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Giving cash as a present is easy, quick, and, most of all, practical, since almost everyone could use a little more of it. 

But for those same reasons, money can be seen as thoughtless, gauche, or even an implication that the gift recipient really needs it — more than the candle warmer or the novelty socks you picked out in a panic on Christmas Eve.  

But if you were to ask recipients what they actually want for the holidays, the answer is clear: Cash is king. A December 2023 YouGov survey found 38 percent of global respondents said they’d prefer to get cash for the holidays — the largest share of potential presents. Another 10 percent said they wanted gift cards. A  2022 MassMutual Consumer Spending & Saving Index found similar results: 31 percent of Americans said their ideal gift was cash.

The chasm between what people really want — money — and what givers feel comfortable gifting — pretty much anything else — has led gift-givers to waste millions of dollars on unwanted or lackluster presents. 

You shouldn’t feel weird bestowing cash to your nearest and dearest, experts say. But there are tactful ways to do it.

While Americans might be spending more on holiday gifts,  they aren’t necessarily choosing presents that are sure to delight the recipient.

When shopping, givers often choose an item that says more about themselves than it does the recipient, says Ernest Baskin, an associate professor of food, pharma, and health care at Saint Joseph’s University. Givers are preoccupied with the “wow” factor, research shows, a present that says, “Look how well I know you to have selected this thoughtful, meaningful item.”

“Most of the time, we’re not right about this, to be honest,” Baskin says. “Most of the time, [recipients] can tell you very well what their desire is, or they’d rather you just give them money so they can pick what their desire is.”

Cash is practical,  and givers tend to underestimate how much recipients appreciate useful, ordinary presents, research suggests. Indeed, handing someone a card with a check inside is less exciting than watching their face light up at the sight of a puppy in a box. However, after the initial excitement fades, the pragmatic, boring gift gets the most use.

Cash is also seen as thoughtless and low-effort, says Julian Givi, associate professor of marketing at West Virginia University. Writing a check or hitting the ATM requires very little creative energy. “It’s really in no way personalized to you,” Givi says. “[Giving] 100 bucks to someone shows nothing about your knowledge of their hobbies, their interests, their passions, and so on.

The relationship between the giver and the receiver is also paramount in cash-giving scenarios. A grandparent tucking a $5 bill into a card for a kid is kosher, “but going up the age ladder is a little awkward,” Givi says. Think about it: How would Grandma feel if you gave her $25 in cash?

Cash gifts between friends is also tricky, says Lizzie Post, etiquette expert and co-president at the Emily Post Institute. That same $5 your aunt gives you every year is odd coming from a friend. There’s the implication that the receiver perhaps needs the cash more than, say, a cashmere sweater. “We don’t often just hand our friends money,” Post says. “Instead, we go do something enriching with them.”

Even if the recipient explicitly requests cash, Americans still find it taboo to comply. Instead, givers have found ways to creatively disguise the act of bestowing money, especially through registries. To make the exchange more thoughtful, wedding or baby shower guests will often contribute to a honeymoon or diaper fund on platforms such as  Honeyfund and Babylist.

“At the end of the day, that’s still just cash that you’re giving,” Baskin says, “but now you can say that I’m actually giving something that the couple needs.” Gift cards, too, are simply cash by another name, only restricted to specific stores.

Despite popular convention that cash presents are gauche, Post says the annals of etiquette wisdom permit monetary gifts. (Though she does find the practice of Venmoing money as a wedding gift a little crass.)

The key is to make it thoughtful.

Definitely include a card, Post says, and write a short note about how you hope they spend the dough: “Use this to buy those Taylor Swift concert tickets” or “Treat yourself to a massage.” As for the amount, consider your relationship with the recipient, but only give what is within your budget, Post says.

It would be awkward  to gift Grandma $25, but giving her a gift card to a grocery store is likely to go over better, Givi says, even if the dollar amount is the same. “You’re putting in some thoughtfulness to select something related to her and who she is,” Givi says. “Then also, you had to go out and buy this thing.”

If you feel so inclined as to ask for cash, offer the givers a few other options, Post says: “Someone asks you, ‘What do you want for Hanukkah?’ You could absolutely say to them, ‘I’m into these books. I’m into this sport. Anything to do with them is great. And of course, I’m always a fan of cash. Whatever is easiest for you to do.’”

Should you still lack gifting inspiration, ask yourself what gift you’d like to receive, Baskin, the Saint Joseph’s researcher, says. Is it embroidered socks or is it cold hard cash?

When Baskin poses that same question to study participants, “the answer [that] often comes up,” he says, is “money.”

Scott Olson/Getty Images

School shooting in Wisconsin: A teacher and a student were killed after a shooting at Abundant Life Christian School in Madison, Wisconsin on Monday. The shooter, a 15-year-old female student, is also dead. It’s a tragic continuation of American policy choices that don’t do enough to regulate guns, or to protect children.

What’s going on with the TikTok ban: President-elect Donald Trump met with Shou Zi Chew, the CEO of the controversial video app, at Mar-a-Lago. TikTok has asked the Supreme Court to block a law that could ban the app on January 19, one day before Trump is set to take office. It is still unknown if the Justices will take on the case.

The Hannah Kobayashi case is officially closed: The 30-year-old woman made headlines in November as a potential missing-person case, but was seen crossing the border into Mexico. During the search, her father was found dead of apparent suicide. Now, officials say Kobayashi has returned to the States. In a statement, Kobayashi said she was “unaware of everything happening in the media” during her disappearance.

The White Lotus to return in February: The popular HBO series is heading to Thailand for its third season. If you need a refresher on the tourist dramedy that our writer described as “rich people Hunger Games,” you can read more about season two of the show here.

Canada’s government woes: Canadian finance minister Chrystia Freeland resigned from her position, putting Prime Minister Justin Trudeau under pressure to keep his administration together. [NPR]

Top colleges in antitrust lawsuit: A filing claims that a group of elite colleges colluded to withhold potential financial aid, charging students for their schooling by a potential $685 million. [Washington Post]

Earthquake in the Pacific: A 7.3 magnitude quake hit the Pacific island nation of Vanuatu, killing 14 people and injuring 200. The US Embassy in the area has experienced serious damage. [New York Times]

STR/AFP via Getty Images.

President-elect Donald Trump's many business ventures — including his social media platform, a nascent crypto firm, and the Trump Organization’s partnerships in the Middle East — could present conflicts of interest, make the presidency vulnerable to foreign influence, and violate federal law all for his personal gain. You can read more about Trump’s for-profit presidency here.

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