Care packages

Care Package Ideas for Every Situation (What to Put In, What to Skip)

What to put in a care package for ten situations, what to leave out of each, how much to spend, and how to post it in an Australian summer.

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Hand holding the QR card beside a filled gift box

The short answer

Care Package Ideas for Every Situation (What to Put In, What to Skip)

A good care package is six to ten small things picked for one specific situation, plus a note in your own words: something to eat, something comforting, something to do and one thing that makes them laugh. Below are care package ideas for ten situations, from a mate on a FIFO swing to a friend who's grieving, with what to skip for each, a budget table and how to post it so the chocolate survives.

Top-down view of an open gift box with treats and a print tube

We're Lewis and Jess, and we pack care packages at a bench in Sydney, so we spend a lot of time deciding what earns a spot in a box and what just takes up room. Most of this page has nothing to do with buying from us. Where one of our boxes fits, we'll say so, and where it doesn't, we'll say that too.

What goes in any care package

Most good care packages hit these, roughly in this order:

  • A note. Two honest lines beat a page of greeting card verse.
  • Something to eat that travels well: lollies, biscuits, nuts, good coffee or tea.
  • A comfort thing for the evening, like a candle, socks or a face mask.
  • Something to do with their hands or head: a paperback, a puzzle book, a journal.
  • One practical item they'd never buy themselves, like a long phone charger.
  • Something daft. A rubber duck, a sticker of their dog's face. It does more work than you'd think.

Then tune it to the situation. A scented candle is lovely for a burnt-out friend and useless in a mine camp room.

Care package ideas by situation

A uni student

Small room, tight budget, exams that come round faster than anyone admits.

  • Instant noodles that are a step up from the cheap packet
  • Coffee bags or a jar of the good instant
  • Muesli bars for the 9am lecture they'll run late for
  • Highlighters and a decent notebook for exam season
  • A supermarket gift card, which never goes unused
  • Earplugs, because share houses
  • A printed photo of the dog

Skip anything that needs a proper kitchen or a big shelf. More in our care package ideas for uni students.

FIFO or working away

Think small room, long shifts and a camp admin office that signs for the parcel.

  • Jerky, nuts and protein snacks for the crib room
  • Good socks for long days in steel caps
  • A sleep mask for day sleeps after night shift
  • Lip balm and sunscreen
  • A paperback or an audiobook gift card
  • Coffee bags that only need hot water
  • Printed photos from home
  • A card game for the downtime

Skip candles, alcohol and anything perishable, because many camps don't allow the first two. Address it with their full name, the camp and the room or block. Our Gift Box for Him has no candle, which makes it an easy camp pick. The full rundown is in our FIFO care package ideas, and if in doubt, send it home for their days off.

Someone who moved interstate

  • The shelf-stable hometown snack they can't find in the new place
  • A postcard or print of their old beach or street
  • A candle for the new lounge room
  • A notebook for the endless to-do list
  • A gift card for a café near their new place, so they've got a reason to find one
  • A tea towel, because nobody packs enough
  • A video call booked in the diary, with a time

Skip big homewares before they know the space, and plants by post. We've written more on gifts for someone who moved interstate.

Someone who moved to Perth

Perth is two hours behind Sydney, three during eastern daylight saving, and that gap shapes everything from phone calls to footy.

  • Shelf-stable snacks from over east that they miss
  • A postcard or print of their old beach
  • Your footy team's fixtures, converted to Perth time
  • Good sunscreen for the new coastline
  • A voucher for a day trip, so they get out and explore
  • Coffee bags for the early starts

Fresh food and anything homegrown are another matter, so read what food you can send to WA or Tasmania before you pack. More in care package ideas for someone who moved to Perth.

Someone working over Christmas

  • Shortbread or a tin of Christmas biscuits for the staff room
  • A travel mug that actually seals
  • Rich hand cream for hands that get washed all shift
  • Good coffee
  • A phone stand for the video call with the family
  • A card marked "open on the 25th"
  • A voucher for a proper lunch on their next day off

Skip alcohol to a workplace, and check whether the ward, station or site accepts personal parcels before you send it there. See our care package for someone working over Christmas.

A sick friend or someone recovering from surgery

Keep it quiet and easy. Comfort, something to pass the hours, and help with food.

  • Lip balm and unscented hand cream
  • Comfy socks
  • A long phone charger that reaches the bed
  • Puzzle books, magazines or an audiobook gift card
  • Herbal tea
  • A meal delivery voucher

Skip strong scents if they're queasy, a mountain of sugar, and anything that needs effort or a reply. If they're in hospital, check with the ward before sending flowers or anything scented. Our Hug Away From Home Box has a candle and a bath soak, so it suits recovery at home better than a hospital bed. There's much more in our guide to get well soon care package ideas.

A new mum

The best new mum care packages are about her, not the baby.

  • Freezer meals with reheating instructions on the lid
  • Snacks she can eat one-handed
  • A big water bottle with a straw
  • Dry shampoo
  • Lip balm and hand cream
  • Her coffee order, delivered
  • A voucher for a cleaner
  • An offer to hold the baby while she showers, with a date

Skip more newborn clothes (there'll be a pile), strongly scented products unless you've asked, and anything that needs a thank you card. A parcel a few weeks in, once the visitors have stopped, often lands better than one on day two.

Grief and sympathy

Go gently here. Someone who's grieving doesn't need cheering up. They need looking after, and to know you remember.

  • A meal they can freeze for a night they can't face cooking
  • A box of good tea
  • Soft tissues
  • A plain, unscented candle, if they like them
  • A photo of the person they've lost that they may not have seen
  • An offer to do one specific job: the lawn, school pick-up, the phone calls

Skip anything bright or jokey, "everything happens for a reason" cards, and any request to reply. Timing matters more than contents. The flowers and casseroles tend to arrive in the first week and dry up after that. A small parcel a month or two later, with a note that says their name and the name of the person they lost, can mean a great deal.

