Discover the 8 trends reshaping corporate gifting in 2025. From personalization to tech innovation, these insights will elevate your gifting game.
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After a year of tightened budgets and cautious optimism, companies are back on offense in 2025.
For those in the corporate gifting game, that means using rewards and gifts as a tool to engage and build loyalty with clients, customers, and employees.
In 2025, gifting budgets are rising, but recipient expectations are rising faster. We expect gift cards to remain the MVP of corporate gifting tools, but experiences and personalized rewards are angling for the title. That means if your program isn’t using technology to tailor rewards to your recipient’s actual preferences, you risk being left behind.
Corporate gifting programs are primed for growth in 2025. The leading indicator of a growing program is a stable and expanding financial foundation, according to the Incentive Research Foundation. This year, three in four business leaders told the IRF they were confident in their organization’s financial performance in the year ahead. That’s a 17 point jump from the previous year.
Another marker of a fruitful year ahead for corporate gifting is a friendly regulatory environment. Corporate optimism in 2025 matches the peak levels reached in 2022, which means business executives feel they can expand their reward offerings without running into compliance roadblocks.
Increased budgets, paired with smarter, more innovative program design, will enable organizations to amplify the impact of their gifting strategies. Companies that embrace this growth with thoughtful planning will be well-positioned to foster stronger connections, enhance employee recognition, and drive long-term success.
Employees and clients alike crave experiences that feel exclusive, personal, and memorable. Sending someone a logoed tumbler is fine; sending them to a concert, wine tasting, or virtual cooking class makes them feel like a VIP.
What sets experiential rewards apart is their emotional impact. Unlike traditional corporate gifts, experiences linger in a recipient’s memory. That’s why the share of discretionary spend consumers commit to experiences has rocketed 60 percent since 1960, according to McKinsey data.
Personalization and engagement matter more than ever to companies looking for an edge on retention rates for employees and clients alike. Experiential rewards are a powerful way to show you’re paying attention as a company.
Going green still isn’t a top priority for the majority of consumers, but three-quarters of buyers factor it into their purchases, according to a 2024 study from The Packer. That’s up from a negligible 4 percent in 2023.
Sustainability will become a more critical feature of corporate gifting strategies in 2025 because recipients associate eco-friendly choices with thoughtfulness, care, and an alignment with their values.
Gifting programs are an easy, visible way for companies to demonstrate their commitment to environmental, social and governance (ESG) goals and corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives.
Given 40 percent of corporate gifts end up in landfills, we expect to see more corporations offering swag made from recycled materials, giving locally-sourced goods as rewards, or sending flexible gift cards that have hardly any carbon footprint at all.
The self-care boom isn’t new, but it’s making a comeback in corporate gifting in 2025.
Employees have spent years navigating economic uncertainty, shifts in workplace expectations, political turmoil, and more. They are looking for ways to recharge, and savvy companies will help them find ways to get their mojo back.
This doesn’t necessarily mean physical gifts like spa kits and candles. Instead, think subscriptions to wellness platforms or gift cards flexible enough to be used for yoga classes, gym visits, or massage sessions.
Companies that integrate self-care into their reward strategies will ride a broader cultural trend where wellness is a priority, not a buzzword.
The workplace is shifting again in 2025, with more companies doubling down on return-to-office (RTO) policies. According to a ResumeBuilder survey of nearly 800 business leaders, half of companies require employees to be in the office four to five days a week, and 70 percent plan to increase or maintain those requirements in the coming year.
But the push isn’t without its challenges: eight in 10 companies have lost talent due to RTO mandates.
This tension highlights a critical need for corporate gifting and rewards strategies that work for both in-office and remote employees.
In-office employees benefit from gifts that enhance their day-to-day experience, such as premium coffee, ergonomic desk accessories, or on-site wellness programs. At the same time, remote workers value items that make their home setup more comfortable, such as noise-canceling headphones, home office upgrades, or meal delivery subscriptions.
The companies with the most effective strategies, however, won’t choose one over the other. They’ll find ways to unify the workforce through thoughtful, hybrid-friendly rewards. For example, gift cards and personalized experiences can work for everyone, regardless of location.
In 2025, companies that take a balanced approach to gifting will build stronger connections across their teams. By tailoring rewards to fit both in-office and remote realities, businesses can mitigate RTO challenges, boost morale, and create a culture that values every employee no matter where they work.
In the face of economic uncertainty, many companies reduced their per person spend. Gone are the extravagant, multi-thousand dollar splurges.
The average annual spend per person on non-cash rewards decreased from $1,090 in 2023 to $921 in 2024, according to the Incentive Research Foundation. A significant majority of gifting programs spent between $100 and $500 per person, while spend at both the thrifty and flashy ends evaporated.
As budgets increase, we don’t expect a return of those big splashes. Instead, we expect that additional budget to expand the pool of employees and clients who benefit from rewards and gifts.
Companies will opt for manageable, but larger scale, incentive programs by finding value beyond a gift’s price tag. This will look like personalized, flexible, and curated gestures that prove the power of gifting lies not in how much you spend, but in how intentionally you spend it.
A generic gift or reward is a missed opportunity. In 2025, the winners in corporate gifting will be the ones who tailor their rewards to the individual. A thoughtful reward doesn’t have to be expensive. It has to feel personal.
Consider a high-quality coffee grinder for the office barista instead of a generic coffee mug. For the fitness enthusiast, a gift card to their favorite activewear brand beats yet another water bottle. Even something as simple as a gift card to a local restaurant your recipient loves carries more impact than a one-size-fits-all option.
If you don’t know someone well enough to choose, let them decide with a flexible gift card that you can personalize and add a nice note to, and they can then use anywhere.
A personalized reward shows you see the person behind the job title. That’s how you turn a gift into a relationship-builder.
In 2025, technology will reshape how companies manage and deliver their gifting programs. With half of organizations expecting to increase their budgets for program technology, the focus is shifting from traditional approaches to streamlined, tech-driven solutions. This marks a 9 percent rise over last year’s projections.
Companies are investing in platforms that simplify the gifting process, offering everything from personalized recipient options to detailed tracking and reporting. These tools provide valuable insights that help refine and optimize programs.
Administrative budgets for rewards programs are also on the rise, with a 15 percent increase in business leaders who expected to spend more compared to 2024. This reflects a growing emphasis on building the internal structures needed to support more sophisticated systems. The result? Programs that are not only more efficient but also better equipped to scale and adapt to evolving employee and client needs.
Digital transformation isn’t just about technology for technology’s sake. It’s about making gifting programs smarter, more personalized, and more impactful. As organizations prioritize these advancements, they’re positioning themselves to deliver meaningful rewards in a way that’s seamless, scalable, and future-focused.
From rising budgets and personalization to sustainability and digital transformation, 2025 is poised to be a pivotal year for rewards programs. Companies that embrace these trends and adapt their strategies will foster stronger connections, boost employee engagement, and leave lasting impressions on clients and partners.
Whether you’re scaling up your program, refining your approach, or looking to make your rewards more meaningful, this is the year to take action.
Reach out to the Giftly team to see how we can help you navigate the year ahead and set your gifting and rewards program up for success in 2025.
Gifts & Rewards Perfectly Suited to Your Business. Easy to send. Awesome to receive.
Gifts & Rewards Perfectly Suited to Your Business. Easy to send. Awesome to receive.
