Samantha Schoech is a writer focusing on gifts. She spends her time finding things that combine quality, beauty, usefulness, and delight.
When you’re building a wedding registry, practical and forward-thinking choices come first. But you should also have a blast. You get to pick out a bunch of stuff that you and your partner need and want, and other people buy it all for you! Ideally, a registry should be a mix of big-ticket investment items and less-expensive practical (or fun) finds. The 75 Wirecutter favorites here are a little of both, and our list should save you some time when you’re curating one of your own.
Remember to stay focused on items that make sense for the life you want to create. If you loathe cooking, skip trendy appliances. If you’re always on the move, go for the luggage over a fancy throw. If you’re starting out in a studio apartment, you’ll need only two sets of towels, not six. And if having lots of stuff isn’t in your life plans at all, most wedding sites can help you build a nest egg or a honeymoon fund with cash gifts. Just remember to have some fun!
Cookware
Pots and pans
Top pick
This well-constructed, affordable, fully clad tri-ply set distributes heat evenly, and it’s durable enough to take some abuse in a busy household.
This 12-piece set of nicely weighted stainless steel pots and pans includes all of the cookware home cooks will need for years to come. When using these pots and pans, our testers noted the ergonomic handles and even heating. The pieces are available individually, too.
Dutch oven
Upgrade pick
This Dutch oven comes in many colors, and it has a high-quality enamel finish that’s unlikely to chip over the long haul.
Our upgrade-pick Dutch oven is expensive, but it comes in dozens of glossy enamels—including the lavender-hued Shallot—so it’s attractive enough to leave out on the stove. A Dutch oven is a kitchen essential—the perfect tool for making soups, roasts, complicated braises, and simple, one-pot pasta dinners. And it should last a lifetime.
Casserole
Top pick
This casserole dish heats evenly and holds a lot. It’s not too fancy for everyday use, but it still looks nice for special occasions.
Our kitchen testers appreciate the generous, 5-quart capacity of this heavy-duty, 13-by-9-inch, high-resistance ceramic baking dish. Its handles are comfy to hold, and it comes with a 10-year replacement warranty, if it fails during use.
Wok
Also great
A pre-seasoned wok provides a shortcut to a slick surface. This one is pleasingly stable but heavy to handle.
Buying Options
This flat-bottomed wok’s smooth, hand-hammered bowl is rendered from blue steel. This thing is heavy, but it’s also pre-seasoned, so you can use it right away, without having to perform the tricky seasoning process yourself.
Cast-iron skillet
Top pick
This affordable pan is lighter than a traditional cast-iron skillet and a little more shallow. It’s an ideal shape for searing, roasting, and sautéing.
The Lodge cast-iron skillet is manageable to use and better at searing. It also comes with a good factory seasoning, and its handles are easy to grip.
Cooking tools
Instant-read thermometer
Top pick
This thermometer stays in your meat while it cooks, so you can easily monitor doneness.
Buying Options
Unlike thermometers that require intermittent poking and prodding, the ThermoWorks Dot Simple Alarm Thermometer has a needle that remains tethered via a 47-inch oven-safe cable. The readout display can stay conveniently on the counter, or it can attach to the oven or grill with strong magnets.
Cutting board
Top pick
Big, stable, and eco-friendly, this board feels better under a knife than plastic, and it is easier to maintain than other wood boards.
The 20-by-15-inch Teakhaus Medium Professional Carving Board has a juice canal and deep handles, so our favorite cutting board is suitable for carving and serving. Teak also resists moisture buildup better than other types of wood.
Salad spinner
Upgrade pick
Among all of the models we tested, this sleek spinner has the best spinning mechanism, and it comes with an attractive stainless steel bowl that can be used for serving.
After 25 hours of research, during which we compared 31 salad spinners, we found that the OXO Steel Salad Spinner efficiently cleans and dries a variety of greens. Also, unlike most plastic versions, it doubles as a serving bowl.
Food scale
Top pick
This food scale is best for home cooks who want fast, consistent results when they’re baking or cooking.
The Escali Primo Digital Scale easily tares and converts to pounds, ounces, or grams, so you can perfect your recipe down to the last grain.
Cutlery
Knife set
Top pick
This classic-looking set includes the most-handy knives for home-kitchen use, as well as pull-apart kitchen shears, a honing steel, and a storage block.
