The 56 best food gifts for every budget in 2024

Associate editor Lindsey Smith, a self-proclaimed pasta snob, says that Rummo offers the tastiest, most authentic pasta you can buy. Buy a bag and pair it with a jar of artisanal pasta sauce or include a printout of your favorite Bucatini all'Amatriciana recipe.

Associate updates writer Maxwell Shukuya is a fan of all things coffee, whether it's a cortado from a specialty coffee shop or a single-origin pour-over prepared at home. For fellow coffee lovers, he recommends this award-winning, fruit-forward espresso blend.

This gift box contains an 8-ounce tin of La Monarca's house-ground Chocolate Mexicano, aka Mexican hot chocolate; a handcrafted molinillo to produce the perfect froth on each cup of chocolate Mexicano and a bag of traditional Mexican cinnamon cookies for dunking.

Add some zing to just about any dish with Blank Slate Kitchen's zhug, a vegan, gluten-free and non-GMO blend of jalapeño, cilantro, parsley, lemon juice, garlic, olive oil, salt, black pepper, cumin and cardamom.

Bonne Maman's eminently giftable variety pack includes mini jars of its strawberry, apricot, cherry, orange marmalade and redcurrant jams in teeny-tiny versions of its beloved signature jars.

Hot honey is a great gift for anyone, but we especially love it as a gourmet food gift for your better half or bestie, because it provides so many ways to tell your "honey" that you think they're "hot stuff" and the "bee's knees."

Honey sticks make a great addition to a gift of tea, or on their own for someone who takes pride in their elaborate home coffee bar setup.

Small food gifts can pack a big punch, especially when unusual flavors or visually appealing packaging is involved, like this chili fig spread that makes a perfect gift for a person obsessed with leveling up their charcuterie board. And if you're looking for gifts for the entire office — or another large group — it's also available in bulk at Target.

Sparkly maple syrup is a perfect gift for the person in your life who's always just a little over the top. Our copy editor Danielle Poiesz gifted this to her teenage sister, who not only loved the shimmery iridescence but said it tasted amazing on her heart-shaped waffles.

Zabar's babka is a practically perfect gift. It's delicious and comforting, and the Zabar's name and logo belies the wallet-friendly price.

At-home mixologists and cherry lovers alike will go wild for Filthy's black amarena cherries.

Mustard is, to many, the king of condiments, and a gift set from the Mustard Museum — yes, really! — is just the thing for the mustard lover in your life.

Maldon salt is the key to turning out the most delicious salted sweets like salted brownies, salted blondies and salted ice cream. Buy a giant tub of the stuff and you'll have a unique, practical gift.

Who says food gifts have to come in a box or basket? Why not give the food attached right to the tree it grew on by gifting them a dwarf Meyer lemon tree?

A jar of honey from the grocery store? A lame gift. But a tin of raw, golden honey straight from the comb? That's a gift that any sweet tooth will love.

Ippodo's light, sweet Sayaka matcha is a crowd pleaser, whether someone enjoys making traditional usucha matcha or sweetened lattes. Like all the Japanese company's teas, it hails from Kyoto Prefecture.

When you take two of the trendiest names in food and throw them together, you get smoked Atlantic salmon soaked in Sichuan chili sauce. Anyone who loves food will appreciate this collab, which is also available in a gift box if you pay a little extra on Fishwife's website.

It may sound extreme to carry a personal supply of premium salt, but we all know someone who would. For that person, we recommend this six-pack of petite salt tins, featuring five infused salts alongside a tin of pure flakey sea salt. The Rosemary Salt is a favorite of our home and gifts editor.

An upgraded oil is a great way to take home-cooked dishes to the next level. Gift your favorite home chefs this duo from Graza that includes a "Sizzle" oil for cooking and a "Drizzle" oil for finishing dishes. Gift boxes will vary depending on where you order from.

Baked by Melissa's Holiday Cheer gift set features its signature cupcakes in seasonal flavors like Christmas Sugar Cookie, Vanilla Fluff, Snowcap and Brookie. Choose from 25, 50 or 100 cupcakes.

The primary colors and geometric designs on Compartés' incredibly decadent chocolate truffles make them perfect for gift-giving for any person or occasion.

These colorful rainbow cookie brownies from the Oprah-loved brand Zola Bakes are a perfect — and delicious! — way to brighten up someone's day. Each pack comes with two raspberry, two apricot and two chocolate hazelnut brownies.

Levain Bakery's huge cookies are seriously one of a kind. This holiday gift set comes with four of the limited-edition dark chocolate peppermint cookies (trust us, they're delicious), as well as four of the bakery's classic flavors, which are equally as delectable.

There are some occasions that call for something pink and sparkly and pretty, and these cake bites fit the bill perfectly. Other flavors include Salted Caramel, Red Velvet and Birthday Cake.

We all have one friend who won't shut up about chocolate. They order it in their coffee, insist on having it in their desserts and love to talk about cocoa's health benefits. Well, this bundle of Fair Trade-Certified chocolates — including milk, hazelnut and caramel sea salt — is for them.

When we think of food gifts, indulgences usually come to mind (gourmet cookies, for example!). But healthy food gifts, even sweet ones, exist and can be fantastic choices for fitness enthusiasts or people who are especially particular about their diet.

