49 cheap things on Amazon you'll get a sh*t ton of use out of every day

Fill this soap dispenser with your own liquid soap, add some batteries, and set it down next to the sink and you have the sort of touchless soap dispenser system you encounter in public bathrooms. You never have to touch a pump with dirty hands or wonder who else’s germ-covered hands has touched this. It’s easy to fill and you can set how much soap it drops when the infrared sensor sees a hand.

This little waterproof speaker comes in a form factor that’s perfect for carrying with you and it delivers loud high-end, low-end, and mid-range sound from its tiny body. You can buy two of them and pair them for stereo sound and it comes in four terrific colors.

For all those items in the house — the coffee maker, light switch, garage door, whatever — that you want to add to your smart home for voice control but can’t because they require you to push a physical button, there is this button pusher. Connect it to your smart home, and it will let you voice control that button.

This clever little device manages to fit every charging cable you will need into one key-sized EDC you can attach to your keyring and always have with you. It folds in half and the ends snap together magnetically for carrying. Open it up and USB-C, micro-USB, and Lightning cables emerge from the heads.

This attractive charging station creates one orderly and decorative spot to charge all your electronics. Lift off the top to hide the power source and cables inside the box and pull the charging ends through the holes. Then add your laptop, tablet, and phones to the slots so they stand on end and plug them in. It comes in six finishes.

This inexpensive security camera punches above its price tag when it comes to features. You can set a privacy zone that it can’t see at all — maybe a bedroom doorway. It will also recognize the people that come into view and send you triggers based on who they are. So you could be notified if a stranger comes in or if the kids are home from school. It will even sound a loud alarm if it sees a stranger in the house.

Toss this travel adapter into your suitcase before you fly internationally and you will save yourself a world of hassle when you arrive. It lets you charge your laptop, phone, camera and other electronics — four at once — in any country in the world and because it uses 3.1 amps to do it, it charges faster than most other adapters.

This three-station wireless charging pad is an elegant solution to the charger mess on your bedside table. It’s a simple leather-like black pad when empty but drop your Qi-compatible phones, earbuds in a wireless charging case, or whatever your particular rig looks like on it and it will charge it all about 5% faster than standard chargers.

Though it takes up only a tiny footprint on your desk, this lamp does so much with that space. Touch the base to turn it on, change the light color (warm, neutral, or blue) or cycle through the three levels of brightness. Glance at the built-in clock and calendar, set an alarm, and stand your phone in the base. The light arm adjusts in many directions and the whole thing folds up for storage.

The grippy silicone underbelly of this clever phone mount sticks to your dash with a surprising amount of hold, especially since you can remove and reposition it if you want to. And it maintains a snug hold on your phone in the all-silicone mount, even if your device is large and wearing a case. The little tray in front gives you a place to keep cables or other small sundries.

This rechargeable handheld vacuum gets high marks from reviewers for its ability to get fur and dirt out of carpets, cars, and couches. It has a washable filter, a brush attachment for carpets and fabrics, a crevice attachment to get into small spaces, and a bright LED light that helps when lighting is poor.

How do you make things like toys, just-arrived packages, pillows, and even public toilet seats germ-free? Wave this portable light wand over them because UV-C light eliminate 99.97% of germs and bacteria and doesn’t require water or chemicals. It’s rechargeable, lightweight, points the beam away from your eyes, and has a child lock for safety.

If you want to give someone a large amount of data — photos or all your whistleblower files, for example — that’s on your phone, this thumb drive will get it done. The clever plug adapts to fit whatever port is in your phone and theirs, a fingerprint sensor keeps your data safe, and it holds 1 TB of data.

Your hands will never be cold if you have this rechargeable hand warmer along. It has three heat settings that start at 95 degrees Fahrenheit and go up to 131 degrees Fahrenheit so you can hold onto it or just keep it in a pocket so your hands have a cozy retreat. It’s also great for heat therapy on sore muscles and it doubles as a power bank in case your phone runs out of power. It comes in five colors and gets almost 11,000 five-star reviews.

You can stop creating clever systems to keep your charging cables from getting tangled because this three-foot long iPhone charging cable is designed to stay coiled. Cleverly placed magnets snap together to keep the silicone tubing that protects the charging wires in a tidy circle till you need it.