The forged, high-carbon stainless steel knives in this six-piece set have a good weight, comfortable-to-hold handles, and blades that keep their edge and sharpen easily.
Small appliances
Blender
Top pick
This high-performance blender powers through thick, taxing mixtures, and it comes with a seven-year warranty backed by excellent customer service.
Buying Options
After testing 22 blenders, we recommend the Vitamix 5200 as the best model. Although this blender is among the priciest models you can buy, it comes highly recommended by multiple experts because it powerfully purees and pulverizes foods more reliably and thoroughly than most models. (It’s the only blender we’ve tried that can make creamy peanut butter.)
Hand blender
Top pick
This hand blender’s ability to create smooth purees, overall ease of use, and well-designed extras make it worth the price.
If a smaller option is more your speed, you might appreciate our immersion-blender pick, the Breville Control Grip. Great for soups and sauces, this stick blender can also crush ice.
Waffle maker
Top pick
This easy-to-operate flip waffle maker produces thick, evenly browned Belgian waffles worthy of a hotel buffet.
The Cuisinart Round Flip Belgian Waffle Maker WAF-F30 consistently delivers perfect-looking, evenly colored waffles, and you can choose from among five brownness settings. For example, you can adjust it to get a waffle with either a uniform texture or a crisp exterior and moist interior.
Food processor
Top pick
This food processor is one of Cuisinart’s most-basic models, but it consistently chops, slices, and shreds better than any other model we’ve found for under $250.
This food processor is our favorite for its simplicity. It comes with one bowl and three blades, and it blends, shreds, and slices with ease. Staff writer Samantha Schoech received a similar Cuisinart model for her wedding, 23 years ago, and it’s still going strong.
Instant pot
Top pick
This electric pressure cooker is a versatile time-saver in the kitchen.
The Instant Pot Duo is the best electric pressure cooker, but you can also use it for slow-cooking, sautéing, and braising. This tried-and-true original is our favorite because it does exactly what it’s supposed to do: It expedites the cooking process, no matter what technique you’re using, and there are no unnecessary bells or whistles.
Air fryer
Top pick
This air fryer has a compact, intuitive design. However, it’s available only at Williams Sonoma.
Buying Options
Our kitchen-team staffers have tested dozens of air fryers—nifty cookers bridging the gap between oven and microwave. And they stand by their choice for the best model available: the Philips Premium Airfryer HD9741/56. This air fryer is easy to use, and it cooks food more evenly and consistently than other pod-shape models. Also, it doesn’t take up a ton of counter space.
Slow cooker
Top pick
This slow cooker is one of the few models with a locking lid that seals tightly (for easy transport) and a probe thermometer (so you can cook to a target temperature).
Buying Options
Slow cookers have come a long way since their heyday of stewing lentils in the 1970s. This model will simmer soups and braises all day, but the best part is the attached thermometer, which cooks roasts to a desired temp without turning them to mush.
Toaster oven
Top pick
This affordable toaster oven effectively crisps bread, bakes cookies, and brings frozen foods to life.
If you don’t have a ton of counter space, but you think you might use a toaster oven, we recommend the Panasonic FlashXpress. This model is about the size of a four-slot toaster, and it heats evenly, thanks to its combination of quartz and ceramic infrared heating elements.
Coffee maker
Top pick
This simple-to-use drip coffee maker produces the best-tasting brew, and it has an excellent thermal carafe.
The OXO Brew 9-Cup Coffee Maker is our pick for everyday use. It’s much easier to work with than a lot of fancier models, and it makes coffee that tastes close to a pour-over brew. You can program this machine so a fresh pot is waiting in the morning, and the thermal carafe is easy to clean and serve from.
Rice cooker
Top pick
This rice cooker is a little slow, but it’s still excellent and foolproof.
With the Zojirushi Neuro Fuzzy NS-ZCC10, each grain of rice turns out perfectly. Even when our testers intentionally mis-measured the ratio of rice to water, this machine was able to adjust its cooking parameters enough to make rice that was not only edible but also delicious.
Kitchen accessories
Dish drainer
Upgrade pick
This high-quality stainless steel model drains very well, looks nice, and holds the same amount of dishes as our main pick, but it typically costs significantly more.
