30 works for most workplace relationships. Nobody remembers what you spent. They remember what you wrote.

The problem with "leaving gifts for men" lists

Google "leaving gifts for men" and you'll get the same suggestions on every page: whisky, beer, gadgets, cufflinks, a "funny" desk sign, or one of those multi-tool keyrings that nobody has ever actually used to open a bottle in an emergency.

The underlying assumption is the same one we pushed back on in our leaving gifts for women guide - that gender tells you what someone wants. For women, the cliche is bath sets and candles. For men, it's alcohol and gadgets. Both are lazy.

The man who doesn't drink gets a bottle of whisky. The man who's into pottery gets a steak rub set. The man who reads obsessively gets a novelty "World's Best Colleague" mug. Nobody asked. Everybody assumed.

And there's a secondary problem that's specific to men's leaving gifts: the "keep it light" pressure. The unspoken rule that a man's leaving gift should be jokey, that sincerity would be awkward, that a heartfelt card would be "a bit much." So he gets a funny gift, a one-line card, and a handshake. Then he's gone.

That might be what's easy. It's not what's good.

Leaving gift ideas by who he actually is

For the foodie

He's the one who knows every restaurant within a mile radius, has opinions about cheese, or brings in lunches that make the whole floor jealous.

• A cooking class - Thai, Japanese, BBQ, pasta-making, bread. Something he'd enjoy doing, not just receiving. Experience gifts tend to create more lasting happiness than physical ones.
• Artisan food from a quality producer - single-origin olive oil from Citizens of Soil (women-owned, sourced directly from small Mediterranean farms), specialty coffee from TrueStart, or a hot sauce collection.
• A restaurant gift card for somewhere he's mentioned, or a dining experience voucher so he can choose.
• A recipe book from a chef he rates, with a personal message from the team written inside the cover.

For the reader

He always has a book on the go, recommends podcasts nobody's heard of, and has strong opinions about at least one non-fiction genre.

• A bookshop gift card - Waterstones, an independent bookshop, or a specific online bookshop if he's into rare or secondhand books.
• A book you know he'd love - emphasis on "know." A well-chosen book with a personal inscription is one of the best leaving gifts you can give anyone. But if you're guessing, the gift card is more honest.
• An Audible or podcast subscription - for the commute listener or the person who absorbs books while running.

For the active one

He cycles to work, runs at lunch, plays five-a-side, or disappears into the hills at weekends.

• An experience voucher - rock climbing, kayaking, a surfing lesson, a trail running event entry. Let him choose from a range of activities.
• Quality gear - if you know what he'd use. A good water bottle, running socks, a cycling buff. Avoid anything where size or fit matters unless you're sure.
• A National Trust, English Heritage, or similar membership - works for the hiker, the runner, and the person who just likes being outside.
• Event entry - a charity run, an obstacle race, or a sportive he's mentioned wanting to do.

For the creative

He makes things - music, art, woodwork, photography, code, food. He has side projects and his eyes light up when he talks about them.

• A workshop or class - woodworking, printmaking, pottery, cocktail-making, music production. Something hands-on.
• Quality tools or supplies - a sketchbook, a set of quality pencils, a woodworking tool. Only if you know what he'd use - the wrong tool is worse than no tool.
• A gallery, museum, or exhibition membership - the V&A, a local gallery, the Design Museum. Something that feeds the interest.

For the one who quietly held everything together

He's the one who fixed the spreadsheet at 9pm, covered for people without being asked, de-escalated the difficult client, and never made a big deal about any of it. Every team has one.

• A team message book - where everyone writes something specific about what he did and what they'll miss. This costs almost nothing and is often the gift people keep longest.
• A gift with choice at a slightly higher budget - because he consistently gave more than was expected, and the gift should reflect that.
• An experience gift - dinner at a restaurant he'd love, a tasting experience, tickets to something he'd enjoy. Something that feels like a genuine thank you, not a formality.

For the one you don't know well

He sits across the office. You've spoken at the coffee machine. You know he supports a football team you can't remember and drinks black coffee. That's about it.

This is where people default to "whisky, because man." Same energy as "bath set, because woman." Same problem.

