Father's Day Gifts for New Dads Who Are Still Figuring It Out

Forma Diaper Bag Backpack

The Skip Hop Forma comes in black. It fits a 15-inch laptop, has a magnetic one-handed buckle, a stroller strap, and enough pockets to stay organized without thinking. Not trying to look like anything other than a backpack. The default dad diaper bag — neutral, practical, genuinely functional.

Best for: The dad who needs a bag that works without looking like a diaper bag

Embrace Baby Carrier

A soft stretchy newborn carrier that is simpler to put on than a structured one — no buckles, no straps to adjust. One piece of fabric, wear it correctly in two minutes. Keeps baby upright and calm. Dad gets both hands back.

Best for: The first three months, newborn through around 15 lbs

Bouncer Bliss

The most useful put-the-baby-down object in the first year. Dad can shower, eat, answer an email. Responds to the baby's own movement — no batteries needed. Folds flat for storage. Works from birth.

Best for: The first six months of one-free-hand parenting

Personalized Coffee Subscription

Matches preferences to an independent roaster. Dad sets the cadence, pauses, skips. Better than buying one bag — it becomes a ritual. A gift that keeps arriving every two weeks and says someone remembered he still exists.

Best for: The dad who needs a morning ritual that isn't just survival mode

Stagg EKG Electric Kettle

Precision temperature, gooseneck pour, a beautiful counter object. Turns the 5am feed into something that feels intentional instead of desperate. Pairs with the Trade Coffee subscription to make the whole set a proper gift.

Best for: The dad who already grinds his own beans

Manta Sleep Mask Pro

Completely blocks light from all angles without pressing on the eyes. For whoever is not on night duty — sleeping through the monitor glow, the hall light, the 3am stumbling. The detail that actually changes sleep quality.

Best for: The parent who can finally sleep but keeps getting woken by light

OOahh Recovery Slide

New dads stand for hours — bouncing, rocking, walking circuits of the kitchen. Oofos absorb significantly more impact than regular foam and reduce foot stress. Ugly. Genuinely effective. The kind of thing a dad would never buy for himself.

Best for: The dad with sore feet from three months of constant movement

Restore 2

Adult sleep machine and sunrise alarm clock — distinct from the baby Hatch Rest. Wind-down sounds, a gentle wake light that ramps up instead of blaring, app-controlled. For the parent who still needs help sleeping even when the baby finally does.

Best for: The dad whose cortisol is still running at 3am even when it doesn't need to be

Theragun Mini

Shoulders, neck, lower back — all wrecked by the first year of carrying, feeding, and bending over cribs. The Mini is portable and less performative than the full-size version. Something a dad would never buy for himself but reaches for every evening.

Best for: The dad who mentions his back hurts approximately once a day

Photo Book Subscription

Automatically pulls phone photos into a printed book on a schedule. No editing, no designing, no remembering. The first year disappears fast. A Chatbooks subscription is one of those gifts that keeps arriving long after the shower.

Best for: The parent who takes 400 photos a month and prints zero

Dad, I Want to Hear Your Story

A guided journal that prompts dads to record their own life story — for their child to read someday. Specific questions make writing easy. Not blank pages that never get filled. One of those gifts that takes ten minutes to start and ends up taking years.

Best for: The new dad who keeps meaning to write things down

Newborn Handprint + Footprint Kit

Air-dry clay impression kit with two included frames. Tactile, permanent, shows exactly how small those hands were. Simple enough to do in an afternoon. The result sits on the shelf for decades.

Best for: The first two months, when hands are still impossibly small

Custom Frame Service

Send a photo — the ultrasound, the first day home, the first bath — and get a custom-framed print back in the mail. No gallery wall planning required. One of the best ways to turn a phone photo into something permanent.

Best for: The first big moment that deserves a real frame

Custom Framed Photo Print

Send a photo — the birth day, the first week home, any one of the 400 shots from the first month — and Artifact Uprising handles the rest. Premium matte paper, clean finishes, a frame that fits the nursery. The kind of print that stays on the wall for years.

Best for: A gift that turns a phone photo into something permanent

Little Artist Baby Memory Book

A beautifully illustrated baby memory book with prompted pages for each milestone of the first year. Warm, whimsical artwork that makes the book worth leaving on the shelf — the kind parents actually fill in rather than set aside.

Best for: The parent who wants a keepsake worth keeping visible

Poco Plus Child Carrier

Backpack-style hiking carrier for babies who can hold their head up. Padded suspension for the dad, sunshade and mirror for the baby, hydration sleeve. The starter item for the dad who wants to take the baby outdoors before the baby can walk.

Best for: First hikes starting around 6 months

Original Puffy Blanket

Packable outdoor blanket — park, beach, grass, tailgate. Waterproof backing, machine washable, stuffs into a bag the size of a football. Not a picnic prop. A blanket that gets used for years on every impromptu outdoor trip.

Best for: Every last-minute outing for the next ten years

Dragons Love Tacos

Genuinely funny to read out loud, even to a baby who doesn't understand it yet. The humor is for the dad. A better read-aloud book than most baby books — the kind dads actually ask to read again.

Best for: The dad who's already dreading reading the same board book 200 times

Dude, You're a Dad!

Practical, funny guide to the first year of fatherhood. Covers diaper changes, sleep regressions, partner dynamics, and the general chaos — with a tone that matches how new dads actually talk about it. The book that arrives and stays on the nightstand.

Best Dad Socks

Actual quality socks. The "Best Dad" range from Stance is subtle enough to wear without irony — just good socks with a quiet label. Multiple pairs, gift-box ready. The gift that works for any dad, every time.

Father's Day Coupon Book

A fill-in coupon book of redeemable favors — nap time, solo TV control, dinner choice, a pass on bedtime duty. The kind of low-stakes, high-thoughtfulness gift that works as an add-on to anything else. Funny without trying too hard.

Best for: Adding personality to a practical gift set

F*ck, Now There Are Two of You

The sequel to Go the F*ck to Sleep — for second-time parents, parents of multiples, or anyone who loved the original. Best read aloud by the dad who already did one first year and is about to do it again.

New Dad Survival Kit

A pre-curated gift box of useful dad things in a wooden crate that arrives with a crowbar. Good for the buyer who wants one decision instead of thirty. Snacks, novelty items, and a few genuinely useful things — all in one.

Best for: The gifter who wants to give something complete without overthinking it

Vintage Race Car Toy — Baby Bodysuit

A baby bodysuit with a vintage toy race car illustration — because at some point every new dad puts the baby in something that is really just for him. Soft quality cotton, the kind of quiet design that looks right at home in a nursery or at the park. Add it to anything practical above and the whole gift immediately feels intentional.

Best for: The dad who has a thing for vintage toys, racing, or just needs something with personality