NYC Life

10 Easy Gift Ideas for New Yorkers (or the NYC-Obsessed)

By StreetEasy Team December 5, 2023

The most wonderful time of the year has snuck up on us once again. And as New Yorkers know, it’s easy to get caught up in the festivities and put off your holiday shopping. If you’re scrambling to find gifts for your city-dwelling friends and family — or an aspirational New Yorker — don’t fret. Here are 10 perfect New York gift ideas.

Table of Contents

Yorkville

428 East 81st Street

$2,495 No Fee

Studio |

1

Upper West Side

249 West 102nd Street

$3,100 No Fee

1 |

1

Hell’s Kitchen

417 West 56th Street

$2,895 No Fee

Studio |

1

Hell’s Kitchen

605 West 42nd Street

$3,225 No Fee

Studio |

1

Soho

146 Sullivan Street

$3,250 No Fee

1 |

1

East Harlem

327 East 108th Street

$3,200 No Fee

3 |

1

Fort George

4650 Broadway

$2,875 No Fee

1 |

1

Soho

436 West Broadway

$3,400 No Fee

Studio |

1

Lower East Side

101 Alan Street

$2,400 No Fee

Studio |

1

Inwood

17 Vermilyea Avenue

$1,900 No Fee

1 |

1

Turtle Bay

307 East 44th Street

$3,100 No Fee

Studio |

1

Turtle Bay

307 East 44th Street

$2,800 No Fee

Studio |

1

For the transit lover

There’s nothing more fitting for a populous that’s obsessed (consumed? disgruntled?) with the city’s transportation system than a subway-themed gift. From the New York Transit Museum Store, you can buy everything from MetroCard totes to subway-themed mugs and baby onesies.

^{@nytransitmuseum via Instagram}

You can purchase from the store online, or in-person at three different locations: the NY Transit Museum & Store in Downtown Brooklyn, the New York Transit Museum Gallery Annex & Store inside Grand Central Terminal, or the New York Transit Museum Shop in the Financial District. Check out the museum while you’re at it!

For the book lover

For the readers on your shopping list, go for New York-themed books. As you can imagine, there are countless fiction and non-fiction works on the subject. Local stores like The Strand and the Tenement Museum Shop have massive online and in-person selections of books about NYC. The Strand even offers a New York Collection bundle of used hardcover books on New York City history, culture, and more.

Literature fans will love Manhattan Beach by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Jennifer Egan, a historical drama that takes place in 1940s Brooklyn. Or consider Colson Whitehead’s The Collosus of New York, an ultra-relatable collection of essays inspired by the city. For history fans, the acclaimed biography The Power Broker will give readers a thorough (like, 1,344-pages thorough) understanding of infamous city official Robert Moses and how he shaped New York into the metropolis we know today.

Bushwick

10 Montieth Street

$2,701 No Fee

Studio |

1

Fort Hamilton

8614 Third Avenue

$1,700 No Fee

1 |

1

Canarsie

656 East 92nd Street

$2,999 No Fee

3 |

1

Crown Heights

955 Sterling Place

$2,927 No Fee

1 |

1

Ditmas Park

715 East 22nd Street

$2,500 No Fee

1 |

1

Flatbush

1558 Nostrand Avenue

$2,700 No Fee

1 |

1

Borough Park

905 43rd Street

$1,557 No Fee

1 |

1

Bushwick

851 Hart Street

$2,900 No Fee

2 |

1

Dyker Heights

1376 67th Street

$2,300 No Fee

2 |

1

Crown Heights

1892 Bergen Street

$2,700 No Fee

2 |

1

Bedford-Stuyvesant

329 Gates Avenue

$2,900 No Fee

Studio |

1

Midwood

1171 Ocean Parkway

$2,700 No Fee

2 |

1

For the financially-minded

There’s one New York gift idea that’ll always work when time is running out before the holidays: cash. And given the cost of living in NYC, New Yorkers need plenty of it.

