10 Last Minute Gifts for Your Alternative Friends

Today I have a list of 10 great last minute gifts you can get for your alternative friends. I’m not gonna try to tie down too strict of a definition on who is and who isn’t “alternative.” For the sake of this list I just worked in broad strokes and tried to find options that would be easy to get at the last minute that most alternative people would probably appreciate. And for those of you who are really down to the last minute, I will include a link anytime one of the options on the list has partnered with GiftYa.

If you don’t know GiftYa are gift cards that exist in an all digital format. And while that comes with a variety of benefits, the one you probably care about the most is the fact that you can instantly send them to the recipient’s phone when you buy them. Which makes GiftYa the perfect solution when you need a gift but you are truly down to the very last minute!
But I’ll wrap up the introduction here and get to that list of great last minute gifts that you can get for your alternative friends that brought you here. And as always, thank you for clicking, and thank you so very much more for reading!

1 - Spotify

Let Them Choose From Over 100 Million Different Songs!

Grab a Spotify gift card

If there is one thing all alternative people have in common it’s their love of music. They may vary a little bit in taste and listen to different genres, but at the end of the day all of the alternative subcultures really hold music up as a point of reverence in the world. So much of their ideals, their passions, and their identity come from the music they listen to. It’s the soundtrack to their life. 

It’s there when they are driving, it’s there when they are thinking, it’s there whenever they need it to be. And you can help them have their music with them all the time by setting them up with a digital Spotify gift card. This is a nice option as a last minute gift because Spotify comes at a monthly or yearly price. So you can spend a little bit to get them a couple months (it costs about $13/month) or you can spend a lot and get them a gift card that will cover a yearly subscription (which is about $99/year). And then once they have a premium Spotify account set up they have unlimited uninterrupted streaming over over 100 million different tracks and songs. That is more music than you can listen to if you listen to a different track every time and never turn the music off in two hundred and eighty five years. 

It’s enough music for 20 lifetimes. And they will have access to all of it and be able to create playlists and get insights into their streaming habits with a Spotify premium account. And it’ll all be thanks to the gift card you sent them 😎

Grab a digital Spotify gift card in seconds

2 - Calm

Help Them Release Some Anxiety and Unwind

Get a Calm gift card

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I might be stereotyping a little bit on this one, but most of the alternative people I have known have struggled with some sort of mental health battle at one point or another. And honestly in the modern world there is a better than not chance that at least one of your friends suffers from depression or anxiety. One way that the symptoms of depression and anxiety can be relieved is through meditation and a better sleep schedule. 

Calm is an app/service that will allow you to achieve just that. The app features all sorts of white noise, nature sounds, ambient noise, guided meditations, and sleep meditations that help you get a more restful night's sleep. And trust me, one of your alternative friends needs this in their life. As somebody who has struggled with mental health issues personally I can say that meditation and a better night’s sleep can really make a substantive difference. And even if it doesn’t cure them of their symptoms, what do you have to lose by trying to help them out?

Grab a digital Calm gift card instantly

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3 - A Gift Card for Their Pets

Alternative People Always Have A Pet of Some Sort

Grab a Petco gift card or PetSmart gift card by following these links!

Most of the alternative people that I have known have had pets of some sort. It’s usually a cat(s), but I’ve seen dogs, ferrets, rats, lizards, and snakes at one point or another during my youth. So help your alternative friend cover some of the cost of caring for their special little friend by getting them a gift card to one of the major pet retailers. 

Petco and PetSmart both have around 1,500 brick and mortar locations around the country so chances are there is one or the other somewhere nearby. And then your alternative friend can use the gift card to get everything from food and toys to housing enclosures, automatic water dishes, cat towers, lights for lizard tanks, and even fish filters and food. 

These two retailers are so big that they basically cover all of the needs a pet owner could potentially have. So I am sure your alternative friend will appreciate this last minute gift because they’ll just get to use it to spoil their pet. Which I bet will bring more smiles to their face than anything.

Get yourself a digital Petco gift card or a digital PetSmart gift card in seconds by following the links!

4 - Guitar Center

Perfect Last Minute Gift if Your Alternative Friends Play Music

Grab a Guitar Center gift card by following this link!

If you have a group of alternative friends I would be willing to wager that a slim majority of them play a musical instrument. It’s just natural for people who are so passionate about music to be interested in learning to play it. So if you want to get your alternative friend a great last minute gift you can get them a digital gift card to Guitar Center. And I know what you’re thinking, “well what if they don’t play guitar?” Well not to worry. That’s just the name. They certainly have guitar gear but they didn’t become the country's largest music retail chain by just selling stuff for guitars. They also have everything you need if you are a drummer, a keyboardist, a vocalist, a DJ, or a classically trained instrumentalist. They have something for everybody.

