Christmas Gifts for Hunters: 35 Ideas for a Hunting Dad or Husband

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The best Christmas gifts for hunters make the long, cold sit easier and the work after the shot faster: a fleece hand muff with a stack of hand warmers, heated socks, a blind heater, a trail camera, a binocular harness, and the knives, bags and grinders that turn a deer into dinner. For a hunting dad or husband who already owns everything, pick something he uses up (hand warmers, jerky seasoning, game bags), a hunting book or a Federal Duck Stamp or conservation membership. Leave rifles, ammunition, scopes, bows and camo clothing to the hunter. Those have to match his gear, his size and the way he hunts.

My father has hunted white-tailed deer from the same plywood box blind on a family lease in the Texas Hill Country since before I was born. On opening weekend in November he is in it an hour before first light, and on the coldest mornings the only sounds in there are the heater ticking and the lid of his thermos. When a deer came home, it came to our garage, where we cut and wrapped it on a folding table covered in butcher paper. My job, from about age eight, was writing the cut and the date on every freezer package with a black marker. My mother gave me the one rule for buying him presents: never buy anything that goes on the rifle. He picks those himself. Hunters on Reddit’s r/Hunting say the same thing every December: they are particular about gear and clothing, and a wrong guess ends up in a closet. This guide covers the gifts you can choose without guessing.

Christmas gifts for hunters at a glance

Gifts that keep a hunter warm in the stand

Deer hunting is mostly sitting still in the cold. A hunter who gets cold starts fidgeting, and a hunter who fidgets gets seen, so warm gear buys him more time on the stand. This is the safest category to shop: nothing here has to match a rifle or a bow, and most of it is used up and replaced every season.

Scouting and optics gifts

Deer follow food, and the food changes with the season. Our guide to what white-tailed deer eat shows how a herd moves from summer forbs to fall acorns to winter browse. A trail camera tells a hunter which of those spots the deer are using this year. Binoculars and a rangefinder do the same job from the stand.

Check the law before you buy a trail camera for a hunter in the West. Arizona, Nevada, Utah and Montana all restrict trail cameras or cellular trail cameras during some or all of their hunting seasons, according to the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation. Most other states allow them.

Field-to-freezer gifts: knives, game bags and meat processing

The hunt ends when the meat is in the freezer, and that part takes far longer than the shot. Gifts in this group get used every time a hunter is successful, and many of them help the whole family. In our garage the line was always the same: one person cutting, one grinding, one bagging and one writing labels.

Safety, calls and stand gear

Tree stand falls are one of the most common serious injuries in deer hunting. A Marshfield Clinic study of Wisconsin deer hunters from 2009 to 2013 counted about 5 medically attended tree stand falls per 10,000 hunters each year, and 77% of them happened during archery season. Many falls happen while climbing up or down, before the harness tether is attached to the tree. That is the job of the lifeline below.

Stocking stuffers for hunters

The best hunting stocking stuffers are things he loses or uses up, so a second one is never wasted:

• HotHands hand warmers, a few pairs pulled from the bulk box
• A blaze orange beanie
• A red light headlamp
• Reflective trail marking tacks
• A tin of Windfloaters
• A jerky seasoning kit
• A merino neck gaiter
• Spare blades for the Outdoor Edge knife
• A grunt call or duck call
• A Federal Duck Stamp, which fits in a card

Keepsake gifts

Most hunting decor ends up in a drawer. These two are the exceptions: one goes on the tree every year, the other gets used every morning. Whitetail bucks grow and drop a new set of antlers every year, unlike the permanent horns of cattle and sheep (see our list of differences between horns and antlers), and both pieces show a buck in full fall antlers.

Books for hunters

Books are the best gift for a hunter who owns all the gear, and the giver does not need to know anything about rifles or calibers. These five cover how to hunt, how to cook what you bring home and why hunters care about wild land.

Gifts that support wildlife

Hunters pay for much of the habitat that wildlife depends on. These gifts are not on Amazon, but they fit in a card and every one of them puts money into wild land.

• Federal Duck Stamp. Every waterfowl hunter 16 or older must carry a current one, and it doubles as a free pass to every national wildlife refuge that charges an entry fee. More than 98% of the money raised goes to buy wetlands and conservation easements for the National Wildlife Refuge System, and the stamps have conserved more than 6 million acres since 1934, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Buy it at most post offices, many sporting goods stores or online. Even non-hunters collect them, and the wetlands it protects feed the ducks, geese and swans in our list of characteristics of waterfowl.
• A conservation membership. Ducks Unlimited for a duck hunter, the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation for an elk hunter, the National Wild Turkey Federation for a turkey hunter. Each membership includes a magazine and funds habitat work.
• A lifetime hunting license. Many states sell lifetime licenses, which end the yearly renewal for good. The license is issued in the hunter’s name, so check the state wildlife agency for how to buy one as a gift.

