24 Helpful Employee Reward Ideas

For employees to perform at the highest level, they need to feel like they’re working toward something. Employee incentives are one of the best ways to create that feeling for everyone, regardless of their position, skill-level, or personality.

The best employee incentives motivate underperformers to exceed expectations and push high performers to perform greater feats of productivity and performance—and these incentives reward both types of employee fairly and generously. 

If you want some helpful employee incentive ideas and examples, you’ve come to the right place. In this post, we’ll look at the benefits of employee incentive programs, examples of employee incentives, and employee incentive gift ideas, too.

What Are Employee Incentives and Incentive Programs?

The best employee incentives are rewards or benefits used to motivate positive behaviors in the workforce or a given individual. Employee incentive programs are designed to attract, engage, and retain talent.

Why Are Employee Incentives Important?

First of all, employee incentives can genuinely help satisfy elements from Maslow’s pyramid of human needs, such as esteem and self-actualization. Not only that, but employee incentive gifts and programs can emphasize the kind of work you want to see from other employees, focusing on the goals and standards that matter most to your company. 

You can effectively communicate and engender greater buy-in of your company values and simultaneously help your employees feel more valued and fulfilled with excellent employee incentive ideas.

Benefits of Employee Incentives

Incentives lead to impactful business outcomes that no leader can ignore. Research shows that:

• Incentives and rewards increase employee productivity by 22%
• Incentives and rewards based on specific goals/performance increase revenue by 44%
• Incentives that recognize and reward employee contributions have 89% higher employee engagement, 87% higher retention, and 85% greater loyalty.

When employers use incentives to drive productivity, reward efforts, and recognize contributions, employees respond with more effort, more engagement, and more loyalty. All of this leads to better revenue and improved business outcomes.

24 Employee Incentive Ideas For 2025

Want to build incentives that really reach your people, increase motivation, and reward performers for their hard work? Take a look at the following four workplace incentive ideas, along with 20 incentive gift ideas, to start building your own incentive strategy!

1. Create Productivity Incentives to Boost Employee Performance

This is the most common type of incentive, where it’s used to drive employee performance. You can build performance-based incentives for any team, department, or project. Base the incentive and the rewards on the specific responsibilities of each team or department to ensure that everyone feels involved, and offer rewards that are meaningful for everyone.

2.  Design Wellness Incentive Programs to Support Employee Health

Help your employees maintain their health, both mental and physical, through wellness incentives. Create incentive programs that reward employees for exercising, eating healthy, meditating, etc. You can even set up a Lifestyle Spending Account that rewards employees with money to spend on specific wellness rewards.

3. Implement Safety Incentives to Promote a Safe Workplace

For any organization that deals in dangerous work, safety incentives are a great way to drive safe behaviors. Reward employees who follow safety guidelines, complete safety training, or finish any safety-related paperwork, and watch as other employees follow suit!

Multiple Awardco clients have seen big boosts to their safety cultures, including All Access Staging and Southwest Gas.

4. Offer Referral Bonuses to Encourage Employee Hiring Contributions

Incentivize employees to influence the hiring process. Offer rewards for things like leaving a review of the company online, sharing job listings, and inviting personal contacts to apply. Gifts should scale depending on how influential the employee’s actions are. (A review is smaller, an actual interview or hire is bigger.)

5. Give Meaningful Gifts to Reward Employee Dedication

This kind of gift will show your employee that you pay attention to who they truly are and their likes and dislikes. Don’t you feel special receiving your favorite flowers or a gift certificate to your favorite restaurant? In addition to the gift itself, it means someone’s been paying attention. 

The meaningful gift shows your employee that you thought of them and noticed them. 

6. Provide Personalized Gift Cards Tailored to Employee Preferences

Offer your employees gift cards tailored to their favorite places or a versatile cash card. It's a thoughtful way for them to enjoy a treat on their own terms.

7. Encourage Health with Wellness Gifts for Your Employees

Work can sometimes be stressful. Offering wellness gifts like subscriptions to fitness apps or yoga classes can provide a much-needed boost to their well-being.

8. Plan Experience Gifts to Inspire and Reward Employees

People can’t re-gift or give away an experience. Encourage your employees to relax by sending them on retreats, to a spa, or to experience a new culture or part of the world. You could also consider paying for an online course, covering a portion of their education costs, getting them tickets to see their favorite band, or sponsoring a beloved hobby. 

