10 Great Last Minute Gifts for Engineers

Engineers can be a peculiar group of people. They are so good at math and science that they think just a little bit different from the rest of us. And while that makes them really awesome individuals, it can make it hard to buy gifts for them. It’s just hard to know what they are going to like or want. So if you are in a scenario where you need to find a last minute gift for an engineer in your life I totally understand. 

And to help you out I have a list of 10 great gifts to get for an engineer at the last minute. Some of the suggestions are individual gifts and some of them are places where you can find a great gift. And I’ll even add a link anytime you can get a digital GiftYa gift card to any of the locations on the list.

If you’ve never used a GiftYa before they are essentially a gift card that exists in a completely digital format. And there are a slew of different benefits that come with their modern format, but I think the most relevant one is the fact that you can instantly send them to the recipient. After you pick out the card you want and add the balance, you can instantly text them to the recipient’s phone!

But I’ll wrap up with the introduction here and get right to that list of great gifts to get for an engineer at the last minute. And as always, thank you for reading!

1 - A Multitool

A Quick and Easy Last Minute Gift for Any Engineer

Most engineers I have met love to tinker with things. I’m guessing it’s just kind of how their mind works. They come up with ideas on how to build things by taking apart and studying other things in the world and that gives them ideas for their own inventions. And that is why I think a multitool makes a great last minute gift for an engineer. 

You should be able to find a multitool at a variety of major retailers and hardware stores so it shouldn’t be too difficult to find or overly expensive. And I am sure most engineers will appreciate this because then they will have all the different tools they need to tinker with stuff right in their pocket, and you can’t really beat that kind of convenience.

2 - A Magnetic Wrist Band

An Affordable Last Minute Gift Any Engineer Will Love

If you have ever taken something apart and tinkered with it yourself then I am sure you are familiar with the problem of keeping track of all the little screws and parts that you need to remove to take something apart. And since engineers are constantly tinkering with things themselves, they run into this problem all the time, which is why I think a magnetic wrist band makes a really great option as a last minute gift for them. 

You can get one for around $10 and it is something I am sure they will get plenty of use out of. It can be really annoying to keep track of all those little parts, but they are going to be absolutely essential when it comes time to put something back together. So help the engineer in your life skip the headache with one of these handy wristbands!

3 - Laser Distance Measurer

A Practical and Useful Tool for An Engineer That Makes A Great Last Minute Gift

A laser distance measurer is a super useful tool to have for all sorts of different projects that an engineer might get up to. The great thing about a laser distance measurer is that not only is it more convenient than a measuring tape, it is also more accurate than a measuring tape generally would be. And you can find one of these at a lot of different hardware stores these days so it shouldn’t be too difficult to track down at the last minute.

4 - A Drone

A Really Fun Last Minute Gift for Engineers

This one is just fun really, but a good friend of mine is an engineer and he has two different little drones that he likes to fly around in the summer. I’ve gone with him a couple of times and they are really quite a bit of fun to fly around. But they also offer a really unique perspective on the environment and landscape because so many of them come with cameras. And I think it works really nicely for an engineer's brain to get that overhead view of everything.

5 - A 3D Printer

A Really Cool (if Somewhat Pricey) Last Minute Gift for An Engineer

Get a Staples gift card or Best Buy gift card in just seconds by following the links!

I can tell you first hand that an engineer will enjoy a 3D Printer. It basically gives them the option of drafting and creating a small version of whatever little tool or object they can think up. It gives them such an enormous playground to explore. And the nice thing is that the price of 3D Printers have come down a lot over the years (they come in a variety of different price ranges these days) and you can pick them up at some major retailers. If you have a Best Buy or Staples near you then you should be able to find a 3D printer pretty easily!

Anybody can grab a digital Best Buy gift card or a digital Staples gift card in an instant when they use the link!

6 - Barnes & Noble

Find Them A Great Book On A Subject They Love!

Grab a Barnes & Noble gift card by following the link!

Barnes & Noble is the leading book retailer in the country with over 600 locations. Which hopefully means that you will be able to swing by one of their locations without too much headache. And once you get there you will have an enormous selection of different books to choose from. Most engineers I know happen to be a giant nerd about a particular subject. For some of them it's World War 2, for others it’s music, and for my uncle it's Star Trek. But no matter what the engineer in your life enjoys nerding out about, I am sure you will be able to find them an interesting book on the subject at Barnes & Noble!

You can grab a digital Barnes & Noble gift card anytime by clicking the link!

7 - Calm

Help Them Calm Their Mind and Organize Their Thoughts

Get a Calm gift card by using the link!

Engineers in general tend to be pretty smart people. I mean they kind of have to be to get through all the chemistry, physics, and calculus that they have to take in school. But there are definitely some downsides that come with intelligence. Having a brain that’s a little more powerful than average often means that engineers can get overwhelmed with their thoughts and have a hard time shutting down and relaxing. 

And it’s for that reason that I think a digital gift card to Calm makes such a good option as a last minute gift for an engineer. It’s really quick and easy to get and it makes a nice thoughtful present (pun totally intended) because Calm is a relaxation and meditation app. It can help a person calm their racing thoughts or anxiety with calming white noise or guided meditations. 

It’s even really helpful for helping you fall asleep at night. And I can’t think of many jobs that I would think really count on a good night’s sleep like an engineer. I find math and physics difficult enough on a good night’s sleep. I can’t imagine having to do calculus all day after not sleeping well.

Anybody can grab a digital Calm gift card instantly by clicking the link!

8 - Spotify

Gift Them Unlimited Streaming Music

Grab a Spotify gift card by following this link!

A Spotify gift card makes a nice last minute gift for an engineer because it will give them access to over 100 million different songs and musical tracks. And with all the time they will spend tinkering with things and working on new projects they’ll definitely enjoy the option of unlimited streaming from their phone, computers, tablet, or tv. With this gift they’ll basically have unlimited music everywhere they go.

Get yourself a digital Spotify gift card in seconds by following the link!

9 - Amazon

Choose From Millions of Options With 2-Day Delivery

Grab yourself an Amazon gift card by following this link!

Amazon is a good place to find a last minute gift for anybody because they offer convenient 2-day shipping on a lot of their items. I mean you can’t get it for everything because they have over 12 million different items for sale, but you should be able to find something great for the engineer you know with the 2-day shipping. And you can choose from a little bit of everything on Amazon so you could get them a new electronic screwdriver set, a t-shirt with a funny engineer joke on it, or a blu-ray of one of their favorite movies.

If you need a last minute gift you can always grab a digital Amazon gift card by following the link!

10 - Visa

A Gift Card That is Even Better Than Cash

Get a Visa gift card in just seconds by following the link!

If you made it this far down the list and nothing else has worked for you consider sending one of these customizable Visa cards. The nice thing about these cards is that they are accepted everywhere that accepts VIsa. Which kinda makes them better than cash in this day and age because you can’t use cash to shop online. But you can with one of these Visa gift cards which means that the engineer you know will be able to get themselves whatever they want

Anybody can grab a digital Visa gift card in an instant when they use the link!

And There You Have A List of 10 Great Last Minute Gifts for Engineers

I hope something on the list works out nicely as a gift for the engineer in your life. I know it’s hard to find something great at the last minute so I wanted to be sure there were some backup options for places to find a gift cause I know a lot of the gifts towards the top are kinda pricey. And maybe you don’t need to get them something as extravagant as a 3D printer and just want to find them something quick & easy that they will love.