And just as a heads up, musicians can be pretty picky about what kind of gear they use. So instead of getting them the wrong guitar strings or a clarinet reed that’s way too thick, consider just getting them a Guitar Center gift card. And then that way they can go to the store and pick out exactly what they want in person so you won’t have to worry about accidentally getting them the wrong gear. You can be sure they will pick out what they love to use.

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

5 - Barnes & Noble

A Great Last Minute Gift If Your Alternative Friends Like to Read (They Do)

Buy a Barnes & Noble gift card in just seconds by following the link!

I’m also betting that there is more than one bookworm in your group of alternative friends. So a great last minute gift for them is obviously going to be a book. And if you want to buy a book in person you are going to find a really great selection at Barnes & Noble. They have everything from War and Peace to Hop on Pop. The selection is honestly a little overwhelming the first time if you are used to small independent book stores. But don’t worry. It’s not like shopping at Barnes & Noble is selling out to the capitalist machine, they actually do a lot of charity work through programs that promote literacy and the arts. 

I mean it’s obviously not as much as you’d like, but at least they are making an effort which is more than I can say for a lot of big companies. But I digress, you will absolutely be able to find a great book for your alternative friend here. Whether they are in YA adventure, the timeless classics, nonfiction, sci-fi, fantasy, romance, manga, comics, or the best sellers, you are going to be able to find it at Barnes & Noble. And then you have a quick and reasonably affordable last minute gift for your alternative friend!

Anybody can grab a dgital Barnes & Noble gift card in an instant when they use the link!

6 - StubHub

Get Them Tickets to See Their Favorite Band Play Live!

Send a StubHub gift card by following the link!

Every alternative person loves to go to concerts. I don’t know if that’s technically a law anywhere, but it is an unspoken truth of the universe. And as such, you can get a really great last minute gift for your alternative friend by getting them a pair of concert tickets from StubHub.

You can grab a dgital StubHub gift card anytime by clicking the link!

7 - A Rideshare Gift Card

Help Them Get to A Show or Back From One With A Safe Ride

Get an Uber gift card or a Lyft gift card by using the links!

A lot of alternative people at a certain age get pretty into going out and hanging out at dive bars for some reason. I’m not quite sure why, but I think the pool tables have something to do with it. But anyways, if you’re at the age where you and your alternative friends go out and drink then a pretty quick and easy last minute gift for your alternative friend is a gift card to a rideshare app. And that way they always have a safe sober driver to get them home after they’ve spent the night bar hopping.

Anybody can grab a digital Uber gift card or a digital Lyft gift card instantly by clicking the links!

8 - A Gift Card for A Night Out at the Movies

Alternative People Are Always the First In Line for Horror and Comic Book Movies!

Grab a Cinemark Theaters gift card or an AMC Theaters gift card by following these links!

Alternative people are the demographic that hold up superhero movie franchises and horror movie franchises. I don’t have any stats to back that up, but I’m gonna call that anecdotally true for this point I’m making. You can get a great last minute gift for your alternative friend by getting them a gift card to a local movie theater. Just make sure you put enough on the card to cover the cost of the movie as well as a trip to the concession stand so that way they get to enjoy the full movie going experience.

Get yourself a digital Cinemark Theaters gift card or a digital AMC Theaters gift card in seconds by following the links!

9 - Amazon

Choose From Millions of Options for the Perfect Last Minute Gift for Your Alternative Friends

Send an Amazon gift card by following this link!

This is probably the least alternative thing you could do, but I mean, they don’t really have to know where you got it from right? Because if you have 2 days to wait for shipping you can choose from over 12 million different items on Amazon. You could find them a great vinyl record, a cool band tee, an incredible book, or just about anything else you can think of when you shop on Amazon.

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

10 - Visa

Let Your Alternative Friends Shop Wherever They Want With This Gift Card

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

If nothing else on the ist stood out to you today then you should consider getting your alternative friend one of these customizable Visa gift cards. The fun thing about these cards is that you can send them with a custom message. But you can also pick out a custom photo to make the front of the card. And this is where you could pick out a great band that they like and maybe make their logo the cover of the card. 

Then once they have the card they can use it to shop anywhere Visa is accepted. Which basically means they can be used to shop everywhere. You can go out to local and independent retailers and support your local economy with one of these cards, or you can feed the capitalist machine and use it to buy all sorts of goodies online from places like Amazon. And it’s that versatility that I think makes these customizable Visa cards a great last minute gift for your alternative friends

Create your own Visa gift card

And There You Have A List of 10 Incredible Last Minute Gifts for Your Alternative Friends!

I hope something on the list worked out perfectly for the gift giving occasion you have coming up. It’s hard to list every present that might be cool for an alternative person to get in a list where I’m only allowed 10 entries so I did my best to find options that I thought were widely applicable to disparate groups of alternative subcultures.