• A gift with choice - Huggg's gift with choice lets you set a budget and he picks from a curated range. No guessing. No address needed.
• A coffee shop gift card - small, universally useful, works for every relationship level.
• Quality biscuits or chocolate - from somewhere good, not the supermarket impulse aisle. Treat Kitchen (women-owned, inventive confectionery) does boxes that are a genuine step up from the default.

For the one moving on to something big

He's starting his own business, going travelling, retraining, or making a life change. The gift should acknowledge the courage of that, not just the fact that he's leaving.

• Something for the next chapter - a quality notebook or planner for the new venture, a travel accessory, a book related to what he's doing next.
• An experience that marks the transition - dinner out with the team, a tasting experience, an activity day.
• A group message that acknowledges what he's doing - "We think it's brilliant that you're doing this" goes further than "good luck."

The categories that work for almost anyone

If you're short on time or don't know him well enough for the person-specific approach, these consistently land:

Food and drink - artisan chocolate, premium coffee, a hamper of quality treats. Works for almost everyone and avoids the guesswork of personal taste in objects.

Experience gifts - cooking classes, wine tastings, activity days, theatre tickets. These create memories, not clutter, and the research backs this up.

Gift with choice - he picks from a curated range. This works especially well for men's leaving gifts because it bypasses the "whisky or gadget?" dilemma entirely. He decides. You don't stress.

Books - a well-chosen book with a personal note is one of the most thoughtful gifts at any budget. If you're not sure what he'd read, a bookshop gift card shows you paid attention to the fact that he reads.

Why the card matters more than you think

Here's the part that's specific to men's leaving gifts: the card tends to get less effort.

Not always. But often. The cultural pressure to keep things light means men's leaving cards are frequently shorter, jokier, and less personal than women's. A woman might get a page of heartfelt messages. A man might get three lines and a football joke.

That's a missed opportunity. Leaving cards are often the thing people keep for years - tucked in a drawer, reread when things are hard. A genuine message has real weight.

What works:

• "You made this team better in ways you probably don't realise. The way you handled [specific thing] was genuinely impressive, and I learned a lot from watching you work."
• "Three years of sitting next to you and I still don't understand half of what you do. But I know the team won't be the same without you. All the best."
• "Thank you for always being the person who said 'I'll sort it' and meant it. That mattered more than you know."

What doesn't work:

• "Good luck mate" on its own - says nothing.
• A joke without anything real underneath it - funny is fine, but pair it with something genuine.
• "You'll be missed" with no specifics - he'll know you wrote it in three seconds.

The bar for men's leaving messages is low. That means even a small amount of effort stands out. A few honest, specific sentences is all it takes.

How much to spend on a leaving gift for him

Same as everyone:

Group collection: £5-10 per person. Don't pressure anyone. Keep it genuinely optional.

Individual gift: £15-30 for most colleagues. Up to £40 for someone you worked with closely.

The real answer: the message is what matters. A £10 gift with a considered, personal note beats a £50 generic one every time.

Common mistakes when buying leaving gifts for men

Defaulting to alcohol. Not every man drinks. Not every man who drinks wants whisky. And even for those who do, a bottle of Glenfiddich with a generic tag is less thoughtful than a £15 gift that shows you actually thought about him. If he's mentioned a specific whisky he loves, by all means. But "whisky, because bloke" is the same energy as "flowers, because woman."

The novelty gift trap. Funny mugs, joke desk signs, gifts that reference how much he'll miss the office banter. These can work if the humour is specific and shared. They fail when the joke substitutes for actual thought. If the only thing personal about the gift is that it's funny, it's not personal.

Keeping the card too short. Men deserve genuine leaving messages. "All the best, legend" is not a leaving message. It's a text you'd send someone you vaguely know. Write something real.

Assuming he doesn't care. He might not show it, but a thoughtful leaving gift and a genuine message land just as hard for men as for anyone else. The assumption that men don't care about this stuff is why they often get the least thoughtful send-offs.

Forgetting the remote colleague. Men are slightly less likely to work part-time than women, but remote and hybrid working affects everyone. If he's not in the office, his leaving moment matters just as much. Huggg lets you send a gift without needing his address - he adds his own delivery details and chooses what he wants.

