22 Fabulous Dad-Pleasing Father’s Day Gifts, Each Under $50

Seems like ever since the nation’s first Father’s Day was celebrated on June 19, 1910, in Washington state, people have wondered what to get for dear ol’ Dad!

And it’s time to wonder again as Father’s Day 2018 is coming up on Sunday, June 17.

Traditionally stores promote neckties, hats, socks, golf clubs, tools and greeting cards, but you may want something unique.

Whether you’re thinking of game room gadgets, workbench widgets or enjoyable experiences for a day with Dad, let these 22 ideas inspire you.

1. Gronkball Light-up Bluetooth Speaker Football

Rob Gronkowski says he’s returning to the Patriots for 2018, but you and Dad can toss around the tight end’s Gronkball Light-up Bluetooth Speaker Football for many seasons to come.

And with a 90-foot range, he can throw deep to you and you’ll both still enjoy the music. Not a Patriots’ fan? Choose a color to match your dad’s favorite team.

On sale for just under $50 at Brookstone, or just under $30 if your total purchase is $100 or more. (Note the code in the blue stripe at the top of the Brookstone page.)

2. Major League Baseball Father’s Day caps

Honor thy father’s favorite baseball team and fight cancer at the same time with an official Father’s Day fitted 59FIFTY cap.

All Major League Baseball teams will wear blue-tinted caps on Father’s Day in support of the Prostate Cancer Foundation (One team, the Angels, will retain a red brim and a red logo).

MLB says it donates its licensed royalties from the sales of such items to organizations supported by MLB Charities including the Prostate Cancer Foundation and Stand Up to Cancer.

Get your dad’s favorite team cap for $35.99, ships free.

3. Minor League Baseball game

Take Dad to a baseball experience that won’t send your wallet out of the park and gives the kids a fun-filled day as well.

For example, Father’s Day at “The Joe” stadium in Troy, New York, includes a Tri-City ValleyCats game against the Vermont Lake Monsters, starting with a Summer Reading session with players after the gates open, then some on-field catch and a picnic buffet before the game — and of course post-game kids’ base running. Plus each dad will receive a “ValleyCats #1 Dad” T-shirt. Ticket prices are one adult $26 and one youth $21.

Or play catch on the field at the Reno Aces home game against the Omaha Storm Chasers or at the Buffalo Bisons home game against the Rochester Red Wings, where the first 2,000 fans through the gate will receive a logo baseball.

For Father’s Day promotions near your home visit MILB.com and search on Father’s Day 2018.

4. Drillbrush Power Scrubber

Save your dad’s wrists when he tackles tough scrubbing jobs.

Carpal tunnel sufferer Tony LaPolla created the prototype for this scrubbing brush that attaches to a power drill (preferably cordless).

A Drillbrush Power Scrubber set comes in color-coded bristle strengths (including soft white, mediums green and yellow, stiff red and hard black) with rounded and flat brushes to tackle surfaces inside and outside the house. Drill is not included.

The Original Drillbrush Power Scrubber Stiff and Ultra Stiff Combo starter kit is $25.95 direct from Drillbrush. Or check out their pages on The Grommet or Amazon.

5. ToolSmart Digital Angle Finder

With a ToolSmart Digital Angle Finder, a handy-man Dad can quickly determine the angle of any corner up to 225 degrees and with one click send the measurement to his smartphone’s ToolSmart app.

His next-generation miter finder and angle measurement tool includes a 10.5-inch ruler and horizontal and vertical bubble levels. He’ll find it really useful for crown molding and flooring projects.

At Lowe’s for just under $50.

6. Bad Dog Wisdom Tumblers

Teach an old dad new tricks with these fetching Bad Dog Wisdom Tumblers.

The 6-inch tall, top-rack dishwasher-safe glasses are made in the USA and decorated in Edina, Minnesota.

Set of four from Uncommon Goods, $35 plus shipping.

7. Metal detector

Dad’s a treasure, sure, but maybe he can find hidden treasure of his own!

The Bounty Hunter Gold Digger Metal Detector can be used anywhere to search for all kinds of metal from gold coins to iron relics.

The detector can identify coin-size objects up to 6 inches underground, and it senses larger items up to 2 feet deep in the dirt. Headphones are included for private searches in crowded places.

Listed at $99.95, it’s offered at Amazon for under $50.

8. New England clam chowder

Your dad doesn’t have to be from New England, nor go there, to enjoy authentic clam chowder.

Rated the standard-bearer by Serious Eats, Legal Sea Foods brand clam chowder has been served at U.S. presidential inaugurations since 1981.

It’s creamy, rich without being leaden and is made with littleneck clams, pork salt, onions, diced potatoes, salt and pepper, according to Serious Eats.

One quart from Legal Sea Foods, accompanied by oyster crackers, costs around $26 plus shipping.

9. Bocce ball set

Play ball with dad. Not baseball, where nearby windows might be at risk, but bocce ball. The game with colorful balls is no longer just associated with older Italian men but has become a family-fun sport that can be played casually at the beach, backyard or neighborhood park as well as on a formal bocce ball court.

Offered at Target for under $48 on sale, the Kelsyus Premium Bocce Ball set includes eight 100-mm etched balls in four colors for easy team designation, one 60-mm pallino ball for scoring, and a carrying bag with two compartments for ball storage.

10. Lacoste Sandals

Dad will slide into comfort as he steps into summer fun in a pair of classic, sporty, imported, rubber Frasier sandals from Lacoste, the maker says.

Choose from white, black, navy or green, with contrasting crocodile logo.

Created for Macy’s, regularly priced at $40 but recently marked down to around $25.

11. MyPillow

Make sure dad gets a good night’s sleep with the MyPillow, which you may have seen advertised on TV.