Buying Options
A dish drainer may not be the most romantic item on the list, but everyone needs one. And our upgrade pick is sleek, sturdy, rustproof, and worth the price for its good looks. Samantha has had her Rohan Dish Drainer for years, and it looks as new now as it did on day one.
Electric kettle
Also great
We recommend this precise-aim gooseneck kettle for pour-over-coffee devotees or tea lovers, who will geek out over its spot-on temperature accuracy.
The Cuisinart Digital Gooseneck Kettle is one of our favorite kettles. It looks sleek on the counter, boils water in a jiffy, has a keep-warm function, and allows you to choose the water temp for the perfect cup of pour-over coffee or tea.
Ice cream scoop
Top pick
Favored by ice cream shops everywhere, this easy-to-clean scoop smoothly cuts into hard ice cream, producing perfect spheres.
This classic, no-fuss ice cream scoop has been used by ice cream shops everywhere since the ’30s. The conductive liquid in the handle uses the heat of your hand to warm and soften even the hardest ice cream. So it’s perfect both for big jobs, like birthday parties, and for that nightly scoop of Ben & Jerry’s Chubby Hubby. This scoop is not dishwasher-safe, but since it’s all one piece, it’s a cinch to hand-wash.
Citrus juicer
Top pick
This affordable, easy-to-use juicer has built-in pulp control and a self-contained pitcher.
This electric citrus squeezer has a pulpiness setting, collects juice in a 32-ounce pitcher with handy measurement marks, and runs about a tenth of the price of other citrus juicers we tested.
Oven mitts
Upgrade pick
Although these terry-lined silicone mitts are a little pricey, they’re sharp-looking and offer good coverage.
Buying Options
These terry-cloth-lined silicone mitts protect hands from hot things longer than regular insulated cotton mitts. And due to their generous cuffs, you won’t have to worry about forearm burns when you accidentally touch the oven rack. These mitts are also stylish and machine-washable, and they stick magnetically to the fridge or stove.
Salt pig
The unglazed interior of this ceramic salt cellar absorbs moisture. And the wide, curved opening provides easy access yet also protects crystals from splashes and spills.
This ceramic salt pig is a favorite for good reason: It has an easy-to-use, hand-size mouth and an unglazed interior for absorbing salt-ruining moisture. The vessel’s curve protects salt from errant cooking drips and splashes.
Cruet set
These rounded cruets, for olive oil and vinegar, are made from sturdy borosilicate glass, and the spouts have handy drip catchers.
Buying Options
Although not strictly necessary, a pretty cruet set is nice to have if you’re bringing olive oil and vinegar to the table or keeping it out on the counter for frequent use. This classic cruet set for olive oil and vinegar looks delicate, but the tough borosilicate glass withstands knocks and bobbles, and it runs in the dishwasher.
Kitchen towels
Top pick
These dual-sided terry-cloth and waffle-weave towels combine absorbency, utility, and attractiveness.
Buying Options
One can never have too many of our favorite kitchen towels, which come in sets of four and are more absorbent than any others we’ve tried. The solid colors do show stains, so consider getting the white version, which you can bleach.
French press
Upgrade pick
The P6 offers double filtration for smooth, consistently good coffee that stays warm, thanks to a double-walled carafe.
The Espro P6 French Press Coffee Maker—our upgrade pick—looks like a modernist sculpture, yet it delivers silt-free, tasty coffee in a sleek insulated carafe.
Coffee grinder
Top pick
This all-around workhorse produces the consistent grind required to brew delicious coffee, and it doesn’t cost a fortune.
The Baratza Encore does exactly what you want it to do: grind coffee evenly and consistently on a wide range of settings. Its footprint is small, it’s easy to clean, and it comes in either black or white.
Baking
Stand mixer
Top pick
This 5-quart stand mixer tackles batter, buttercream, and bread dough without knocking around on the counter, and it’s blessedly quiet.
Buying Options
Use promo code FALL20OFF
The KitchenAid Artisan Series 5-Quart Tilt-Head Stand Mixer comes in 20 colors. But we should note that a big, powerful stand mixer isn’t for everyone: If you don’t bake at least once a week, consider our hand-mixer pick instead.