Christmas gifts for a hunting dad

A dad who has hunted for 30 years owns the gear he wants and is loyal to it. The gifts that work for him are the ones he uses up or would never buy for himself:

• Comfort he would not spend money on: heated socks, a blind heater or a swivel chair.
• A new lifeline. The rope has a set lifespan, and the gift says why you bought it.
• A book with a note in it: The Old Man and the Boy or A Sand County Almanac.
• Something for the processing he does every year: a vacuum sealer or a meat grinder, which the whole family will use.
• From the kids: the whitetail ornament or the antler mug.

My father has never once bought hand warmers for himself. Every year a box of them goes under the tree, and every year it is empty by January.

Christmas gifts for a hunting husband

If your husband hunts, you have probably heard about the gear he wants for months. Listen for it. If he has not named anything, these are safe:

• Gear that makes trips easier on the household: a cellular trail camera means fewer drives to check cameras.
• An upgrade he keeps putting off: Vortex Diamondback binoculars or a rangefinder.
• Something for the two of you: the MeatEater cookbook and a jerky gun make the venison a shared project.
• A gift card to the store he already shops at, with a note about what you were thinking of. Hunters in r/Hunting gift threads often say they prefer it to a wrong guess.

Gifts to skip

• Firearms, ammunition, scopes and bow parts. These depend on the exact rifle, caliber and bow he uses. A scope must fit his mounts; arrows must match his draw weight and length. Ask him or give a gift card.
• Hunting clothes and boots. Size, camo pattern, insulation level and brand all matter, and hunters are loyal to their brands. The orange beanie and neck gaiter are the only clothing on this list because they fit everyone. If you do buy boots, our guide to the best waterproof hunting boots explains insulation and fit.
• Cheap novelty calls and decoys. A call that sounds wrong scares game. Stick to the established brands above.
• Tree stands and safety harnesses. A harness has to fit his body and a stand has to fit his trees. A lifeline is the safety gift that fits everyone.

If he fishes too, our Christmas gifts for fishermen guide covers pliers, fillet knives and ice fishing gear.

FAQ

What do you get a hunter who has everything?

Get a hunter who has everything something he uses up or replaces: hand warmers, game bags, jerky seasoning, a new tree stand lifeline or spare knife blades. Books, a Federal Duck Stamp and a conservation membership with Ducks Unlimited or the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation also work, because they do not duplicate gear he already owns.

What is a good Christmas gift for a hunting dad?

Good Christmas gifts for a hunting dad are comforts he would not buy himself, like heated socks, a blind heater or a swivel blind chair, plus gear for processing deer at home, such as a vacuum sealer or meat grinder. A book like The Old Man and the Boy with a handwritten note is the most personal choice.

What should I get my husband who hunts?

Get your husband who hunts something he has mentioned wanting, or a practical upgrade: a cellular trail camera, Vortex Diamondback binoculars or a rangefinder. A wild game cookbook with a jerky gun makes venison a shared project. If you are unsure, give a gift card to his usual store with a note.

What are good stocking stuffers for hunters?

Good stocking stuffers for hunters are hand warmers, a blaze orange beanie, a red light headlamp, reflective trail marking tacks, a wind checker, a jerky seasoning kit, spare knife blades, a deer grunt call and a Federal Duck Stamp.

Are trail cameras a good gift for hunters?

Yes, trail cameras are a good gift for most hunters because they show which deer use a property and when. Cellular models need cell signal and a monthly data plan. Arizona, Nevada, Utah and Montana restrict trail cameras or cellular cameras during some hunting seasons, so check the state rules first.

Should I buy hunting clothes as a gift?

Avoid buying hunting clothes unless you know his size, preferred brand and camo pattern. Hunters are particular about clothing. A blaze orange beanie, merino neck gaiter or heated socks are safe because they fit nearly everyone.

Is a Federal Duck Stamp a good gift?

Yes. A Federal Duck Stamp is required for waterfowl hunters 16 and older, works as a free pass to national wildlife refuges that charge entry fees, and more than 98% of the money goes to buying wetlands for the National Wildlife Refuge System. It is sold at most post offices.

Is a Mr. Heater Buddy safe to use in a hunting blind?

The Mr. Heater Buddy is approved for indoor and outdoor use and has a low-oxygen shutoff, which is why hunters use it in enclosed box blinds and ground blinds. Keep a window or vent open, keep it clear of fabric walls and never use it in a closed space without ventilation.

Sources

• U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service: Federal Duck Stamp
• Marshfield Clinic Research Institute: falls from tree stands not declining for deer hunters
• Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation: trail cameras
• Penn State Center for Private Forests: the blaze orange season
• r/Hunting: help with gift for boyfriend who loves hunting
• r/Hunting: gift idea for my partner who hunts regularly