Best Holiday Deals Under $25

Silicone is so squishy that it could have been a challenge to fill these molds. But the set includes a collapsible silicone funnel to help. (The reviewer still spilled liquid but not as much as they would have without one.) Bonus: This mold has a liquid line you can see on the inside of each cavity in case you aren’t sure when to stop filling. It typically costs $20, so you’re really only saving $4.

Bamboo steamer baskets, which are placed above pots or woks of boiling water, may be a mainstay at Chinese restaurants, but they’re far from perfect. Our evaluators found this particular model a bit precarious: “There were lots of splinters sticking out, threatening to stab me, so it required a bit of plucking up front before first use,” our evaluator said. Overall, the dumplings came out evenly cooked, but some batches were wetter than expected.

Like many bamboo steamers, this one is listed as 100 percent natural, a plus for those who are trying to avoid plastic. However, this type can take longer to dry than those made of other materials. Wet wood could also be a breeding ground for mold. But for the price, it may be worth trying.

This air-popping popcorn maker from Dash is at a small discount right now, and it happens to be the lowest price we’ve seen. The Dash popcorn maker beat out the other models CR evaluated, making popcorn that was light, warm, and crunchy. It has a measuring cup for your kernels, which doubles as a butter melter (which isn’t the most efficient if you’re using cold butter). And it only takes about 2 minutes to pop a full serving.

The runner-up in our digital food scale test, the Etekcity Digital Food Scale came very close in ranking to the Escali Primo. Still, it needed to be more accurate and precise and measure a 1-gram measurement in our testing (it remained at zero during this test). It was on target with weights between 2 and 20 grams. It was also the only digital scale that gained 20 percent accuracy when measuring high weights of up to 5,000 grams, but be aware that this accuracy percentage is still low overall, as this model was on target only 1 out of 5 times.

Made by one of the most trustworthy thermometer companies in the grilling industry, the ThermoPro TP19H instant read meat thermometer offers handheld temperature reading with a single stowable probe. There’s a built-in LED and rotation lock for the display, and a magnetic backing allows you to store it on your refrigerator between meals. Perfect for checking meats, this simple and affordable thermometer delivers reliably accurate readings within seconds of probing.

Elevated beds are ideal for puppies or the destroyers—the dogs who would otherwise rip up beds, says Cathy Madson, a certified dog trainer with Preventive Vet. The Frisco Steel-Framed Elevated Dog Bed isn’t warm, fuzzy, cozy, or any other word you’d use to describe a plush mattress. But it will put up a solid, sturdy fight against those dogs we know and love who are out to destroy the universe with their teeth and paws. It’s durable and easy to assemble, and the cover can be removed and washed, so you don’t have to deal with slobber and fur buildup.

These adorable dog boots feature a waterproof design to keep their paws dry in puddles and traction at the sole for safer walking and protection against hot pavement. Choose from eight sizes and five colors, all of which are on sale for similar prices.

This coupon gives you a modest discount, but we’ve never seen a better one for this water fountain.

“I have two of these, and they’re great because they encourage the cats to drink more water,” says Amanda Arnold, senior manager of business analytics at CR. “Cats notoriously don’t usually drink enough water, so having these helps keep their water cleaner and the kitties healthier!” The fountain comes with a filter inside and is dishwasher-safe.

The TP-Link Kasa Smart KL125 smart bulb offers the best deal of the 10 smart lightbulbs we evaluated. It retails for $15 per bulb and has a great array of colors and dimming performance that come close to the pricier Philips Hue. The bulb also works with Amazon Alexa, Google Home/Assistant, and Samsung SmartThings for voice and/or app control.

These bulbs have been on sale for a while, but the prices for each different set listed here have all fallen about $2.

Among the best outdoor smart plugs you can buy, the TP-Link Kasa EP40 just dropped in price $3 compared to its recent sale price. It is fairly easy to set up and even easier to use, based on our expert evaluations. It offers voice/app control via Amazon Alexa, Google Home/Assistant, and Samsung SmartThings. The plug’s two outlets can be controlled independently.

If you’re looking for a solid budget pick, this lightweight set from Amazon Basics could be just the right fit. These microfiber sheets earn good scores in our ratings for strength and wrinkling, but they really stand out when it comes to maintaining their fit, acing CR’s shrinkage tests.

