26 Gifts for 16-Year-Old Boys

A teen who plays guitar along to backing tracks in a friend's garage wants them loud enough to match his strumming.

At his age, jamming happens with friends more than alone in his bedroom, and the JBL Charge 6 travels along. His best take of the cover song ends up as a clip on a bandmate's phone.

Saving his gaming time for weekends, a teen with a Nintendo Switch gets Super Mario Galaxy and its sequel together.

He plays through stages on a Saturday morning, then moves straight into the sequel once the original is finished. During spring break, he can clear a few stages each afternoon before heading out with friends.

If the teen you're shopping for often hosts friends, The Mind puts everyone on the same side instead of against each other.

A win belongs to the whole crew or to nobody, so no friend gets left on the losing end. He can bring the deck out before a movie starts, while everyone is sprawled across the basement couch.

A teen who plays travel ball and packs his own duffel can keep his shower things zipped inside a Carhartt kit.

He already handles his tournament gear, so a bag just for toiletries beats tossing shampoo loose among cleats. In a hotel bathroom shared with teammates, he sets it by the sink and grabs his razor without digging.

This BENYAR wristwatch gives a teenage boy who now picks his own shirts and shoes an adult accessory to match them.

He already builds his look piece by piece, and a watch finishes it in a way his phone cannot. Before an awards banquet, he buckles it on, checks the dial and heads out the door.

Quick brush marks on a Buddha Board give a teen who craves a break from ranked matches something unscored to do.

Competitive play keeps his mind on rank, so he wants a pastime where no image gets kept or judged. The rough shapes he draws stay his own, never posted, shared or graded by anyone.

A cruiser skateboard from Retrospec's Quip line suits a teenage boy tired of waiting on rides.

He likes heading out on his own schedule, so the board covers short hops around the neighborhood. On Saturday afternoons, he rides it to the burger place where his friends meet.

When a new adventure title downloads to his PC, a teen who plays at his desk reaches for the 8Bitdo 2C.

Plenty of what he plays is built around a handheld pad, so his setup gets one of its own. His best boss run becomes a clip he shares with friends.

Sony IER-EX15C earbuds match a teen who picks his own playlists, since they play the moment he plugs in.

Nothing needs charging or pairing; just check that his phone has the matching port before you buy. The cord tucks under his hoodie on the bus ride home while the next track loads.

Before a match with his online friends, a teen who plays on his PC plugs in an Acer mouse meant for play.

Competitive titles fill his evenings now, and a pointer picked for them beats the bundled one from his tower. His longest win streak ends up on a sticky note taped beside the monitor.

The Xbox Series S moves a teenage boy's gaming off his phone and onto the TV.

He fills spare hours with phone games, so a console opens up titles built for television. On Saturday afternoons, a friend can drop by to trade turns with him on the couch.

Polaroid Go Generation 3 turns a teen's road trip with his buddies into paper snapshots he can clip to the car visor.

He keeps a record of every outing with his crew, and a print puts that record in his hands.

This WD_Black internal SSD gives a teenage PC or handheld gamer more storage inside his own machine.

Installing it is a small hands-on job, so pick it if he is comfortable opening up his device. Once it is in, his next big release downloads straight onto it during a Saturday afternoon.

Hues and Cues pulls a crowd into the same round, right for a teen whose friends gather at his house.

Each pick comes down to whether a square looks olive or moss to each person, something players can argue over. After a home basketball win, he spreads it out on the kitchen table while the crew grabs snacks.

Late on a sleepover night, a teen who reads his friends' poker faces deals The Gang to the guys still awake.

Here his knack for sizing up a friend's hand pays off for the whole crew, since nobody wins unless everyone does.

A teen who turns every hangout into a contest can pull out Corn Cob Solo the moment his friends start trading dares.

Guys his age want bragging rights, and a round of trick shots settles them in front of everyone. His top score becomes the mark the rest of the group keeps aiming for.

With Liar's UNO, a poker-faced teenage boy gets the classic card game with bluffing built in.

His friends probably know the usual rules, so the contest is selling a fib or calling one. On a Friday night in the basement, he makes his boldest claim without cracking a smile.

Scrabble hands a word-savvy teenage boy a classic crossword game where vocabulary beats luck.

He plans each move around his letters and the openings his rivals leave on the board. After a holiday dinner, it comes out for any cousin sure they can outscore him.

This escape-room puzzle box from iDventure gives a teen a clue-by-clue challenge to crack open.

Friends can crowd around it on a weekend afternoon and trade guesses until the box opens.

The cold case at the center of this mystery game puts a teen who follows true crime podcasts in the detective's chair.

Rather than listen to a host lay out theories, he lines up each lead and picks the suspect himself. His notepad of crossed-off names ends up tucked inside the box for the next friend who wants a turn.

Carhartt's 2L Multi-Carry Waist bag hands a teenage cyclist a hip spot for his phone and keys.

He rides to school and on to practice, so his hands stay on the handlebars. Nothing bulky digs into his jeans pockets while he pedals.

Friday night games in the stands call for the Columbia Watch Cap, a simple beanie for a teenage boy.

He keeps his look low-key, so an understated hat goes with whatever jacket he grabs. Between quarters, he pulls it down over his ears and cheers on the team with his friends.

Demon Slayer by Koyoharu Gotouge gives a teen manga fan the opening volume of a new series.

He can read it on the bus home from school. Later volumes can line up beside it on his shelf.

Legend by Marie Lu gives a teen boy into dystopian stories a novel to read on his own.

He can finish it over a long weekend. Afterward, it is easy to pass to a friend at school.

Unwind by Neal Shusterman gives a teen boy fond of dystopian fiction a novel to get absorbed in.

He can read it at night before bed. Later it can sit on his shelf beside his other sci-fi books.