The founder, recovered crack addict Mike Lindell, credits his patented three-piece interlocking fill for gently cradling head and neck and says it will stay just the way you like it all night long. And it’s 100-percent made in the USA, he says, if that brings you extra comfort.

Available at Walgreens online or at its seen-on-TV in-store shelves for just under $50.

12. Sweet and Spicy Mini Crate

Is Dad a man of good taste? Wait till he tastes chile-laden sweet-and-spicy sauces from Bushwick Kitchen, which are sold by Man Crates and arrive in a crate with a laser etched crowbar.

The Sweet and Spicy Mini Crate will have him complimenting the condiments and considering what he’ll pour them on next. The sealed crate contains Bees Knees Spicy Honey, Trees Knees Spicy Maple and Weak Knees Gochujang Sriracha.

Offered for just under $50 by Man Crates.

13. Forbidden Desert game

Play a board game with your dad.

Forbidden Desert: Thirst for Survival is a sequel to Gamewright’s 2010 hit Forbidden Island. Players go on an adventure to recover a legendary flying machine buried deep in the ruins of an ancient desert city. Teammates need to coordinate and use resources to survive scorching heat and a relentless sandstorm.

Sold and shipped by Amazon for under $25.

14. Decorate a mug

This time, it’s personal.

Decorate your own mug for Dad.

Michaels offers an Artminds kit for just $1.19 that includes a ceramic mug, paint brush and four pots of paint (red, blue, green, yellow). Paint it, bake it in the oven to seal the design, and drink up after it cools. If this deal runs out (as it is such a great deal) you can get a two-pack on Amazon for under $18.

15. Hair trimmer

Help keep dad trim — at least his hair.

The Philips Norelco Multigroom Series 3100 has five styling tools, including a full-size trimmer, beard comb and stubble comb, hair clipping comb, detail trimmer and nose trimmer.

Eighteen built-in length settings give your dad all he needs to create any style he wants. A rechargeable battery provides 35 minutes of cordless use.

Listing for $22.99, the trimmer is sold by CVS for under $19.

16. Fire TV Stick

Watch thousands of shows with dad when you get Amazon’s next-generation Fire TV Stick, which includes an Alexa Voice Remote.

He can access more than 500,000 movies and TV episodes from Netflix, Prime Video, Hulu, HBO, Showtime, NBC and more (some require separate subscriptions) plus millions of websites such as YouTube, Facebook and Reddit. And if he’s already an Amazon Prime member, he’ll access thousands of movies and TV episodes, including Thursday Night Football, Amazon Original Series and Prime Video Channels, and enjoy ad-free listening to millions of songs with Prime Music.

Plug the Fire TV Stick into any TV’s HDMI port, connect to Wi-Fi to stream at home or on the go. Offered by Amazon for around $40.

17. Dad & Me “Papa Bear” graphic tee

Grin and bear it in a cotton/poly “Papa Bear” tee that’s part of the Dad & Me collection offered by Kohl’s.

Check this link to get Dad set up with a shirt, for under $10 — and add on kid-sized T-shirts to match if you like. You could outfit papa and three cubs for under $50.

18. Personalized chef's cooking apron

Grilling can get a little messy! Keep Dad clean with a Hot4TShirts Personalized Chef Apron made of 65 percent Cotton Twill and 35 percent polyester.

Each apron can be personalized with Dad’s name or a phrase. Comes in black, green, blue, red or white.

Available via Amazon from JD & E ECOM for under $30, free shipping.

19. Home brew beer kit

Older kids can brew up some fun with their dad with Mr. Beer’s Premium Gold Edition Complete Homebrewing Kit.

Mr. Beer’s patented brewing system includes a compact, lightweight fermenter modeled after professional brewing equipment. The kit boasts 11 25-ounce reusable and shatterproof bottles; a can of brewing extract made from concentrated malted barley and hops; a no-rinse cleanser and unique carbonation drops to simplify the sanitization and carbonation process; and Classic American Light and Oktoberfest Lager refills.

Available onAmazon for just under $50.

20. Tile Key, Phone Finder

Does your dad misplace his phone or keys?

Now he can “ring it, find it” with a Tile Bluetooth tracker, which pairs with the maker’s intuitive app. The Tile Style and Sport each have a 200-foot range and are louder than ever, making it easy to find things nearby.

To find your phone, double tap the Tile button and your phone will begin to ring — even on silent. Lose something else? The Tile app remembers when and where you left something behind and shows you on a map. You can even tap into the Tile community of users to help you find something lost.

The two-pack (one Style, one Sport model) is available on Amazon for just under $50.

21. Books

Help Dad reach for a beach read.

Barnes & Noble recommends fiction and nonfiction choices to enthrall Dad, whether he’s reading an old-school hardcover or on a Kindle.

Among standouts are “Astrophysics for People in a Hurry,” by astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson, who brings the universe down to Earth succinctly and clearly (under $12 from B&N), and “The Gray Ghost (Fargo Adventure Series #10)” by Clive Cussler and Robin Burcell, in which the search for a legendary automobile threatens the careers and lives of husband-and-wife team Sam and Remi Fargo (under $25 hardcover from B&N).

If your dad’s into grilling, or wants to be, he can get to the meat of the matter with “Michael Symon’s Playing With Fire,” in which the “The Chew” co-host and celebrated Iron Chef focuses on barbecue and live-fire grilling with over 70 recipes inspired by his newest restaurant, Mabel’s BBQ, in his hometown of Cleveland (from Amazon, under $25 hardcover).

22. Gift card

Still stumped? There’s always a gift card from Amazon, iTunes or Home Depot or whatever store or restaurant is your dad’s favorite.

What are you getting your dad? Share with us in comments below or on our Facebook page.