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Buying a gift for the man who 'has everything' can be a daunting task. Whether the gift is for a birthday, holiday, or special occasion, you probably put a lot of pressure on yourself to choose a thoughtful gift to show your love and appreciation that they will truly treasure.

If you feel stumped and out of fresh ideas of what gift to get an important man in your life, you're not alone. The good news is that 25 men answered the question, "If you are a man who already has everything they want and need, what kinds of gifts do you love to receive?"


1. "My adult daughter took me out for dinner to a very expensive place. I reached for my wallet to pay and she insisted on paying because it was her invite and she wanted to spend time with me. I let her pay to show her respect for the person she has become. I'm one proud Pappa." – Dangerous_Warthog603

2. "Dad of a single child (20F). I'm in this boat. I either don't need anything or buy it if I do. But I really like consumables or nice meals/experiences. This meal sounds like an ideal 'gift'. There are simple candies and jerkies and such my daughter knows I like. We share reading and music and she gets me books and albums I'll like. Maybe it's off the table as she is underage and they are considered 'vices', but a decent cigar or bottle of wine would be welcome someday, too." – Foolish-Pleasure99

3. "I usually will just buy my dad expensive wine or rare/aged scotch since, like your dad, there is no point in trying to buy him most other stuff since he’s already bought it for himself. Consumables are the only thing I’ve found that make sense for a person like that." – pixelatedCorgi

ScotchRon Burgundy Whiskey GIFGiphy

4. "As a dad, I’d love to receive the gift of time. Time with my son / a lunch, dinner or just time to hang out." – 4_Agreement_Man

5. "An experience that he can share with his wife." – Nice-Conclusion1178

6. "I am the father of two adult children. Examples of great gifts my children have given me: going hiking with me, making me a homemade dinner, calling to wish me a happy birthday, going climbing with me, going kayaking with me, seeing a free concert or play in the park with me, taking me to a bar to see some live music. I cannot buy any of these things for myself." – baddspellar

7. "Take me on a trip. Take me on a new experience." – tomjohn29

8. "My dad (RIP) was one of these. The difference was, while he COULD purchase everything he ever wanted or needed, he didn't. He lived very meagerly. So I invested in small QOL improvements for him that I knew he'd appreciate. He used to love sitting on the couch eating ice cream directly from the carton, and he preferred those long-handled teaspoons for it. He had some teaspoons, but he was down to about 3 after several had randomly disappeared, and they weren't great quality. They bent easily (not ideal for ice cream) and a couple had gotten caught in the garbage disposal at one point so they were a bit rough to eat with. Still worked just fine, so he didn't replace them of course. So I went and spent like, $20 at Bed Bath & Beyond and got him 10 new, sturdy, long-handed teaspoons. You'd think he'd just won the lottery, his face lit up when he saw his new spoons. Such a tiny thing but he loved it. Try to think of things like that you could get for him!" – m00nf1r3

Ice cream.Ice Cream Food GIFGiphy

9. "My daughters’ art always gives me a smile. This year for Christmas I got a Yeti for my coffee that has beautiful hand-painted design all over it." – SpaceTraveler8621

10. "I’m a dad and my kids are out of the house. The very best gift is spend time with me. Take dad out to eat and ask him his opinion on something important in your life and listen. He’ll love it." – SageObserver

11. "Peace and quiet. Leslie Knope understands how to truly give gifts someone would like." – Cautious_Buffalo6563

12. "This is me. I have everything I want to have. If I don’t have it I can buy it for myself and not need to wait for a birthday or Christmas. When it comes to gifts I tell everyone I genuinely do not want anything. This doesn’t work because they will always want to get me something anyway. The best thing I can get is someone making me dinner or taking me out to dinner. Other than that I really don’t want anything." – JakeDuck1

13. "Come over, bring steaks, cook them on grill so i don’t have to. Perfection." – infomanus

Steak on grill.grill steak GIFGiphy

14. "Either precisely something they want but haven't decided to buy yet, or something that they didn't know existed but solves a problem or does something that is of interest to them. It's more work. Alternatively, some snack that they enjoy like licorice." – AdmirableBoat7273

15. "Attention. Nothing can compare to time and words in my opinion." – entench0123

16. "Experiences. Food tours, zip lining, shooting, etc." – IrregularBastard

17. "I’m impossible to buy for. This is what my son has done for me the last 2 years Christmas…Gift card to a local restaurant that I like, with enough on it for us both to have a nice lunch. And then we go have a nice lunch together and chat and catch up man to man. It’s great." – MustacheSupernova

18. "I prefer experiences. A dinner out, a weekend vacation, etc. Anything that allows me to spend quality time with my family." – dave-pewpew

19. "My dad always fusses when I buy him things, but he likes to eat. A few times, I’ve sent him a menu with different options for him to pick from and I cook for him when I visit. It’s always well received!" – pondpounder

20. "Book a fishing or hunting trip and go with him." – rollcasttotheriffle

Fishing.Father Son Fishing Trip GIF by Outside TVGiphy

21. "My Dad is this way, never wants anything so I offer him time and I spend the day with him when I visit or at least a couple of hours as often as I can. I live a couple of hours away but I make a point to call him during the week. We have different things we enjoy but I've made it a point to become interested in these he enjoys for more conversation and a common ground. I also make note when I go to his house if he needs stuff or if something his broken and run down. He doesn't really cook for himself so when I do visit I sometimes bring him some food I know he enjoys. That's not much help now, but might help in the future." – The_RaptorCannon

22. "A homemade cooked meal is always appreciated. It can be a simple meal and it would taste really good." – blacklotusY

23. "Seriously though - depending how old he is - the key is figuring out something he would want but that he’d never buy himself (or never even know he’d want). Some examples that I’ve done:

-My parents don’t bake but they love bread. I got him a gourmet subscription to fancy breads for 6 months.

-My dad buys the same shi**y shoes at Walmart no matter what but he loves comfortable shoes. Idk why he continues to buy shitty shoes at Walmart but he does. (He is a retired surgeon and has plenty of money). I find On to be a very comfortable tennis shoe brand. My dad has commented on how much he likes mine before. So I got him a pair for Christmas.

-My dad loves basketball but just never plans trips or buys experiences for himself. I took him to the opening round of the NCAA basketball tournament last year.

The thoughtful gifts are the impactful ones imo." – Rich-Contribution-84

24. "I recently got a gift where someone secretly took some old pictures of me and my grandfather and had them remade into canvas prints I can put on the wall. I was seriously touched." – kingfisher-monkey-87

25. "Write him a letter from the heart telling him why you love him, and what made him a great father in your eyes, include your favorite picture of you and him together. He will keep it forever." – DreamLunatik

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