Support small and independent brands

If you want the leaving gift to feel a cut above the generic, choose from smaller, independent brands rather than high street defaults.

Through Huggg, you can browse gifts from quality producers - including several women-owned brands like TrueStart Coffee, Citizens of Soil, and Treat Kitchen. You can read their stories here.

Choosing a gift from an independent brand means the money goes further, the product tends to be better, and the gift feels more considered than a voucher from a chain. It's a small thing that makes a noticeable difference.

Making it work for remote and hybrid teams

If he works remotely, the default leaving experience is often: a Slack message, a brief video call, and silence. That's a flat way to end what might have been years of work.

• Send a gift digitally - Huggg doesn't require his home address. He adds his own delivery details and picks his gift.
• Time it properly - make sure the gift and message arrive on or before his last day, not three days later.
• Make the send-off accessible to everyone - if the team is hybrid, don't let the farewell default to whoever happens to be in the office.

For more on managing leaving gifts in distributed teams, see our full leaving gifts for colleagues guide.

The bottom line

The best leaving gifts for men aren't "leaving gifts for men." They're leaving gifts for Tom, or James, or Dev, or whoever he is - chosen because someone spent ten minutes thinking about what he'd actually enjoy rather than reaching for the nearest bottle of whisky.

If you know him well, go specific. If you don't, give him the choice. Either way, write something real in the card. That's the part he'll remember.

Send a leaving gift with Huggg | See gift with choice | See plans and pricing

FAQs: leaving gifts for men

What are good leaving gifts for a male colleague?

Good leaving gifts for a male colleague are chosen based on his interests, not his gender. If he's a foodie, choose artisan food or a cooking class. If he's into the outdoors, an experience voucher. If you're not sure, a gift with choice lets him pick something he actually wants. Avoid defaulting to whisky and novelty gifts.

What are the best leaving gifts for him?

The best leaving gifts for him depend on who he is. Experience gifts (cooking classes, activity days, tasting experiences), quality food and drink, and gifts with choice consistently work well. Pair whatever you choose with a genuine, specific message - that's the part that makes it land.

How much should I spend on a leaving gift for a man?

The same as for anyone. For group collections, £5-10 per person is standard. For individual gifts, £15-30 is typical. What you write in the card matters more than the price tag.

Is whisky a good leaving gift for a man?

Whisky is a good leaving gift if you know he drinks whisky and appreciates it. It's not a good leaving gift as a default because he's a man. Not every man drinks, and even those who do may prefer something else entirely. If you're unsure, a gift with choice or a food hamper is more thoughtful and less risky.

What should I write in a leaving card for a male colleague?

Be specific and genuine. Reference his professional contributions, a project you worked on together, or something you'll genuinely miss. Men's leaving cards tend to be shorter and more generic than women's - take the extra minute to write something real. Three honest sentences beat a one-liner and a football joke.

What's a good leaving gift for a colleague I don't know well?

A coffee shop gift card, quality biscuits from an independent brand, or a gift with choice all work well. You don't need to know him well to get it right - just avoid the gendered defaults. A genuine message with a small, considered gesture is always enough.

Should leaving gifts be different for men and women?

Not really. The best leaving gifts are personal, not gendered. A candle might be perfect for him. A whisky tasting might be perfect for her. Choose based on the person. For more on this, see our leaving gifts for women guide, which makes the same point from the other direction.

Are novelty or funny gifts good leaving presents for men?

They can be, if the humour is specific to your relationship and references something you genuinely shared. They don't work when the joke substitutes for actual thought, or when it's a generic "funny" item from Amazon. If in doubt, go sincere with the gift and save the humour for the card.

What's an appropriate budget for a man's leaving gift?

For group collections, £30-100 total (£5-10 per person) is typical. For individual gifts, £15-30 covers most relationships. The budget matters less than the thought - a £10 coffee gift with a personal message outperforms a £50 generic hamper.

How do I send a leaving gift to a remote male colleague?

Use a digital gifting platform like Huggg - no home address needed. Send a gift with choice alongside a personal message, timed to arrive on or before his last day. For remote colleagues, there's no natural office farewell, so the gift and message carry even more weight.