This inexpensive bidet attachment requires very little plumbing to install onto your existing toilet seat — just tap into the toilet’s water supply line — and it’s a huge life upgrade. Just turn the dial for a butt shower that’s precisely the intensity you prefer, every time you go, and you will wonder what you ever saw in toilet paper.

Screw in this shower head and solve all your irritating, inadequate-shower problems at the same time. The beads in the arm filter the water so that even hard water comes out soft and gentle to your skin. And the micro nozzles speed up the water so that weak water pressure feels powerful. Dial in the style of shower you like — jet, rainfall, or massage — and enjoy.

This high-powered steamer packs a lot of high-end features into a low price tag. A big 8.79-ounce water tank delivers 15 minutes of steam without spitting while a steel head, snap-on lint brush, soft cleaning brush, and creaser let you finesse removing wrinkles and cleaning up garments. Almost 18,000 people give it five stars.

If you have to assemble something or are faced with any light chore where a bit of power would help, you’ll be glad you have this handy, rechargeable screwdriver in your tool kit. It hinges from straight to pistol style to handle lots of scenarios, comes with 11 bits, has an LED light so you can see what you are doing, and is lightweight.

This little space heater looks like a fireplace in a suitcase and is perfect for heating a small area so you don’t have to heat the whole house. A handle on the top adds to the suitcase feel and makes it easy to move while two heat settings and a fan-only mode make it suitable for lots of weather conditions.

Not only will these candles never create a pool of wax on your table or set the house on fire, you can turn all of them on at once using a 10-key remote. You can even put them on a timer so they come on automatically and shut off after a while so you can fall asleep in candlelight.

Instead of getting down on all fours or climbing a ladder, pick up this rechargeable spinning brush, attach the extension arm, and let it do all that hard work. It comes with three brush heads — flat, cone, and round — to suit a variety of jobs and lets you reach into the tub and up high walls.

When moisture builds up in the air, it creates mold, mildew, a bad smell, and a sticky feel. Set this small dehumidifier down in a bathroom with inadequate ventilation, a closet that gets damp, the laundry room to aid drying, or in any small space to remove some of that moisture from the air to remedy all of that. It can pull 17 ounces of water out of the air daily and is very quiet.

Set your hot coffee down on this decorative and super effective coffee warmer and your brew will stay warm to the last sip. Tap the power button to choose from three temperature settings so that every sip is exactly the temperature you like. It will shut off after four hours if you forget it’s on. There are five colors to choose from, and this pick is a much more stylish than similar products out there.

If you covet a steamer that lets you get wrinkles out of clothes while they are still on the hanger, upgrade to this steam iron that not only delivers excellent steam but is also lightweight and compact for easy travel and storage. The high capacity water tank allows for up to 10 minutes of uninterrupted steaming.

When you find yourself deep into a page-turner and your bed partner wants to turn the lights out, pull out this clip-on booklight, snap it onto the pages of your book, and keep turning pages. It’s rechargeable via USB, has three levels of brightness, doubles as a bookmark, and is so small you can take it anywhere.

Put this lap desk between your legs and your laptop to solve many of the problems of working in bed or on the couch. It insulates you from the heat emitted by the laptop so you don’t get burned, dissipates that heat so your laptop doesn’t fry, stops it from slipping around, and has a slide-out mouse pad so you don’t have to use the glide pad. It fits neatly in your bag with the laptop, too.

If you have Lutron wall switches to control your lights, blinds, or ceiling fans, this clever remote will let you control them from anywhere in the house. Just connect it wirelessly — there is no bridge or hub required — and push the buttons to brighten or dim the lights or open the blinds. You can mount it anywhere or just keep it on a counter or table.

This little puck is the physical form Alexa takes when you want her to sit on your bedside table, counter, or desk and do your bidding. Once she is connected to your WiFi, ask her and she will play music, tell (bad) jokes, call your friends, send messages to other parts of the house, control your smart home, remind you when it’s time to get up or where you left your keys, and much more.

Insert a memory stick into this digital photo frame, plug it in, and let it display hundreds of your photos in a never-ending slide show right on the wall or mantle. The number of photos is only limited by the size of the memory card you use and it’s a great way to gift a lot of photos, display every great image from your vacation, or give equal time to all your cute nieces and nephews in a limited amount of space.

