Best Mother’s Day 2021 gifts under $25

Altec Lansing

Normally $30, this versatile little speaker is on sale for $22.49 in most of its four available colors. (The green one is $1.50 more for some reason, but still gets you in under the $25 mark.)

The rugged, water-resistant and carabiner-friendly (clip included) Baby Boom XL is designed for outdoor adventuring, though obviously it would work just as well as a shower speaker. It earned an impressive 4.6-star average rating from over 800 Best Buy buyers.

Tribute

Here’s a chance to do something different and special for your mom, a perfect personalized gift. Tribute is a service that puts together video montages, and right now you can get her a free one with promo code yougotthis25. (Regular price: $25.)

It works like this: You send invitations to as many people as you want. Could be just family, could expand to include friends and co-workers. Everyone records a short video (on phone, tablet, PC or whatever) based on your preferred prompt: Why Mom is such a great mom, three favorite things about Mom or the like.

Tribute handles invites, reminders and all that. It then assembles everything into a unique heartwarming finished video for Mother’s Day, one that can be viewed online or, for an additional charge, delivered on a flash drive or even as a self-playing video greeting card.

Daily Steals

Daily Steals is a good place to look for Mother’s Day gifts — the company currently offers a wide variety of fun and funny slogan shirts, including, “Raising kids is a walk in the park… Jurassic Park” and “Alexa, find my kids.” Prices ranges from $18 to $25, but promo code CNETMTHR will knock $5 off any style.

BagPodz

Required in some states (though check the current pandemic-specific laws) and helpful to the environment in all of them, reusable grocery bags are as practical as they are handy. This gift set of five bags stays in its own small clip-on bag, which allows them to be plucked out one at a time as needed. And they’re machine-washable — which is something your mom should definitely be doing between grocery runs.

Znewtech

This is a cool Mother’s Day gift idea, an analog alternative to setting timers with Alexa. Most of the time, it’s a clock. When you need to set a countdown for 5, 15, 30, 45 or 60 minutes, you just turn the hexagon so that number is facing up. Presto: instant countdown. After it goes off, or if you want to cancel the timer, you just turn it back to “clock.” Cute, fun and available in four different colors.

Phone Loops

Something I’ve used for years, these handy straps (most priced at $7.49) loop through Mom’s phone case so it’s easy to keep a good grip — and so the phone is more comfortable to hold for long stretches. There are lots of designs and colors to choose from, and shipping is free if you order three (which would still keep you under $25).

Another option: My own mom is a huge fan of the Phone Leashes (also $7.49 each), which adds a wrist strap to the bottom of the phone. It, too, is compatible with just about every phone and case.

Tile

I’ve long felt that Tile trackers make a great gift, especially now that they have improved range and replaceable batteries. No more misplaced keys! (Or misplaced phone; the Tile works in both directions.)

Alas, Tile no longer stocks the colorful Limited Edition Tile Mates from last year. But even though these standard versions are just boring white, they’re still incredibly practical.