Top Tech Holiday Gifts for Families 2024

By Rachelle Dragani

If you’re part of the sandwich generation—where you’re caring for aging relatives while also parenting your kids—you know how tough it can be to create experiences that everyone can enjoy. That’s why this holiday season, we wanted to find the top tech gifts that can bring every member of the family together, no matter their age. From VR headsets to digital experiences, we’ve found the tech that bridges the generational gap and keeps everyone smiling all year long.

VR headsets

Every holiday gathering will get a lot more fun with a VR headset—and, yes, even Grandma can get in on the action. Our top VR headset for families is the Meta Quest 3. It’s easily adjustable and more comfortable to wear than many of its competitors (even if you wear glasses underneath). And it has the most variety of games available. Everyone from golf-loving dad to dino-obsessed kid to fisherman grandpa to pickleball-loving mom will find a great new experience.

If you want to really make it fun for all, turn to more interactive games like “Acron: Attack of the Squirrels,” “Traffic Jams” or “Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes.” Rather than make VR a solo endeavor, these help everyone get involved (via a free phone app). The games are lighthearted and require some strategizing and teamwork, helping to foster connections that will last long after the holidays are over.

Digital experiences

Love giving an experience rather than an item? It’s easier than ever to go digital for some fun virtual experiences for people of all ages. You choose your experience, select a game time and gather your participants, whether you’re all together or spread out in different places.

Family of music lovers? Tonebase gives beginner classical music lessons from master musicians and lets you join communities of other musicians like you. Yousician is filled with virtual lessons on guitar, bass, piano, ukelele and voice. Plus you get a discount for a family membership. Great gifts for budding musicians, and everybody will be ready to perform in your new tradition: the family concert.

There are also tons of fun remote experiences for families to take part in together. Possibilities include a holiday-themed murder mystery game or escape room games or hosting a watch party to see a movie together in real time. Or sign up for family-friendly cooking classes (ingredients included!), and your family can cook along with the teacher/chef. All you need to do is sign up, fire up your devices and get to it.

Family subscriptions

Shared subscriptions to digital content are a cost-effective gift any time of year. YouTube Premium, Spotify Premium Family, Apple One and Amazon Household allow for multiple users and devices to use the service at once. That means your Gen Alpha kid could listen to an audiobook via Spotify at the same time you’re jamming out to your favorite songs.

It’s a smart way to ensure everyone can enjoy their own content whenever they want, without having to pay for several subscriptions. But don’t forget that these group plans can bring everyone together, too. You could use a Spotify family subscription to make playlists of your favorite songs and invite other members of your fam, young and old, to do the same. Or use your Amazon Household membership to share a book on your separate Kindles (or an audiobook via Audible). Then you can kick off a family book club.

Fitness apps are another fun family-friendly tech subscription everyone can enjoy. Peloton and Apple Fitness+ both have family plans with a wide variety of workouts. Go with Peloton if your family already loves a good sweat sesh. Apple Fitness+ is a great fitness app for home workouts if you want a wider range of options—tough, personalized classes for people who already exercise, but also low-impact, fun classes for the older or younger members of your fam. If anyone in your family is interested in taking up running together, Couch to 5K offers a super accessible virtual training program designed for people of all ages and experience levels.

DNA ancestry kit

Interested in knowing more about where you came from? Ancestry DNA kits from companies like Ancestry, Living DNA or 23andMe use a DNA swab to digitally connect you with tons of info about your family tree.

If you don’t want to share your DNA information, there are still digital tools for learning more about your history. A subscription to paid services like Findmypast, MyHeritage or Ancestry would make a thoughtful gift for family members interested in doing a deep dive into genealogy.

STEM board games

If you have a younger family member who’s getting into STEM and some older relatives who want to help them along, check out these STEM board games. Yes, board games! On a table! Games like “Spintronics,” “Robot Turtles” and “Robo Rally” are all designed to get the tech wheels turning in brains of all ages. You’ll will build, you’ll strategize, you’ll laugh—and you’ll be glad you get to play all year long.

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Product features and availability may have changed and are subject to change.