Self care for a burnt-out friend

  • A face mask and a bath soak
  • A candle in a scent they already like
  • A sleep mask
  • A novel that is very much not self-help
  • Herbal tea
  • A bag of their favourite lollies
  • A massage voucher with no expiry pressure

Skip planners, productivity books and anything that's another task. A self care package should take nothing out of them. If you'd rather pick every item yourself, our build your own box lets you choose six gifts (the Twilight Box) or eight (the Midnight Box) from the range.

A partner, long distance

  • A T-shirt you've actually worn
  • Printed photos from your last visit
  • A stack of "open when" letters
  • Their favourite snack and yours, for a video call movie night
  • A countdown to the next visit
  • A voice note they can replay

Skip anything so expensive it becomes a debt. Our long-distance couple gift ideas go further.

A care package is proof you were listening. The snacks are just the evidence.

Packing and posting a care package in summer

An Australian summer is hard on parcels. A box can sit in a truck, a depot and then on a hot front step, so pack for the worst version of the trip.

  • From December to February, swap chocolate for lollies, biscuits or nuts. If chocolate is the whole point, send it to a work address or a Parcel Locker so it isn't baking on a doorstep.
  • Bag anything liquid, wrap anything glass, and put heavy things at the bottom.
  • Fill the gaps with tissue or a tea towel so nothing rattles.
  • Post early in the week, so it's less likely to sit in a depot over the weekend.
  • Sending food to WA or Tasmania? Both states check what comes in, so read our guide to sending food to WA or Tasmania first.

How much to spend on a care package

There's no right amount. These are the rough tiers we'd use ourselves. Postage comes on top for a DIY parcel, so weigh it before you get too attached to the jar of jam.

Budget What it looks like Good for
Under $30 Three or four snacks, a puzzle book and a handwritten note in a padded bag Uni students, a quick "thinking of you"
$30 to $60 Snacks, one comfort item like socks or a candle, and a paperback Most situations on this page
$60 to $100 Six to eight items with a proper box, or a meal voucher plus a small parcel Recovery, a new mum, a burnt-out friend
$100 and up A full box plus practical help: a cleaner, a few weeks of meals Grief, a long recovery, a partner you miss badly

For a lot of people, the most useful item in the top tier isn't in the box at all. Two weeks of dinners can beat any hamper.

DIY or ready-made? The honest trade-offs

DIY wins when you know exactly which lollies they love, when money's tight, or when you can drop it at their door yourself. It costs time, though: shopping, finding a box that fits, packing, the queue at the post office and paying the postage.

A ready-made box wins when you're short on time, live a few states away, or want it to arrive looking like a present rather than a recycled shoebox. The trade-off is control. You won't pick every single item.

Our boxes sit in the middle. You choose options like scents, colours, prints and characters on each box, or you build your own from the range. Your words live behind a QR code on a premium card inside the box: a message of up to 280 characters is free, and you can add a photo or a video. They point their phone camera at the code and it opens on their screen, and photos and videos replay for around six months.

The Twilight Box, a build your own care package with six gifts
The Twilight Box: six gifts you choose yourself. Build your own care package.

We pack every box by hand in Sydney, Monday to Friday, and send it with Australia Post. Delivery is free on every box and usually takes 2 to 5 business days after dispatch to most addresses: about 2 within Sydney, 3 to Melbourne or Brisbane, 4 to Adelaide, 5 to Perth or Hobart and 6 to Darwin. Regional and remote areas can take longer, and tracking is emailed to you. Our delivery FAQ has the rest.

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Build your own

Start with an empty box. Fill it with them.

The real builder, exactly as you'll see it.
The real builder, on a real phone.

Choose every piece yourself, pick a print that feels like them, then add your letter with a photo or video behind the QR card. We hand-pack it in Sydney and send it free.

  • You choose every piece, and the print on the lid
  • Your letter, plus a free photo or video behind the QR card
  • Hand-packed in Sydney, free delivery Australia-wide
Build your own Or choose one of our five boxes

Questions people ask

What do you put in a care package?

Six to ten small things matched to their situation: something to eat that travels well, a comfort item, something to do, one practical thing and one thing that makes them laugh. Add a short note in your own words, because that's the part people keep.

What do you put in a self care package?

Things that take nothing out of the person: a face mask, a bath soak, a candle in a scent they already like, herbal tea, a novel and their favourite lollies. Leave out planners and self-help books, which can read as homework.

How much should you spend on a care package?

There's no right amount. Under $30 covers snacks, a puzzle book and a note, $30 to $60 suits most situations, and above that you're into a full box or practical help like meal vouchers. Remember to add postage if you're packing it yourself.

Can you post chocolate in an Australian summer?

It's a gamble from December to February, because parcels can sit in hot trucks and on doorsteps. Swap it for lollies, biscuits or nuts, or send it to a work address or Parcel Locker so it isn't left in the sun.

What should you not put in a care package?

It depends on the situation: candles and alcohol for a mine camp, strong scents for someone who's unwell, newborn clothes for a new mum, and anything cheerful or jokey for someone grieving. Fresh food is risky for anywhere, and WA and Tasmania check food at the border.

Is it better to make a care package or buy one?

Make one if you know their exact favourites, money is tight or you can drop it off yourself. Buy one if you're short on time or a few states away and want it to arrive packed and looking like a present.

Rather we packed it?

Pick the six or eight things they'd love, add a message, photo or video to the card, and we'll pack it by hand in Sydney.

Build a care package

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