Pie plate
Top pick
Deep and sturdy, this pie plate bakes evenly, holds up under a broiler, and comes in several colors.
The heavy-duty ceramic Emile Henry 9-Inch Pie Dish is our favorite pie plate. This one cooks evenly and looks good on the table, and it can safely go from freezer to oven. And, unlike a glass plate, it can withstand the broiler.
Mixing bowls
Top pick
Deep metal bowls are ideal for containing rogue drips from spinning beaters and for everyday mixing jobs.
These deep, brushed stainless vessels—with snug-fitting lids for storing leftovers or taking food to potlucks—are our favorite mixing bowls.
Baking sheets
Top pick
This sturdy, inexpensive sheet pan bakes evenly and will last for years.
These relatively inexpensive baking sheets have been our pick for more than a decade. The pans lie flat, and they bake cookies to an even golden brown. They also hold up for decades.
Baking pan
Top pick
This sturdy pan has a durable nonstick coating, so edges and corners of cakes come out clean and sharp.
USA Pan cake pans come in many shapes and sizes, and they are our favorites for most baking needs. With their slightly corrugated texture and nonstick coating, they produce a golden crust, they don’t stick, and they’re easy to clean.
Dining
Linen tablecloth
Upgrade pick
Nothing comes close to the soft, relaxed drape of this 100% linen tablecloth. Yes, it’s expensive, but it will last a lifetime.
Buying Options
These luxurious, 100% Belgian linen tablecloths have deep hems, a substantial fabric, and expertly sewn mitered corners, so they can last decades. They’re machine-washable and just as pretty rumpled as they are neatly pressed.
Linen napkins
Upgrade pick
Smooth and absorbent, this luxurious napkin is perfect for people who love the soft, relaxed texture of 100% linen.
Buying Options
These absorbent, machine-washable Belgian linen napkins are a worthy splurge—whether they’re pressed and starched for formal occasions or loose and rumpled for everyday use.
Everyday table mates
Also great
These inexpensive, 100% cotton napkins come in five color choices, and they are washer- and dryer-friendly.
Buying Options
Crate and Barrel’s Aspen cotton napkins are thin yet absorbent, and they come in several vibrant colors. They’re also only about $6 a pop.
Candlesticks
Low-profile and elegant, these brass candleholders are sturdy and aesthetically versatile.
Buying Options
These surprisingly heavy, antique-finish brass candleholders offer an unassuming, clean silhouette. And their nonslip, felted bottoms won’t scratch surfaces.
Salad bowl
This hardwood bowl, handmade in New England on 100-year-old machines, is available in five sizes and in black walnut, cherry, or maple. It’s pricey, but it’s also heirloom-quality.
Buying Options
Crafted from solid blocks of hardwood, on century-old machines in Wilmington, Vermont, each bowl is rugged and unique. The vessel is finished with a proprietary (and food-safe) oil, and it gets better with age.
Dinnerware
Top pick
These porcelain dishes are durable enough for everyday use yet refined enough for entertaining. The dinnerware is fairly priced and sold individually or in sets of eight.
Buying Options
These simple white dishes are affordable and made of durable porcelain, and if you break one, you can replace it without having to buy an entire setting. For completists: The Aspen line also includes serving dishes, bakeware, and even food storage.
Flatware
Also great
The Caesna collection has deep spoons, comfortable handles, and forks with long tines, but they’re on the heavy side.
Buying Options
This stainless steel flatware is on the heavier side, but our testers loved its refined looks, well-balanced feel, and ample size. It’s sold as a 20-piece set, a five-piece place setting, or individually. If one piece accidentally meets the garbage disposal, you can replace it (for around $9).
Steak knives
Also great
In these classic French steak knives, sharp, non-serrated stainless blades meet stylish wooden handles.
Buying Options
May be out of stock
If you prefer something with a light, modern look, Opinel’s olive-wood-handled knives are a standout. The non-serrated blades are made from heat-treated steel and chrome, for extra strength and a lasting edge.
Salad tongs
These handcrafted cherrywood salad tongs have the perfect spring-action grip, and they just get prettier with use—as long as they’re hand-washed.
Buying Options
Staff writer Samantha Schoech ran across these cherrywood tongs at a friend’s potluck, and she then spent weeks trying to find them. Eureka! Handcrafted in rural Pennsylvania, these tongs store flat, and they open with a spring action, perfect for gripping salad, pastries, or roasted veggies.