9. Use Public Recognition to Highlight Employee Achievements

For those employees who enjoy the spotlight, give them a public shoutout for their work and efforts. Incentivizing them with public recognition is a great way to reaffirm that they matter, they’re valued, and they're important to the company as a whole.

10. Add Humor with Funny Bonuses to Celebrate Employee Spirit

The funny gift can be a little tricky. After all, you don’t want to step on any toes or create any tension, and not everyone will appreciate the funny gift. However, it can be fun to honor or appreciate an aspect of your employee’s job they might not love, but they perform with a good attitude. Again, knowing your employees well will make giving the funny gift easier because you’ll understand what will work or what won’t. 

11. Support Career Growth with Professional Development Rewards

Reward employees who put great effort into their work with more opportunities to learn, grow, and develop their career. Incentive rewards could include a mentor opportunity, online courses, workshop attendance, or anything that the specific employee is interested in.

12. Reward Hard Work with Extra Time Off Incentives

Consider gifting additional vacation time as a unique employee incentive. Announce it during a team meeting to ensure everyone respects the recipient's time to unwind.

13. Offer Work Perks to Make the Job More Enjoyable

Make work more enjoyable with perks like extended lunch breaks, afternoons off, or office equipment upgrades such as noise-canceling headphones.

14. Surprise Employees with Edible Gifts to Show Appreciation

Who doesn’t love food? Be aware of dietary restrictions and allergies when planning for this gift, but also know that you’re probably heading in a good direction by giving the edible gift. These can range in cost, from a gift card to their favorite place to grab a drink to the high-end steakhouse in the next city over. 

15. Gift Music Subscriptions for a Personalized Employee Reward

With a subscription to a preferred music service, your employees can enjoy their favorite tunes anytime, enhancing their work experience.

16. Provide Catered Lunches or Meal Bonuses to Show Gratitude

Ease the burden of daily meal prep by surprising your employees with catered lunches or lunch delivery from their favorite local restaurant or café. Alternatively, provide a gift card to a local eatery, allowing them to enjoy a takeout meal or a relaxing lunch outside the office.

17. Celebrate the Holidays with Festive Bonus Gift Ideas

The holiday season is a great time to get gifts for your employees. You can give all kinds of traditional gifts during this festive time of year, from a warm fleece blanket to monogrammed mugs or water bottles. You aren’t limited to traditional ideas, though. Feel free to think outside the box on the holiday gift.

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18. Distribute Company Swag to Build Team Spirit and Unity

Giving the gift of company swag creates a feeling of unity and support among your employees—support for one another and support for the company. Again, lots of traditional options to consider here, ranging from a lanyard to a company jacket. If you’re going the clothing route, be sure to get the right sizes.

19. Organize Outdoor Activities or Gatherings to Reward Employees

Not all employee incentives need to be tangible. Reward your team with a safe outdoor gathering, like a picnic or a hike, to foster team bonding.

20. Send Surprise Treats to Brighten Employees’ Days

A surprise delivery of cookies or cupcakes can add a touch of sweetness to your employee's day and show your appreciation.

21. Offer Online Learning Rewards to Help Employees Grow

Offer access to online courses that can either enhance their professional skills or cater to their personal hobbies and interests.

22. Write Notes of Appreciation to Recognize Employee Contributions

Never underestimate the power of a heartfelt note or postcard. This simple gesture can convey your appreciation in a deeply meaningful way.

23. Gift Office Decor to Help Employees Personalize Their Workspaces

Help your employees personalize their workspace with a plant, artwork, or other decor items. It's one of the best ways to make their office feel more inviting and comfortable.

24. Let Employees Choose Their Own Incentive Rewards for Maximum Impact

Guessing what employees will like for their incentive reward is great, but why not let them choose their own reward? Awardco offers millions of reward options, and the platform allows employees to choose whatever sounds best to them. That way, you still show appreciation, but you won’t ever buy any employee incentive gift that misses the mark.

Make Implementing Employee Rewards Easy!

Ready to transform your workplace with creative employee incentive ideas that truly motivate your team? Awardco makes it easy to implement innovative bonus ideas for employees and tailor-made employee reward ideas that fit your organization’s unique culture.

Whether you’re looking to boost productivity, improve morale, or foster loyalty. Awardco’s platform provides endless opportunities to reward and recognize your employees. Contact us today to explore the possibilities and schedule a personalized demo. Let’s create an incentive program your team will love!