Every home has the shelf. A candle set still in cellophane, a fondue pot from a work exchange, a bottle of wine you don’t drink, a scarf in a color you would never wear. Meanwhile your gift list is long and your budget isn’t. Passing that fondue pot to your neighbor who loves cheese seems efficient, kind even. So why does it feel faintly like a crime?
Because the nightmare scenario is vivid: the original giver at the same party, or the gift tag from Aunt Linda still tucked under the bow.
Why regifting is less rude than it feels
You would be in plenty of company. In a 2024 survey for Empower, 42% of Americans said they planned to regift to manage holiday expenses.
The research on feelings is reassuring too. In a set of five studies published in Psychological Science, researchers from Stanford, London Business School and Harvard found that receivers expect givers to be more offended by regifting than givers actually are. Recipients treated regifting as being as bad as throwing the gift away; givers thought tossing it was far worse. As the Stanford write-up explains, givers tend to feel that once a gift is given, it’s yours to do with as you like, while receivers imagine it comes with strings attached.
Traditional etiquette is warier but not absolute. The Emily Post Institute has described regifting as generally not acceptable, with exceptions: when the new recipient will really like the item, it’s brand new with its original box and instructions, and the original giver didn’t take great care to select or make it. Put those together and you get a clear standard: regifting is fine when it is a good gift in its own right, not a disposal method.
Do
- Regift only new, unused items in original packaging.
- Match it to someone who will genuinely enjoy it.
- Check for cards, tags, monograms and notes, and rewrap.
- Keep a sticky note on shelved gifts saying who gave them.
Don’t
- Regift handmade, personalized or heirloom-type pieces.
- Pass a gift within the same circle as the giver.
- Regift opened food, half-used gift cards, or anything dated.
- Regift something you were asked about (“How’s the blender?”).
What to say
If you’re upfront (often the most graceful option)
“Someone gave me this and it’s really more your style than mine. I immediately thought of you.”
If the original giver later asks about the gift
“I hope you don’t mind: it wasn’t quite right for me, and my friend who bakes every weekend absolutely loves it.”
If you want to give permission as a giver
“Gift receipt’s in the card, and if it isn’t your thing, pass it on to someone who’ll love it. No hard feelings.”
When the answer changes
- White elephant and swap parties. Regifting is practically the point. Go ahead.
- Donating instead. If no one you know would love it, a donation is kinder than a forced regift.
- Getting caught. Don’t invent a story. A brief, honest “it suited them better” lands far better than a lie.
- Wedding and baby gifts. These are often chosen from a registry and carry more sentiment. Exchange or return rather than regift where you can.
Whatever you keep, a thank-you is still owed for the original gift; our thank-you notes guide has wording, and the thank-you note generator will draft one for you.
Sources
- WTOP — When is it acceptable to regift? (Dec. 2013, citing the Emily Post Institute)
- Stanford Graduate School of Business — The Gifts We Keep on Giving (Dec. 2012)
- Association for Psychological Science — ’Tis the Season for Giving
- FOX 9 — 42% of Americans plan to regift to save money during the holidays, survey finds (Dec. 2024)
Statistics are quoted from the linked publishers as of November 2026. See our methodology.