Drinking glasses
Top pick
These timeless, bistro-style glasses are durable, lightweight, and dishwasher-safe.
Buying Options
Of the dozens of glasses we tested, the classic, rugged, stackable, and dishwasher-safe Bormioli Rocco Rock Bar glasses are the best. They come in multiple sizes—from shot glasses to 22 ounces—and in a variety of colors, including ice, peach, and mint.
Pepper mill
Top pick
This pepper mill has been a favorite since its introduction, more than a century ago, and it’s still the best. It’s fast and smooth, and it always grinds evenly.
Buying Options
A quality pepper mill is a buy-it-for-life item. And we found that the Peugeot Paris u’Select Pepper Mill—with its inimitably sharp, case-hardened steel grind mechanism and sleek look—is the best one available.
The bar
Wine glasses
Top pick
These durable, dishwasher-safe wine glasses are good-looking and well-balanced, and they showcase most wines very well.
The inexpensive, tulip-shaped Libbey Signature Kentfield Estate All-Purpose Wine Glass stood out because it nicely showcases the aromas of both red and white wines. It’s well balanced and has a thin lip. And, due to its classic silhouette, this wine glass is appropriate for daily use as well as more-formal occasions.
Bar set
The six-piece bar set includes everything you need to make most cocktails, shaken or stirred.
Buying Options
With the Cocktail Kingdom set, you can assemble a complete bar—including a two-piece shaker, a jigger, a strainer, a spoon, and a mixing glass—in one fell swoop.
Old-fashioned glasses
Made of chip-proof, scratchproof, and shatterproof glass, these modern old-fashioned glasses are a lot tougher than they look.
A classic double old-fashioned glass is a squat cylinder with a heavy bottom. This design upgrade, with a slightly angled bottom, is made of durable, dishwasher-safe Tritan glass.
Stemware
These graceful but sturdy stemmed cocktail glasses come in four classic shapes, and they look almost as good as crystal ones.
Made of dishwasher-safe soda glass, these thin-lipped vessels are perfect for creating Great Gatsby–worthy classics like the martini, gin fizz, Manhattan, and whiskey sour.
Champagne flutes
Also great
High-quality, sparkling nonleaded crystal flutes can showcase your favorite bubbly.
Buying Options
(set of two)
May be out of stock
Made from nonleaded crystal, the tulip-shaped Riedel Vinum Cuvée Prestige glass twinkles brilliantly under the light. And a tiny, imperceptible etching at the bottom of the bowl extends the carbonation of sparkling wine.
Decanter
This hand-blown glass decanter comes in four subtle colors, and it can keep your favorite spirit drinkable for years.
Decanting spirits allows them to interact with oxygen, to release their more-nuanced aromas. And this 26-ounce decanter can house a standard bottle of liquor. (Note that it should be hand-washed.)
Wine club
Top pick
This is one of the best clubs for learning about wine, with somm-selected bottles starting at around $25. Wine Access’s customer service and temperature-controlled shipping stood out, but it ships only four to six times per year.
Buying Options
Our wine club pick takes the confusion and trepidation out of buying wine. Everything offered by Wine Access is chosen by a sommelier. However, even though the club can function as an education on wine, it’s not at all intimidating or snobby. We particularly like its Discovery Club, which is based on a quarterly theme and includes wine from around the world.
Bed and bath
Down comforter
Upgrade pick
Save money in the long run with this well-constructed, lofty 700-fill-power comforter. It features quality stitching, and its fabric should last for decades.
Buying Options
The Feathered Friends Bavarian Medium 700 Down Comforter—our favorite one—weighs just 3 to 6 pounds (depending on the size), warms evenly, and has a 30-year warranty. This comforter’s loft is about 3 inches, yet it remains incredibly light, so it settles like a layer of cumulus clouds over your bed.
Down alternative
Also great
This model kept us warm without smothering us. It’s ideal for people who avoid down, and it’s cheaper, too.
Buying Options
(queen, deal on white)
If you’re allergic to down, or you just don’t like it, the Utopia Bedding Queen Comforter Duvet Insert is soft and warm, and it keeps its loft. And it didn’t make our testers too hot.