This sleeping bag is long enough for the average 6-footer, and at this price, if you’re looking for nothing but value—or if you need to buy several for a big camping trip—this bag is for you.

This Hopopro showerhead, now $1 more than the lowest we’ve seen, was the best fixed showerhead in our most recent tests. Testers found that it provided a great-feeling shower while getting top marks for its modest consumption of water. It has five settings and uses 1.8 gallons of water per minute.

The Hopopro 6-function showerhead, which typically sells for no more than $24, is an easy-to-use handheld shower with variable settings for different users. In our tests, it provided a nice-feeling shower while using minimal water. We tested it with a 1.8-gallon-per-minute (GPM) flow restrictor in place, but it comes with a 2.5GPM restrictor if you want more pressure.

]The Soundhance requires minor assembly: You snap the two arms into the base of the stand and, when you’re done, your laptop sits about six inches off the desk. The problem is there’s no way to adjust the height and tilt, which makes it difficult to properly position the screen. The stand is made of aluminum and available in 10 colors, including red, green, navy, and purple.

The JBL Tune 510BT is already a budget-friendly option, but at nearly half off its list price, it dips it into stocking stuffer territory (it was $5 less for Cyber Monday, but this is still a stellar deal). This Bluetooth model delivers sound quality in the ballpark of far more expensive headphones, and it has a 40-hour advertised battery life. It sits on the ears, which some people find more comfortable than being engulfed by bigger, over-the-ear style cans. As an extra perk, you can use the headphones with a cable if you forget to charge them. These aren’t noise-canceling headphones, but for the price, they’re hard to beat.

This two-meter cord, designed for the iPhone 5 through the iPhone 14, survived 11,500 bends without failing in the rig we created to test charging cord durability. That’s the equivalent of more than six years’ worth of use, according to our estimates.

The Amazon Echo Pop is the perfect way to test out a smart speaker in your home at a low cost. It’s 50 percent off right now, matching the lowest price we’ve seen for a smart speaker from the Echo family. The sound quality leaves a lot to be desired, so it may not be ideal if you’re looking primarily for music playback. But if you are more excited about adding smart functionality to any room in your house, this may fit the bill.

The Conair Double Ceramic Flat Iron is a great lower-cost option if you’re in the market for a new one. It has five temperature settings, a rare find at this price, and it heats up in about 30 seconds, but the temperatures vary about 6 degrees from whatever you set it to. Our evaluator found it to be a bit clunky to use, but it’s small, light, and easy to maneuver thanks to pivoting plates and a swivel cord.

It’s hard to contend with the value offered by the Gigalumi Grid Solar Pathway Lights, especially at this new low price. Their cost is lower (on a per-light basis) than just about any other path light we’ve seen, and yet they earn solid marks for both light duration and ease of use. The light cast comes from a single LED in each of the lights—casting a dimmer glow than the other products we tested.

That may not be a dealbreaker if you’ve got supplemental lighting elsewhere or if you’re using these strictly to create ambience. There’s a single setting, an on/off button, and a removable battery, but the lights can’t be charged or angled.

With about 1 inch of insulation, the Coleman Chiller Cooler is great at maintaining a cool temperature. Its performance is on a par with the popular Yeti, and it costs $180 less. A large bail handle makes it easy to tote, but the hard-sided cooler does weigh almost 3 pounds before you even put anything in it.

The manufacturer claims the cooler can hold four cans with 4 pounds of ice, but we were able to fit seven cans in it with less ice, and it still kept our drinks icy cold for 3 hours at room temperature and 2 hours at 100° F.

Searching for an insulated bike water bottle that’s perfect for taking on the road? Look no further than this pick, which features double-wall insulation to keep cold beverages cold and a secure cap. You can give it a squeeze to allow for easy drinking and comes in two sizes and 13 colors.

Traveling and want to stay safe and secure in your hotel? Keep this handy flashlight in your luggage to detect urine or other substances in your hotel room or Airbnb.

For an inexpensive price you’re getting a good amount of brightness with the GearLight S1000 LED Tactical Flashlight. The flashlight lasted for more than 24 hours in our run-time test and was one of only three models to do so. It’s not too heavy and compact in size, which makes it ideal for users concerned about storage space or portability.