Anniversary gifts for her: 40 ideas for your wife or girlfriend, by year and budget
By the Notre Livre editorial team · · 12 min read
Jewellery is the default anniversary gift for women, and it can be lovely. But the presents people talk about years later are rarely the expensive ones. They are the ones that only you could have chosen.
Here are 40 ideas, grouped into sentimental gifts, treats, time together and wedding anniversary ideas by year, with notes for a wife and a girlfriend and a price guide.
Quick picks
| If she... | Give her | Rough budget |
|---|---|---|
| Keeps every card | Your story as a book | £29 digital, £55 or £75 hardback |
| Organises everything | A day off, entirely planned by you | Free to £150 |
| Loves beautiful things | A piece of jewellery engraved with a date | £60 and up |
| Wants more time together | A night away, childcare sorted | £100 and up |
| Is your girlfriend of a year or two | A day out built around something she loves | £40 to £120 |
Sentimental anniversary gifts for her (10 ideas)
- A love letter for each year you have been together.
- Your wedding vows printed and framed with a photo from the day.
- A locket with two photos: your first picture together and a recent one.
- A bracelet with a charm for each place you have lived.
- A framed map of where you met.
- The bouquet from your wedding recreated by the same florist.
- A recording of your first dance song by a live musician.
- Letters from her closest friends, bound together.
- A photo book with a caption from you on every page.
- Your story as a novel, from the first message to now.
Treats she would not buy herself (8 ideas)
- Her favourite perfume in the big bottle.
- A cashmere jumper or scarf in her colour.
- A silk pillowcase and eye mask.
- A spa day with a friend, booked and paid for.
- A designer candle and the matching diffuser.
- A monthly flower subscription for a season.
- A good leather handbag or purse.
- A box of chocolates from a small chocolatier.
Small romantic gestures (8 ideas)
- Breakfast in bed with fresh flowers on the tray.
- A note hidden somewhere new every day of the anniversary week.
- Her favourite meal cooked from scratch, candles lit.
- The playlist from your wedding on in the car.
- A bath run for her, with the children in bed and the kitchen clean.
- A framed photo of the two of you for her bedside table.
- A walk to the place you first kissed, with a flask and a letter.
- A toast at dinner, with three things you love about her said out loud.
Time together (8 ideas)
- A weekend in a city you have never visited together.
- Dinner at the restaurant she keeps mentioning.
- Theatre, ballet or a concert, with dinner before.
- A pottery, painting or dance class for two.
- Afternoon tea somewhere grand.
- A return to the place you got engaged.
- A night in planned like a night out: menu, music, no phones.
- A day off: you take the children and the chores.
Wedding anniversary gifts for her by year
| Year | Material | Idea for her |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | Paper | Twelve love letters, or your first year as a novel |
| 2nd | Cotton | Beautiful cotton bedding or a cotton nightdress |
| 3rd | Leather | A leather handbag or journal |
| 5th | Wood | A wooden jewellery box with a letter inside |
| 10th | Tin | A tin of ten love letters, or diamonds for the modern list |
| 15th | Crystal | A crystal vase with her favourite flowers |
| 20th | China | A china tea set or a trip you have always meant to take |
| 25th | Silver | A silver bracelet with 25 links or a silver locket |
| 40th | Ruby | A ruby pendant, or forty years as a book |
The full list, year by year, is in our guide to wedding anniversary gifts by year.
For your wife or your girlfriend
For a wife, the most moving gifts usually record your shared life: the wedding, the homes, the children, the hard years. A book or a framed set of vows will mean more than another gadget.
For a girlfriend, show that you listen: the exhibition she mentioned, the book she wanted, a day built around her favourite place.
Under £30 (6 ideas)
- A pocket book of love poems with your note inside.
- A single stem of her favourite flower and a letter.
- A small houseplant with a tag in your handwriting.
- A jar of 52 notes for the year ahead.
- A framed photo from your first trip.
- The digital edition of your love story (£29).
Your story as a book
For a partner who keeps every card, a book about your own relationship is the gift that lasts longest. With a Notre Livre anniversary book, one of you (or a son or daughter) tells the story in a guided conversation: how you met, the wedding, the homes, the children, the hard years and the good ones. It becomes a novel of 80 to 200 pages, written in the first person with AI assistance. Nothing is invented, the first page is free to read before paying, and every chapter is reviewed before printing.
£29 digital, £55 or £75 as a hardback printed in the UK, VAT and UK delivery included. See the prices page.
Price guide
A rough guide. Prices for third-party gifts vary by retailer; Notre Livre prices are the ones charged on this site.
| Budget | Ideas from this guide |
|---|---|
| Free to £30 | Letters, poems, plant, jar of 52 notes, digital anniversary book (£29) |
| £30 to £100 | Framed vows, map, cashmere scarf, hardback anniversary book (£55 or £75) |
| £100 to £250 | Perfume, spa day, class for two, show and dinner |
| Over £250 | Jewellery, a city break, a leather handbag |