Sheets
Top pick
Our pick is a dream to sleep on: It’s comfortable, breathable, easy to care for, and durable.
Buying Options
L.L.Bean’s 280-Thread-Count Pima Cotton Percale Sheets combine a cool, crisp feel with superior sweat-wicking capabilities, heat retention, and durability.
Pillows
Top pick
This pillow has moldable, customizable filling that offers firm support for back- and side-sleepers. It also doesn’t have a lingering chemical smell like some shredded-foam pillows.
Buying Options
The shredded-foam Nest Bedding Easy Breather Pillow allows you to add or remove foam, to get the perfect loft. Its padded cover is machine-washable, as is the inner pouch. New to shredded foam? This pillow has a 30-day return policy and a two-year warranty.
Throw blanket
Top pick
This wool and cashmere throw is cozy, soft, and thin, but it is not flimsy.
Buying Options
This chic, shawl-like throw is 95% wool and 5% cashmere, and it feels cozy yet light on the body. A favorite for years, it comes in about a dozen colors, and it drapes beautifully over the shoulders or the back of a sofa.
Towels
Top pick
These cotton terry towels are soft and plush, like ones found in luxury hotels. And they come in several sumptuous colors.
Buying Options
The Frontgate Resort Collection Bath Towel proved to be the softest and most-luxurious towel we tested. It comes in 26 colors, and after 10 washes, it actually felt better than it did out of the package, which is impressive.
Around the house
Digital frame
Also great
If you’re looking for a big, bright digital frame, this model displays photos as nicely as smaller versions, and it’s just as easy to set up. It would look great on a wall or on a bookcase.
You will probably want to see those wedding pics in as large a format as possible. The Aura Walden offers all of the great features of our other picks (all from Aura), but it’s bigger.
Vacuum
Upgrade pick
This excellent cordless vacuum cleaner has handy attachments, a long battery life, and strong suction. But it is expensive.
There are legions of Dyson fans at Wirecutter—with good reason. As our testers can confirm, the Dyson V8 Absolute can deep-clean even the thickest carpets. It runs about 35 minutes on a charge, and it’s light and easy to maneuver.
Robot vacuum
Top pick
This is the Roomba i4 EVO packaged with a charging dock that automatically sucks all the debris out of the robot after a cleaning session. It works—and it makes owning a robot vacuum even easier.
Buying Options
The iRobot Roomba i4+ EVO works well in most homes because it drives in orderly, back-and-forth rows, keeping track of where it has or hasn’t been; that way it doesn’t miss any big patches of floor. It also has smart mapping, so you can tell it to clean or avoid specific areas.
Framing
Top pick
Framebridge is easy to use, and it offers terrific customizable frames.
Buying Options
You are probably going to want to enlarge and display at least a few wedding photos. Framebridge, our pick for online framing for a while now, offers top-notch quality with well-built frames that are attractive and easy to hang.
Bluetooth speaker
Top pick
The One II is small and simple, and it sounds better than its competitors. And its tasteful styling has wide appeal.
Buying Options
Our home Bluetooth speaker pick provides good sound with clear vocals and plenty of bass, all in a cute, retro design. Klipsch’s The One II pairs readily with your Bluetooth device, and it has only three switches, so it’s easy to operate for even the most technophobic people.
Tool set
Top pick
This set packs all of the essentials in a small package, at a great price. It is the best choice for common home repairs and upgrades.
Buying Options
The Anvil Homeowner’s Tool Set has everything you need—including the best adjustable wrenches we found in any kit—and none of the useless extras some tools kits use as fillers. If you want something in the closet or garage for small jobs around the house (and, trust us, you do), this kit is a great value that should last for years.
Power drill
Top pick
DeWalt DCD701F2 Xtreme 12V Max Brushless 3/8 in. Drill/Driver Kit
Small and manageable, plenty of power
This is the most comfortable drill we’ve ever held, and it’s loaded with convenience features.
Trash can
Top pick
Easy to clean out, truly airtight, and covered with a five-year warranty, this trash can does the best job of fitting and hiding trash bags and keeping them in place.
The Simplehuman Rectangular Step Can has the best balance of size, shape, features, and durability that we’ve found. It also offers some useful features that the competition lacks, namely a sturdy step, an easily removed liner, and a stay-open switch.