A survey conducted by The Harris Poll on behalf of StreetEasy asked New Yorkers about what they’d like to receive as a gift. When presented with the options of a vacation, money toward rent or a down payment, new electronics, or concert tickets, 2 out of 5 renters opted for the rent money, while 3 out of 10 aspiring buyers preferred money for a down payment. Recent sellers would also rather receive money toward a down payment on their next home than a trip or vacation. In other words, cash is king, especially for New Yorkers — and it’s an easy gift to give.

For the art and culture lover

You’ll never run out of gifts to give to the NYC culture hound in your life. But if you’re having a hard time choosing, here are a few ideas.

Jazz at Lincoln Center tickets or classes

^{Jazz at Lincoln Center offers classes in addition to concerts. (Wikimedia Commons)}

As one of the leading jazz educational institutions and performance centers in the world, Jazz at Lincoln Center is a standout cultural institution in a city full of them. Give tickets to any of their stellar performances, or consider a Swing University class, where students learn about the history of jazz and how to appreciate the genre. Classes are held virtually, and can be purchased singularly or as a package.

Sunnyside

41-07 42nd Street

$1,900 No Fee

Studio |

1

Long Island City

38-11 31st Street

$2,100 No Fee

1 |

1

Astoria

25-36 22nd Street

$1,850 No Fee

1 |

1

Briarwood

85-15 139th Street

$1,995 No Fee

1 |

1

Briarwood

139-21 85 Drive

$1,650 No Fee

Studio |

1

Briarwood

139-05 84 Drive

$2,350 No Fee

2 |

1

Jackson Heights

86-11 34th Avenue

$1,800 No Fee

Studio |

1

Ditmars-Steinway

23-45 24th Street

$2,350 No Fee

1 |

1

Astoria

24-21 43rd Street

$2,100 No Fee

1 |

1

Ditmars-Steinway

22-76 41st Street

$2,300 No Fee

1 |

1

Astoria

23-45 31 Drive

$2,400 No Fee

1 |

1

Jamaica

152-11 89th Avenue

$2,169 No Fee

Studio |

1

NYC photography

^{Classic NYC photography always makes a great gift.}

Help your friends decorate their homes with famous New York photographs, like the one of those men lunching precariously on a skyscraper construction beam. If you want to pick up some cheap prints, you can find them at many stands near tourist-heavy spots, like Times Square or Columbus Circle. And if you want to class it up a bit, you can opt for framed prints or unique reproductions by vendors at NYC holiday markets or on sites like Etsy.

Museum memberships

^{The Whitney offers great views outside, too.}

A museum membership is a thoughtful gift that will keep on giving…at least until its expires. The Whitney Museum is expansive, hip, and has an outdoor terrace with Hudson River views for $90 per year. The Museum of Modern Art offers annual memberships for as low as $65, with higher tiers for the most dedicated of patrons. If you want to venture out of Manhattan and mix in a little nature with your nurture, think about a membership to the New York Botanical Garden or the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, whose exhibitions change with the seasons.

Midtown

465 Park Avenue

$399,000

1 |

1

Sutton Place

153 East 57th Street

$725,000

1 |

1

Hell’s Kitchen

857 Ninth Avenue

$475,000

1 |

1

Lincoln Square

2 West 67th Street

$1,349,000

2 |

1.5

NoMad

127 East 30th Street

$999,000

1 |

1

Yorkville

302 East 88th Street

$1,299,000

2 |

2

East Village

123 Third Avenue

$1,430,000

1 |

1

Civic Center

170 Park Row

$825,000

1 |

1

Lenox Hill

333 East 66th Street

$695,000

1 |

1

Midtown

57 West 58th Street

$859,000

1 |

1

Hell’s Kitchen

347 West 57th Street

$1,295,000

1 |

1.5

West Village

88 Charles Street

$929,000

1 |

1

Broadway tickets

^{Broadway shows: they make Times Square bearable.}

Even if New Yorkers claim to hate Times Square, any sane person will make an exception for a Broadway show. If you’re looking to wow the lucky recipient, choose a coveted favorite like Hamilton, The Lion King, or Wicked. There are several resale and discount ticket sites and apps you can use to score a deal. If you want something a bit more low-key and less expensive, there are a slew of phenomenal off-Broadway theaters. Try Signature Theatre or Roundabout Theatre Company, which offer more intimate viewing experiences and top-notch performers, many of whom also work on more glitzy Broadway stages.

