17 Gifts for People Who Are Perpetually Cold
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It’s getting cold outside, and it's even worse for a person who’s always cold. The first crisp morning of the season sends your poor, perpetually cold loved one diving under the bedsheets, digging for the fuzzy socks, or fiddling with the thermostat when your back is turned. (Don’t look—they’re probably doing it right now.) This year, give the gift of warmth to your friend who is constantly shivering, sniffling, and suffering. From protective layers for outdoor adventures to cozy accessories, here’s how to show your hypothermic human you care.
For more ideas, check out our many holiday gift guides, including the best Practical Gifts for Exhausted New Parents, Gifts for Travelers Who Have Everything, Gifts for Hikers, Backpackers, and Outdoorsy People, and more.
Updated December 2024: We added new picks, like an electric heated vest, a firepit, and a new outdoor blanket. We also updated links and pricing.
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- Photograph: Adrienne So
The Best Slippers
Teva ReEmber TerrainIn my role as the resident perpetually cold person, I have been on a single-minded quest to try a bunch of new slippers for Martin Cizmar's slipper guide. I very much liked the Kuru Draft 2 ($110), which have a proprietary last that feels secure when I walk, as well as an insulated upper. But after calling in a few more slippers, I have now decided that our top pick is the Teva ReEmber.
The company has several editions of this popular slipper/shoe, and it's ubiquitous in Portland, Oregon, where I live. You do have to size down (I’m a size 7.5 shoe, and the 8 is too big), but this is the perfect pick for meandering between your backyard firepit and the kitchen for hot cocoa. The upper is insulated with both quilted nylon and a brushed polyester that looks and feels very woollike. It has been treated with a water-resistant coating, which helps keep it dry in the Pacific Northwest's constant drizzling rain when I run to put the garbage bins out on the street. The rubber outsole also provides a bit more traction on wet asphalt than the Kuru shoes do.
- Photograph: Martin Cizmar
The Best Upgraded Firepit
Breeo X24 Series Smokeless Fire PitAnother weird side effect of being a perpetually cold person is that I'm also a raving pyromaniac. (Burn it all down!) Both WIRED reviewer Martin Cizmar and I have a Breeo fire pit. It has the same, purportedly smokeless, aerated design as the more popular Solo Stove fire pit, but it weighs 62 pounds and has a series of optional attachments for turning it into either a grill or a pizza oven. I've had mine for several years, and the patina has only improved with age. Wood burns incredibly hot and clean in this pit, and as Cizmar has noted, it's big enough to fit full logs without having to chop them down. If your perpetually cold person also doesn't want to come inside, this is your best option.
- Photograph: Yeti
Tiny Hot Cups for Sharing
Yeti 6-oz Stackable CupsThese tiny stackable mugs from Yeti are so unbearably cute that I have a hard time looking at them. Like most of Yeti's drinkware, they're dishwasher-friendly and come in a wide variety of colors. The ceramic lining means that your wee splash of Fireball whiskey won't taste metallic when you sip.
These are perfect for stashing in a bag or jacket pocket when you just need to stop in a coffee shop and slide it under an espresso machine for a quick hot cortado. Through cold and rainy Oregon winters, I use them to make matching cups of piping hot cocoa to lure my 6- and 8-year-old out of bed every morning. (If you really want to impress the littles, get a milk frother so that milk is extra velvety.) They don't come with a lid, but the smallest Yeti Magslider lid fits ($10 at Amazon or Yeti). These would also make great camping mugs for a niece and nephew.
- Photograph: Nena Farrell
A Learning Thermostat
Google Nest Learning Thermostat (4th Generation)Your favorite cold person probably checks the thermostat several times a day (guilty). After all, sometimes our thermostat's placement doesn't always warm up the room we actually need heated; my old thermostat used to leave my bedroom freezing, since it was using the hallway’s temperature as its gauge. The solution? The Google Nest Learning Thermostat (4th Gen) (9/10, WIRED Recommends) and its included temperature sensor, which your cold person can place in any room. The thermostat will get that room to the perfect temperature, rather than wherever the thermostat happens to live. The thermostat is easy to set up and use, and the app will make suggestions as it learns schedules over time. Plus, it’s gorgeous to look at on the wall. —Nena Farrell
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- Photograph: Vornado
A (Heated) Room of One’s Own
Vornado TAVH10 Electric Space HeaterOr maybe they don't want to mess with a thermostat at all, and need a space heater pointed directly at their feet. I own this slightly older model, and while I wouldn’t say the heat fills up my entire 10 x 12-foot bedroom, it does a solid job of keeping my desk area comfortable for the whole work day. My favorite feature is the auto-off timer, which makes it so that I can feel safe falling asleep, knowing it’ll shut off within an hour. In the morning, I can wake up, grab the remote from my nightstand, and lollygag in bed while the room heats up.