Dinner bell
This traditional triangle comes with a striker and a leather strap, so you can let friends and family know it’s time to eat. Some people complain of chipping paint.
This Old West–inspired dinner bell comes from Lodge, the maker of our favorite cast-iron skillet, and it’s outfitted with a striker and a leather hanging strap. It gets louder the harder you hit it, and it quickly trains humans and pets to come running when the vittles are ready.
Fun and games
Classic board game
This rotating Scrabble board comes with a raised grid (to keep the wooden letter tiles in place), a storage compartment, a sand timer, and four tile racks.
Buying Options
Samantha and her partner have only a handful of gifts left from their wedding, 23 years ago, and this deluxe, turning Scrabble board is one of them. Perhaps the key to a happy marriage is never having to play upside-down Scrabble.
A couple’s game
Created by relationship guru Esther Perel, this card game of conversation-starters is a fun ice breaker, whether you’ve been together for 30 days or 30 years.
Buying Options
Esther Perel’s smartly designed card game, Where Should We Begin?, helps encourage conversation, with prompts that probe everything from silly memories to serious fears.
A game for a crowd
Top pick
This high-energy game—for two to 12 players—has teams gauging one another’s responses to questions that are sometimes silly, sometimes serious, but always conversation-provoking.
Wavelength asks players to communicate via opinions. And as long as everyone has plenty of those, you can expect lots of good-fun debates.
Lawn bowling
This colorful set of resin balls comes with a handsome canvas case, and it’s nearly indestructible.
Buying Options
Lawn lubbers love bocce. This classic set includes six bright, high-quality resin balls, and they come in a sturdy canvas carrying case, which can be monogrammed (for about $8).
An ancient game
Requiring strategy and dexterity, this Swedish yard game involves tossing wooden dowels at larger blocks. It’s simple, satisfying, and fun for groups.
Buying Options
Kubb (pronounced “coob”) is your standard outdoor game of throwing things at other things, but this one requires a little more strategy and finesse. This SunNordic set is made of durable rubber wood, and it comes in a tough canvas case with a shoulder strap.
Out and about
Suitcase
Top pick
This sleek-looking, resilient piece of hard-sided luggage has top-of-the-line components—including sturdy zippers and very smooth wheels—for a decent price.
Buying Options
Here, the ballyhoo turns out to be worth the hype. Away’s The Carry-On roller weighs only 7.6 pounds, holds nearly 40 liters, and comes in an array of au courant colors. The zippers are sturdy, and this suitcase won big points with our testers for having the best wheels of any bag they used. It also comes with a lifetime guarantee.
An everything tote
Also great
The L.L.Bean Boat and Tote is made from heavy canvas that lasts a lifetime, but it doesn’t have any pockets for storage. It comes in a variety of colors and sizes.
Buying Options
This time-honored, rugged canvas tote is a must-have for anyone who carries stuff—fill it with everything from beach towels to firewood. It’s basically indestructible. This bag comes in four sizes, with two strap-length options. You can add a zipper closure (for about $10), and have it monogrammed (for $8).
A tent for two
Top pick
Easy to set up and pack away, the Mineral King 3 is a lightweight, two-door tent with a generous footprint and a sturdy dome shape. It’s the perfect choice for three-season camping.
Buying Options
Our outdoors team deemed this three-season tent to be the best car-camping tent for couples. Even novices will be able to set it up easily, and the completely mesh sides are as close as you can get to sleeping under the stars (without the bugs).
Travel backpacks
Top pick
Thick padding and highly adjustable straps make this the most-comfortable and easy-to-fit pack.
Buying Options
May be out of stock
Thick padding and highly adjustable straps make this the most-comfortable and easy-to-fit pack.
Buying Options
If you’re planning to travel together, whether into the wilderness or through iconic cities, this travel backpack is hard to beat for comfort and packability. It comes in two sizes, for longer and shorter torsos. The 60-liter main pack unzips like a suitcase, so you can see your stuff, and the removable daypack is a convenient bonus.
Soft cooler
Top pick
This simple lunch-box-style cooler is insulated with thick, closed-cell foam and made from a durable coated nylon.