Fruit is, naturally, one of the most common healthy food gifts — and one of the most popular. Harry & David's gold foil-wrapped Royal Riviera pears are one of writer Jolie Kerr's favorite things to give or to receive, because pears are just so elegant, and the gold foil is absurdly pretty.

You know what's better than bacon? Three kinds of bacon. D'Artagnan's gift sampler includes 12-ounce packages of uncured applewood smoked bacon, uncured hickory smoked bacon and uncured smoked duck bacon.

We love a personalized gift — especially a personalized food gift, such as these shortbread cookies that can be customized with a message up to 36 characters in length.

When you need to buy a present for the pinkest pink person in your life, look no further than the PinkGlow Pink Pineapple Gift Box. (It also makes a great gift for the person in your life who is obsessed with pineapple.)

Detroit's family-owned Shatila Bakery was named one of the 100 Best Bakeries in America by Food & Wine. Its elegant pastry gift box contains 60 pieces of assorted baklava, including bird nests baklava and mini roses baklava.

For the friend or co-worker who's just getting started in the kitchen, this set of eight seasonings is a great way to jump-start their creativity. Shukuya, who's tried a few of the brand's spices, says each blend has been well-balanced and delicious.

This gift tray is a healthy — and gluten-free — alternative to a box of chocolates. It features approximately 3 pounds of gluten-free goodies, including dried strawberries, cranberries, pineapple and apricots; roasted almonds, golden chickpeas and cashews; and half-popped popcorn.

If you're shopping for a person who loves ice cream, you won't find a better gift idea than Jeni's holiday collection. The gift set features five of the brand's seasonal ice cream flavors, including Boozy Eggnog, Iced Molasses Gingerbread and White Chocolate Peppermint.

Chocolate and caramel is a classic combo, and we love this set of beautifully designed artisan treats that elevates the form and makes a gorgeous gift.

Gifts of cheese are always super popular, and there are so many good cheese-forward gift sets to choose from that we could dedicate an entire guide to just delicious dairy treats. But we love this gift set from Rogue Creamery because it's a little different — it has all the makings for its famous grilled cheese sandwiches, including a recipe card.

Mercado's gift sampler includes one box each of serrania, jamón de cebo and 100% Ibérico jamón.

Going big is one way to up the wow factor of a food gift — but you can also go big name with a gift box of Rev Run's "Rev" velvet cookies.

Bonilla a la Vista's giant tin of patatas fritas is another entry in the "go big" food gift category, and it's the perfect thing for the potato chip lover in your life. Plus, it was one of Oprah's Favorite Things this year!

Magnolia Bakery is a classic for a reason, and it doesn't get more classic than its banana pudding.

Meat lovers will always welcome a steak gift set, but if you want to deliver a real surprise, send a package of pork butt burnt ends smothered in a Kansas City-style BBQ sauce.

When you need to send a birthday cake, send Milk Bar's grown-up version of the childhood classic, made of three tiers of rainbow-flecked vanilla cake.

No roundup of great food gifts would be complete without a steak gift. Omaha Steaks' filet mignon gift pack delivers decadence at an under-$100 price point.

Olive oil heads are sure to appreciate this trio of flavored olive oils. You can be sure they're good because each one starts with premium cold-pressed Greek Koroneiki olives.

Panettone is a staple of Italian holiday celebrations, and this Nutella-stuffed version takes it to another level.

Anyone obsessed with making pizza at home will fall in love with this set of Brightland products tailored to making top-notch 'za. They'll get a vibrant cold-pressed olive oil, an herby and spicy pizza oil, and a raw balsamic vinegar made with California grapes.

When the occasion calls for a unique dessert, Brooklyn Blackout Company's Blackout Cake is a stunner with a fascinating history. The recipe is inspired by the now-defunct Ebinger's bakery, which invented the extra-chocolatey cake during World War II.

Healthy gifts can still feel decadent, as evidenced by this incredible smoked salmon party in a box that serves 8 to 10 people and comes with everything you need to set out a gorgeous spread.

Killer Brownie’s massive multilayered brownies — each weighs almost 1/3 pound! — are gooey and rich, and eminently giftable.

Talk about a crowd pleaser! Don't sleep on sending someone you love a classic Honey Baked Ham. Serve between eight and 13 guests, depending on how much you order.

Even though charcuterie boards don't require any real cooking, they take a lot of artful (if not tedious) arranging. For anyone who loves meat and cheese but doesn't have the patience for all that, send them this pre-made charcuterie board. It comes chilled, on a board and ready to eat.

If you want to be a home cook's best friend, invest in this subscription, which sends a box of seasonal spices from editor-loved brand Burlap & Barrel four times a year. Best case scenario? They invite you over for dinner to thank you with a delectable (and well-seasoned) meal.

If you know someone who puts chili crisps on everything — no matter how weird — then this is the gift box for them. Not only will they get Fly By Jing's famous Sichuan Chili Crisp, but the box also comes with Chili Crisp Vinaigrette, Xtra Spicy Chili Crisp and other spicy condiments.

Sometimes you want to send someone you love a gift just because. When those times happen, Spoonful of Comfort's "Just Because" gift basket is what you want.