The Best X You Can Buy for under $50

November 20, 2024 11:53 AM

#giftideasfilter - What are some things that represent the best quality of their category, but in a small enough quantity that the price still comes in under $50(-ish)?

Good example: Selezione Tartufi 10% Black Truffle Sea Salt ($25 for 3.5 oz, has the highest listed percentage of truffle that I can find in a truffle salt)

Bad example: caviar, which from preliminary research can come in at this price point but it'll be the cheaper/lower-quality stuff.

The first examples that came to mind were food, but this could be beauty products, accessories (the fanciest socks ever??), etc.

I'm not looking for the best value, but the best-of-the-best, just in a smaller quantity. Think of this as "taste of luxury" gifts that the recipient would never buy for themselves. Price point is somewhat flexible, but affordability is the point -- so many "splurge" gift guides out there are at the $100-300 price point these days, and while those items are great, I don't spend that much on any single holiday gift even for close family.

posted by serelliya to Shopping (22 answers total)

Best answer: The Flatiron Pepper 3-pack is dynamite. The Four-Pepper Blend is our favorite for tacos and pizza, and has the best habanero flavor of any pepper flakes we've tried. The Hatch Valley Green blend is fantastic on eggs, and I like it on mac & cheese. The Dark & Smoky blend is great on barbecue or chili dogs, and weirdly is our favorite for reheated pizza. One of those things like, eh it's just pepper flakes, right? But then people try them, and oh my god.
posted by xedrik at 12:18 PM on November 20, 2024 [8 favorites]

The best cast iron skillet is from Lodge. Apparently it’s normally $60 and currently $48. But I’m pretty sure it’s usually under $50? There are splurges but I’m not convinced they are really better than Lodge (maybe Staub is, maybe a vintage Staub is.)
posted by vunder at 12:25 PM on November 20, 2024

Best answer: The new Anker 715 is about $35 and it is the best, smallest 65 Watt USB-C PD charger on the planet. I know this doesn't feel like caviar or comfy socks or whatever, but if you are the kind of person who needs something like this, the first time you hold this one in your hand you can't quite believe it's real.
posted by The Bellman at 12:26 PM on November 20, 2024 [4 favorites]

Best answer: I thought socks even before I saw that you mentioned them. I love Darn Tough. They run around $25 but are significantly more comfortable and more durable than cheap or even mid-priced socks. And there are plenty of other great socks in the same price range.
posted by Mr.Know-it-some at 12:31 PM on November 20, 2024 [7 favorites]

Best answer: If you like dessert wines, Sauternes is often bottled in half-bottles (375 ml) so even some really good ones like this Chateau Suduiraut 2015 come in under the $50 mark.
posted by Daily Alice at 12:39 PM on November 20, 2024 [6 favorites]

I’d suggest Penzey or Spicewalla spices. Sure, you could just got to the grocery store but this is the fancy version of spices.
posted by raccoon409 at 12:49 PM on November 20, 2024 [4 favorites]

Best answer: Do you like hot sauce? The best four pack of hot sauce you can buy is from Cutino Sauce Company. Their jalapeno is amazing - extremely flavorful with enough heat to warm but not scorch. Their verde is some of the best non-homemade I've had, their habanero is just on the right side of "wow this is getting too hot to handle", and their mango is delightful (I don't like chipotle as a flavor so I can't speak to it specifically).

The best thing about their four pack is you can build your own, so if you like one flavor you can get all four bottles in one flavor, or get two of one and one each of two others, or whatever. They're all great.
posted by pdb at 12:58 PM on November 20, 2024 [1 favorite]

Best answer: Palouse Brand -- chick peas, split peas, and probably other stuff as well. They are next level flavor and fresh.

And seconding the Flatiron Pepper 3-pack. Great stuff.
posted by Winnie the Proust at 1:06 PM on November 20, 2024 [2 favorites]

The best reusable bags, in my opinion, are Baggu. They are inexpensive, hold up to 50 lbs of everything you need, and come in patterns that are a pleasure to see and to hold. They are nylon with significant recycled content. While the standard size ($14) is the best for groceries, I also get a lot of mileage out of the baby size ($12), which is great for produce, lunch, to hold your keys and wallet when you run out of the house for a minute, etc.

They don't pay me for endorsements, I just love them.
posted by Lawn Beaver at 1:28 PM on November 20, 2024 [3 favorites]

Best answer: Super fancy fruits of the kind often gifted in Japanese culture
The best lip balm
Rancho Gordo beans
Real balsamic vinegar
Microplane zesters or graters
Fancy soap—my fave is Le Mistral
Nice nail clippers
posted by music for skeletons at 2:33 PM on November 20, 2024 [2 favorites]

These gold boho hoops from Quince are $49.50 are amazing.
posted by tafetta, darling! at 4:03 PM on November 20, 2024 [1 favorite]

Best answer: Quite a few travel sized skincare items would work for this!

Hand soap
Hand cream
Sheet masks
Olive oil
posted by matrixclown at 5:19 PM on November 20, 2024

Best answer: For $24, you can get Tweezerman stainless steel slant tweezers. These are the best quality tweezers you can get anywhere IMO, and the company offers a sharpening service to make them last.
posted by lizard music at 7:46 PM on November 20, 2024 [8 favorites]

Best answer: Victorinox are the makers of the genuine Swiss Army Knifes and they are lovely, very well put together items which are a joy to use and very durable. I have several, including a credit card version which you can get for for less than $50 and which I use several times a day for various things. And I'm not an outdoorsy type, but it's just so darn useful in ways I never expected. Hands down one of the nicest things I own. They're the original and the best.
posted by underclocked at 9:27 PM on November 20, 2024 [1 favorite]

Best answer: These days you can get really excellent small flashlights for ~$50.
posted by jamjam at 12:05 AM on November 21, 2024 [2 favorites]

Best answer: Enjoy loose leaf tea without ingesting microplastics (a majority of teabags still contain PLA plastic), the Kinto Pebble teapot has an easy built in filter and is nicely sized for making one or two cups.
posted by Lanark at 4:03 AM on November 21, 2024

For $30, Adam Savage's favorite wearable magnifier.
posted by fairmettle at 5:25 AM on November 21, 2024

Best answer: If your recipient likes to write or draw by hand, get them a pack of Blackwing pencils.
posted by fifthpocket at 5:26 AM on November 21, 2024 [3 favorites]

I’m not like, a knife expert but my mom bought me an Opinel folding knife several years ago and I love it and still use it often. It feels fancy and is well designed and sharp as hell.
posted by a.steele at 9:09 PM on November 22, 2024 [1 favorite]

Sorry, I just realized my original comment doesn’t really answer your question, it’s just a sort of affordable luxe-seeming thing.

To offer a true answer, I suggest travel-sized luxury perfumes and sample sets. An added bonus is that sample sets often count as credit toward a full size purchase. Here are a few examples:

Creed

Tom Ford

DS and Durga (not designer but a high quality indie brand I love)
posted by a.steele at 9:32 PM on November 22, 2024

Mod note: [Merry gifting, everyone! We've added this to our list of holiday gift posts on the sidebar and Best Of blog!!]
posted by taz (staff) at 10:50 PM on November 22, 2024

For about 5 bucks you can get an ice scraper with a thin brass blade. It scrapes ice better than anything else. It doesn't scratch the glass. I live in Maine and always have one in my car.

I love Smartwool Socks. They don't last as well as Darn tough, but have less elastic and are more comfortable for me. I do have and wear the Darn Tough ones. Cold feet are Nope.
posted by theora55 at 10:55 AM on November 26, 2024 [1 favorite]