The New Yorker magazine subscription

Are you truly an NYC resident until you’re 20-plus weeks behind on your New Yorker pile? Give the gift of incredible long-form articles, restaurant recommendations, cultural commentary, and hilarious cartoons — all in one magazine that may take you an entire week to finish (in the best way!).

Park Slope

78 Eighth Avenue

$799,000

1 |

1

Kensington

260 Ocean Parkway

$417,000

1 |

1

Gravesend

1817 West 4th Street

$1,499,999

3 |

2.5

Downtown Brooklyn

122 Ashland Place

$660,000

1 |

1

Flatlands

1433 East 52nd Street

$450,000

1 |

1

Farragut

504 East 40th Street

$929,000

4 |

3

Gerritsen Beach

31 Frank Court

$1,399,000

3 |

3

Sheepshead Bay

4050 Nostrand Avenue

$649,000

2 |

2

Manhattan Beach

137 West End Avenue

$719,000

2 |

2

Bensonhurst

1641 82nd Street

$1,399,000

6 |

3

Sheepshead Bay

2800 Coyle Street

$359,999

2 |

1

Farragut

4613 Foster Avenue

$899,000

3 |

2.5

For the sports fan

A love of sports runs deep in NYC’s pulsing, concrete-enshrouded heart, and team loyalties will always be a point of both pride and contention. Any Modell’s location in the city will have an array of local team gear. Or, browse the MLB Store for hats and jerseys from New York’s two baseball clubs. Whatever you’re gifting, though, don’t choose wrong — a Yankees fan will scoff at a Mets hat, and a Mets fan will certainly throw that Yankees jersey in the donation pile.

^{Hit the ball out of the park by giving tickets to a home game.}

If you want to go all out, why not surprise and delight with tickets to a game? There are still a few games left in the NFL season, and the NHL season goes to mid-April. Tickets for next year’s MLB season are usually available this time of year, too. Grab home game tickets for the Giants, Jets, Rangers, Islanders, Yankees, or Mets.

Jackson Heights

37-31 73rd Street

$389,000

1 |

1

South Jamaica

172-01 Victoria Drive

$850,000

8 |

6

Murray Hill (Queens)

150-22 41st Avenue

$899,888

3 |

1.5

Forest Hills

76-35 113rd Street

$349,000

1 |

1

Oakland Gardens

75-36 Bell Boulevard

$549,000

2 |

2

Forest Hills

110-20 71 Road

$688,000

2 |

2

Kew Gardens Hills

152-14 79th Avenue

$995,000

4 |

3.5

Kew Gardens

117-01 Park Lane South

$559,000

2 |

2

Flushing

138-35 39th Avenue

$935,000

1 |

1

St. Albans

116-03 205th Street

$829,000

5 |

3

Forest Hills

70-20 108th Street

$625,000

2 |

1

St. Albans

119-38 193rd Street

$829,000

4 |

2.5

For the New York foodie

New Yorkers love — no, adore — their bagels and lox, and you can fuel their affair with a Russ & Daughters gift basket. The beloved Lower East Side institution first opened its doors in 1914, and has been wooing locals with perfect bagels and fresh fish ever since. Show your friends and family that you know good New York bagels when you see them.

^{Wally Gobetz via Flickr}

If you have another spot in mind for the foodie on your list, Goldbelly offers a variety of specialties from legendary NYC purveyors like Barney Greengrass, Levain Bakery, John’s of Bleecker Street, Gramercy Tavern, and more. They deliver nationwide, so you can gift a little taste of New York to your loved ones even if they don’t call it home!

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