Bonus points if your perpetually cold giftee lives with someone who is not perpetually cold. This space heater can prevent acts of violence from being committed over the thermostat (see above). Trust us.
- Photograph: The Company Store
Cozy Flannel Sheets
The Company Store Legends Hotel Velvet Flannel Sheet SetDo you share a bed with your favorite perpetually cold person? Consider upgrading to cozy flannel sheets. Crisp cotton is nice in the summer, but for the winter months, your loved one wants to snuggle down into fluffed-out fibers. Bonus points if you put a hot water bottle at the foot of the bed so they don't spend many shivery minutes waiting for their toes to heat up.
- Photograph: Amazon
A Backyard Hot Tub
Intex PureSpa Bubble Massage Inflatable Hot TubIn the winter, there are days when the cold reaches down into my bones, and the only thing that helps is loads of hot water, either internally (in the form of tea) or externally (in a hot tub). For now, I visit the communal hot tubs, but I really want this for the backyard. My spouse will never put up with the amount of maintenance that a home hot tub requires, nor the inflated power and water bills. But maybe he will read this guide and reconsider. (Hi, honey!)
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The Best Tea Brewer Mug
The Tea Spot Mountain Tea TumblerSpeaking of hot water, this is the best way I've found to take some of it on the go with me. The Mountain Tumbler is an insulated, double-walled mug that has a tea basket that fits inside. You can put a few spoonfuls of any tea of your choice into the brewer basket and pour hot water over it. You can either screw the top on and let it steep or toss after a few minutes. I love this thing. I make tea, leave it in my car while I hike the river or stand around a playground for a few hours, then sit in the car to warm up with piping hot tea three hours later. It has a specialized sipping lid, but I've sometimes had to take the lid off entirely to let my tea cool down, because it's too hot. If you give this as a gift, I suggest including some tea to go along with it. It's not one of the company's bolder blends, but I like the chamomile from the Tea Spot.
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The Best Blanket
Rumpl Backcountry Puffy BlanketThe previous version of this guide had the original Rumpl puffy blanket, and I still have original Rumpls stored in my car and in my electric cargo bike for impromptu outdoor adventures. However, Rumpl recently updated its beloved classic, which I like even better. The Backcountry Puffy is meant to be used while camping, and it has an included Cape Clip that my daughter has been using to wear it around the house. (She, too, is a Cold Person.) Like the original, it has down insulation, is recycled, and uses PFAS-free durable water repellent (DWR) so it doesn't drip cancer-causing agents into the groundwater.
- Photograph: Hikerkind
A Stylish Midlayer
Hikerkind Midlayer 01In the name of staying warm, I tried several insulating midlayers, including the classic, chunky, North Face Denali ($180). As someone who lives in a chilly, perpetually rainy region, I ended up picking the Hikerkind midlayer, which fits easily under any rain jacket.
Although it doesn't look super technical, it's made from Polartec Power Air, a recycled insulating fabric that also doesn't shed. I generally prefer wool in the winter, but synthetic fibers work well for highly aerobic activities (I wear it hiking, biking, and rock climbing). It's soft and has vivid colors and doesn't wrinkle, and the pockets are stretchy and capacious.
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- Photograph: Adrienne So
A Heated Vest
ActionHeat 5V Heated VestThe brand ActionHeat sent a ton of items over for consideration in this guide; I also tried the slippers (flimsy, overpriced) and the blanket (one warm spot over my crotch). It's also annoying that all the chargers use micro USB, like it's 2015 instead of 2024. However, I did like the heated vest very much. The heating units are slim and unobtrusive, and the battery fits nicely in a pocket. You can click between three heat settings, and one charge lasts for about four hours. It's great for layering under my rain jacket when I really don't want to walk my dogs or take the garbage out, or when I’m shivering at my desk and can't quite tell why. If the battery lasted longer, I would wear this thing all day.