You can spend a lot more money on a Yeti Hopper, the crème de la crème of coolers. But our pick is less than half the price. And when it comes to how long it keeps your food cool, the RTIC cooler has a marginal edge over the Hopper. The RTIC cooler’s exterior is made of a durable, waterproof nylon, and the zippers won’t leak, even if the ice eventually melts.
Pizza oven
Top pick
This conveniently portable outdoor pizza oven lights up with the turn of a dial, and it can bake an obscene amount of pizzas on one tank of gas.
If a built-in outdoor kitchen isn’t in the cards (or the budget), consider the gas-powered Ooni Koda 16 Gas Powered Pizza Oven, for Naples-worthy backyard pies. This stainless beauty has a 16-inch baking surface, and it gets up to nearly 900 degrees Fahrenheit. It bakes perfect pizza after perfect pizza with an even, continuous flame.
Why you should trust us
I’ve worked as a lifestyle journalist for more than 20 years, with stints in style, beauty, home decor, and fashion. And, even more pertinent to this guide, I’ve been married for 23 years. That means I once registered myself, so I have a strong perspective on what my husband and I still use to this day and what’s long gone. For instance: Our Cuisinart food processor and flatware are still kicking, our wine glasses and towels had some good years, and the serving tray made especially for crab was just silly.
I did not assemble this guide alone, however. I also polled engaged staff members who were in the process of building their own registry lists. Then I combed our site for the best of the best in every category, relying on the extensive research, testing, and expertise of my colleagues on our kitchen, sleep, outdoors, travel, games, and other teams. This list is a result of hundreds of hours of rigorous product testing across multiple categories.
What about wedding-registry sites?
Our picks come from dozens of retailers, so you may want to consider a wedding-planning site that lets you collect all of your wishlist items in one place. Wirecutter staffers who’ve planned their own big days have used one-stop sites like Zola, The Knot, and Joy. These services help with all things wedding, and they allow you to create a registry from multiple brands and vendors. Although these sites all have some minor flaws, most staffers very much appreciated the convenience they provided. Amazon also has a registry feature, and it allows couples to add items from other vendors. If you prefer small, unique, or personalized items, Etsy has a newly launched registry service with curated collections for browsing, but it does not allow links to other sites.
This article was edited by Hannah Morrill and Jennifer Hunter.
Meet your guide
Samantha Schoech
Except for the time she gave a boyfriend her mother’s old toaster for Christmas, staff writer Samantha Schoech has a reputation as an excellent gift giver. She lives in San Francisco with two teens, two cats, a geriatric betta fish, and a bookseller husband. Her first book of short stories, My Mother’s Boyfriends, is coming out in 2024.
Mentioned above
- Our top pick Dutch oven has remained the same since 2015 for its ability to braise, sear, and bake as well as more expensive pots.The Best Dutch Oven
- After testing 15 casserole dishes since 2014, we recommend the Emile Henry Modern Classics Rectangular Baker for its good looks and generous capacity.The Best 13-by-9 Casserole Dish
- After testing 16 cast-iron skillets, we recommend the Lodge Chef Collection 12 Inch Cast Iron Skillet. It’s lightweight, sears well, and releases foods easily.The Best Cast-Iron Skillet
- We tested 37 instant-read meat thermometers and probe thermometers for speed, accuracy, and price. Here are our top picks.The Best Meat Thermometers
- We spent more than 120 hours on research, and used and abused over 30 cutting boards. Read to see what we recommend.The Best Cutting Boards
- To get clean greens with minimal fuss, you can’t beat the OXO Good Grips Salad Spinner. It’s easy to operate and clean, and it wicks water off leaves efficiently.The Best Salad Spinner
Further reading
6 Tips for a Regret-Free Wedding Registry
Here are six tips for a regret-free wedding registry. Focus on your favorite activities, not things.
14 Great Wedding Gifts (That You Won’t Find on the Couple’s Registry)
If you’d rather go off-registry and give something unexpected, try these gift ideas—from chocolates to keepsakes—that won’t wind up in the donation pile.
The 50 Best Gifts Under $100
True delight and even a bit of luxury can be found for $100. Check out our picks.
We Found the Ultra-Pricey Ice Cream Maker Lorelai Gilmore Got as a Wedding Gift. (She Should Have Kept It.)
We found Lorelai Gilmore’s ice cream maker, and it’s excellent.