No matter how hard I try, I always end up frantically Google-searching for last minute gifts sometime circa December 17th (despite the fact that Christmas falls on the same day every year, so I have plenty of notice). Whether it’s my auntie/grandma/sister/best friend that I’ve forgotten about (they should – by no means – take it personally), no festive season is complete without a last-minute gift panic. And I know I’m not alone.
Sure, some (rare kind of) person manages to tick everyone off their to-buy-for lists as soon as October 1st hits, but most of us wind-up surprised the holidays have come around so quickly again. Yes, you could pick up a gift card or a box of chocolates from the local supermarket to hide underneath the artificial Christmas tree… but last-minute doesn’t have to equal careless. And my edit of the best last minute gift ideas is here to prove it.
Everything last-minute shoppers need is here in one place: from next-day delivery prices at stores from Boots to Net-A-Porter, plus final Christmas shipping dates and cut-off times for ordering. From Selfridges‘ offering of same-day (!) delivery to addresses inside the M25 right up until 23 December to Amazon’s forever-trusty free next day delivery for Amazon Prime members, there’s a plethora of ways you can get thoughtful, luxury gifts (think: Anya Hindmarch eye masks and Versace slippers) with just a day or two to spare.
After more gifting content? Experience gifts are another great last-minute choice, while our ultimate edit of gifts for her will have every woman on your list ticked off in no time. We’ve also got gifts for teenage girls, gifts for husbands, gifts for boyfriends, gifts for practical people and beauty gift sets.
Scroll for our edit of 15 stores that offer next day delivery, plus the best last-minute gifts from each of them.
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Next-day delivery: Yes! ASOS also
Cost: FREE for ASOS Premier customers.
Christmas shipping cut-off: Order by 22/12/2021 before the website cut-off to get your last-minute gifts in time for Christmas.
Save when you shop for last-minute gifts with these ASOS discount codes.
Next-day delivery: Anthropologie’s Express delivery service takes one-two days if you order before 7pm Mon-Fri.
Cost: £6.
Christmas shipping cut-off: Order your items using standard delivery by 17th of December to get it in time for Christmas, or by the 21st using Express delivery.
Next-day delivery: Order your luxury gifts with Net-A-Porter by 3pm to receive your purchase next business day between 9am and 5pm. PSA: if you make your gift purchase after 3pm on a Friday (or anytime over the weekend), your order will arrive the following Tuesday.
Cost: Next-day delivery costs £8.
Christmas shipping cut-off: Order by 3pm (GMT) on Thursday 23 December for Next-Day Delivery on Christmas Eve, or by 3pm on Tuesday 21 December if you’re ordering with Standard Delivery.
Save when you shop for last-minute gifts with these Net-A-Porter discount codes.
Next-day delivery: Boots’ Next Day Delivery is available seven days a week on orders placed before 8pm; your beauty gifts will usually delivered between 8am and 9pm. The earliest delivery date for these orders will be shown at the checkout. Next day delivery is not available on medicines, these are shown with a green pharmacy cross symbol.
Cost: Boots standard delivery is free when you spend £25 or more.
Christmas shipping cut-off: Delivery dates are subject to change as Boots closely monitor the post situation each day. As it stands, for standard delivery, you’ll need to order before Friday 17 December at 6pm. For Click & Collect, order by Monday 20 December, and for Next-Day Delivery, dates for each product will be shown at the checkout.
Save when you shop for last-minute gifts with these Boots discount codes.
Next-day delivery: Next day delivery via Royal Mail, seven days a week, is available through Cult Beauty – you just have to make sure you order before 3pm. Just note: during busy periods, express delivery may be unavailable.
Cost: £5.95.
Christmas shipping cut-off: For orders being placed using: Standard Delivery, Click & Collect, InPost Lockers or Eco Delivery, you should order on or before December 21 for delivery in time for Christmas. No deliveries will take place between 25th – 27th December, or on 1st and 2nd January.
Save when you shop for last-minute gifts with these Cult Beauty discount codes.
Next-day delivery: Selfridges offers nominated-day delivery, plus “last minute gifts same day delivery UK” to those who live inside the M25. Perfect for speedy deliveries of wine, Christmas food and beauty gifts – just complete your order by midday for delivery the same evening between 6-10pm (with your choice of a 2-hour delivery slot).
Cost: Nominated day delivery is free – as is standard delivery – when you spend £150 or more. Enter the code UKFREEDEL at checkout. Available in United Kingdom only.