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The Best Tea for Your Bestie
Tea Drops Best Tea Gift SetDon't want to wait for tea to brew? Instead of steeping, you can simply plop Tea Drops in a mug of hot water, where they dissolve into a lightly sweetened, aromatic pool of bliss. The “drops” are clusters of organic tea leaves, packed tightly into adorable shapes and wrapped in recyclable packets. This sampler set comes in a ribbon-ready box—a perfect gift if you’re gunning for a shout-out on your frigid friend’s Instagram. Plus, it's one of our favorite gifts from BIPOC-owned businesses.
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- Photograph: Adrienne So
A Warm Dickie
Puffer Hug 418 ScarfPuffer Hug has a few different insulated, nylon scarves with pockets. The Original Puffer Hug ($50) is a real nylon scarf with a pocket on the end. The new Scarf 418 is more of a—I don't know how else to say this—it's a puffy, cozy nylon dickie with two pockets and buttons that let you seal it around your chest.
It's perfect for your ever-chilly loved one to wear under a wool coat or a raincoat, if they don't want to do the full-on Michelin Man layering routine. However, these pockets are so handy that I will often just wear my insulated dickie buttoned up around my house. I look a little silly, but I often look silly anyway.
- Photograph: The North Face
The Best Gloves
North Face Etip Recycled GloveEvery perpetually cold person has dozens of gloves, but they always need more gloves, because you're always losing and finding gloves again. Over the years, I have tried so many pairs of gloves for hiking, biking, and snowboarding. But for everyday wear, I keep coming back to the North Face Etips. The sizing is perfect. They're touchscreen-compatible, and the fabric is thin and stretchy enough that I can still use my hands to unzip things or manipulate my keys. For rainy weather, I also like Showers Pass knit gloves ($47), which have a membrane to keep your hands dry.
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- Photograph: Wild Rye
The Best Insulated Pants
Wild Rye Payette PantIf your loved one is perpetually cold, then odds are they have many, many sweaters, hats, and vests, but not very many insulated pants. For some reason, so many of us walk around in multiple layers on our core, and none on our shivery, goose-pimpled legs. I have a few options that your loved one might like. Wild Rye's Payette Pants are made from recycled polyester and insulated with Primaloft. The soft, relaxed fit feels very fashion-forward, especially when worn with the cropped, matching Payette pullover top. Wild Rye caters to women mountain bikers who have a wide range of body types. The waist is elasticized, and while the legs are very long, they also have drawstring cuffs so you can shorten them or tuck them into boots.
If you're not ready to start wearing a full-on set of puffy pajamas everywhere you go (I am), Snow Peak makes quilted pants that are more tailored and look a little more like regular pants, and I also like Eddie Bauer's fleece-lined jeans. Or they could cut out the footbox on a sleeping bag and just walk around like that. Any port in a storm, as they say.
- Photograph: Ryan Bent
A Toasty Headband
Skida HeadbandSkida is a Vermont-based brand that makes colorful outdoor accessories that have a cult following among outdoorsy women. Do you have women in your life? Are they around you right now? One of them might be wearing a cute, printed beanie even as we speak. These headbands are designed to keep sweat from getting in your eyes while protecting you from the headwinds. You can choose between the lightweight Nordic headband or the microfleece-lined Alpine for extra coziness. As a plus, their headlines are made in Vermont, and the microfleece is made of 87 percent recycled materials. Just one question remains: Which of the (many) colors and patterns will you pick?
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- Photograph: Patagonia
The Biggest Parka in the World
Patagonia Stormshadow ParkaLook, there are times when only the biggest, puffiest jacket will do. I look forward to when the temperatures drops in the fall and I can shoulder myself into this jacket again, like a female Kenny from South Park. This is the warmest parka that Patagonia makes. It's made from 100 percent recycled Gore-Tex with a waterproof Gore-Tex membrane that is, again, free from perfluorinated chemicals or carcinogens that linger in the soil and groundwater. The face fabric is also 100 percent recycled and partially made with yarn spun from ocean plastic.
I wear this jacket while cycling and hiking. It inflates me to about four times my actual size and I love every inch of it. It has kept me dry through a cold rain when temperatures hovered around freezing. I particularly love the insulated, adjustable hood and the huge pockets, located right on your torso when you need to huddle and keep your hands warm. Unfortunately, it only comes in men's sizes and it costs as much as an iPhone.
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