Christmas shipping cut-off: For UK delivery in time for Christmas, order by 6pm Sunday 19 December with UK standard delivery. If you pay for next day delivery, you can order up to 9pm on 22 December, and with same day delivery, order up ’til 12pm on 23 December.
Save when you shop for last-minute gifts with these Selfridges discount codes.
Next-day delivery: The star of the M&S gifting show? Their Christmas hampers – and you can order them by 5pm Monday-Friday for next day delivery. Sunday delivery is not available. For clothing, order by 10pm for next-day delivery and order flowers by 7pm for next day delivery.
Cost: £4.99 for next day or nominated day delivery.
Christmas shipping cut-off: M&S has differing last-minute gift delivery cut off dates for different categories on their website – from flowers to wine and hampers. You can find them all on their help page right here, but generally, cut-off dates with standard delivery tend to be Saturday 18 December.
Save when you shop for last-minute gifts with these Marks and Spencer discount codes.
Next-day delivery: Yes, if you’ve got Amazon Prime.
Cost: Free for Amazon Prime members.
Christmas shipping cut-off: Amazon hasn’t released one singular delivery cut-off date this year, but if we follow the retailer’s usual routine, you should be able to order most items with Free Delivery 3-5 days before Christmas, or one day before Christmas with One-Day Delivery, which costs £3.99 to £4.99 (or free for Prime subscribers).
Next-day delivery: Order before 6pm for next day delivery, 7 days per week, for next-day delivery at LookFantastic.
Cost: £4.95 Next Day Delivery cost, or free on orders over £100. Not that we needed another excuse to buy new beauty products.
Christmas shipping cut-off: LookFantastic advises you order as early as possible for guaranteed delivery before Christmas Eve.
Save when you shop for last minute gifts with these LookFantastic discount codes.
Next-day delivery: Order by 6PM for Next Day Delivery at Beauty Bay, and your order will be delivered Mon-Sun between 7am and 8pm. You get tracked two-hour updates (*so* good) – and you can even sign up for unlimited next day deliveries with Beauty Bay’s Haul Pass.
Cost: £4.95 or free if you spend £80.
Christmas shipping cut-off: The last day for UK Tracked Delivery with Beauty Bay is 21st December, and for UK Next-Day, you can order up until 22nd December and still get your skincare gift sets by Christmas Day. Epic.
Save when you shop for last-minute gifts with these Beauty Bay discount codes.
Next-day delivery: Order by 8pm for next day delivery on small and medium items, or 2pm for next day delivery on large items.
Cost: £6.95 for small items; £19.95 for large items.
Christmas shipping cut-off: Order by the following dates and times to receive your last-minutes in time for Christmas at John Lewis: Standard Delivery (order by 7pm on 20 December), COLLECT + (order by 8pm on 22 December), Named Day Delivery (order by 8pm on 22 December).
Save when you shop for last-minute gifts with these John Lewis discount codes.
Next-day delivery: For next-day delivery at The White Company, you need to order by 4pm. Orders placed by 4pm Monday–Thursday will be delivered the next day, while orders placed Friday, Saturday or by 4pm Sunday will be delivered on the following Monday.
Cost: £7.95.
Christmas shipping cut-off: For last-minute gifts at The White Company, the last order date for Standard Delivery is midnight on Sunday 19 December, and this will arrive by Christmas Eve. For next day delivery, order by 4pm on Wednesday 22 December.
Next-day delivery: AllSaints has a Monday to Friday next-day delivery service delivered between 8am and 8pm, excluding weekends and bank holidays. Orders placed before 2pm Monday to Thursday will be delivered next business day. Orders placed between 2pm on Thursday and 2pm Saturday will be delivered on Monday. Orders placed after 2pm Saturday will be delivered on Tuesday.
Cost: £4.95 or free for orders over £150 and Amazon Prime members.
Christmas shipping cut-off: To receive your order before Christmas and New Year’s Eve with next-day delivery you should order by Wednesday 22nd December at 2pm.
Next-day delivery: Nasty Gal offers next-day delivery – you just need to order before 7pm.
Cost: £6.99.
Christmas shipping cut-off: Order on or before 22nd of December with Next Day Delivery, or 21st December with Standard Delivery to receive your order in time for Christmas.
Next-day delivery: For UK Mainland Next Working Day delivery, orders must be placed by 5pm.
Cost: £6.95.
Christmas shipping cut-off: Kurt Geiger hasn’t released details of their last pre-Christmas shipping dates just yet, but we’ll monitor changes and keep you updated.
Save when you shop for last-minute gifts with these Kurt Geiger discount codes.
For more from our Commerce Writer Sophie Cockett, follow her on Instagram @sophiecockettx.