Not only will this alarm clock project the time onto the wall or ceiling so you don’t have to stir anything but your eyelids to see what time it is, it also lets you dim the display to darken the room, adjust the projection angle, and view the indoor and outdoor temperatures. You can even set two different alarms for weekdays and weekends.

If you are tired of stocking batteries for the many devices that run on them, there is a better way. Get this battery charger — and rechargeable batteries — and keep fresh ones on hand at all times. It charges all the standard types — AA, AAA, C, D, and 9V — in about five hours. All you have to do is put dead batteries in it instead of recycling them and you will never run out.

Sometimes writing on a touch screen with your finger is super awkward. For those moments — drawing, signing contracts, and choosing tiny drop-down menus — this stylus is there to make it better. It requires no Bluetooth connection, is USB-rechargeable with incredible battery life, and turns off automatically if you forget to hit the power button.

Sling this massager over your shoulders and let the heat and massage rollers get rid of shoulder tension, wrap it around your waist to get at those lower back pains, and wrap it around your calves or thighs to recover from your workout. It applies heat, firm pressure from the rolling massagers, and gets almost 23,000 five-star reviews.

Need a handy place to set your Echo Dot, toothbrush charger, or other small electronics? How about right above the outlet on this outlet shelf that has a hidden compartment for the cord? Just replace the outlet cover with this shelf, curl the cord into it, plug it in, and you are all set. It comes in black or white.

Jumping rope is an outstanding workout you can do anywhere, and this is the jump rope that will take you from wherever your skills are now to dominating it. Start with the balls that mimic the feel of skipping rope and you won’t trip, miss the rope, or smack yourself in the shins. When your skills improve, add the rope. Even the in-handle weights are easy to add or remove and it tracks calories burned, time, and laps as you jump.

No need to worry that the thermometer will spread germs around the house with this touchless digital one. Just hold it near your patient, press the button till it vibrates silently, and look at the LED display that’s bright enough to read in total darkness. It grabs a reading in seconds and runs on two AAA batteries.

Just stick these bright, warm LED lights to the risers in your stairs and your dangerous lighting problems there are elegantly solved. They light only in the dark when someone approaches to save battery power, which not only works well but also creates a slow-lighting entry effect that makes climbing the stairs fun. They are great in a bathroom or under kitchen cabinets, too.

If the outside world is damaging your calm or making it hard to concentrate, this rechargeable and portable white noise machine will put it in its place. Dial up the sound of crashing waves, rain, crickets, or other sounds that mask the distracting ones and create a cone of sound where you can sleep, focus, or simply not overhear what’s being said outside.

If you have been previously underwhelmed by the coffee that comes from a French press, it’s probably because the grounds sit in the water too long, creating bitterness and leaking grounds into the brew. This French press solves those problems by sealing the grounds away from the water so it can’t over brew or muddy your cuppa. You can drink the coffee hours later — over ice — and it will still taste smooth, clear, and delicious.

Instead of making everyone in the train, coffee shop, or home listen to the TikTok hilarity or music coming through your laptop or phone, don these Bluetooth headphones and keep it all to yourself. They fold into their own travel bag, come in nine colors, have super comfy memory foam ear pads, and play for 14 hours on a charge.

Keep this slick bottle of screen cleaner on hand so your phone, tablet, and touch-screen laptop are not smeared in germs and fingerprints. Just spray the screen lightly and wipe it clean with the included microfiber cloth. It’s much more sustainable than disposable wipes and is about the size of a lipstick so you can keep it in a pocket.

If your phone tends to lose power before you do at the end of the day, pocket this lipstick-sized charger to keep it powered to the bitter end. It’s compact, holds a full charge, and fits into the bottom of the phone like a tiny handle. It comes in five colors.

Don’t add another key to your keyring, add this keypad lock to your door instead. It’s surprisingly easy to install because it’s designed to replace the deadbolt you already have. You can create up to 20 user passcodes so it’s easy to lock out an ex housekeeper or roommate who no longer needs access, and it comes in two finishes.

Strap on this affordable fitness tracker and connect it to your phone and you have most of the features of a high-end smart watch without the high price or big watch face. It monitors your heart rate, checks blood oxygen levels, alerts you to texts and calls right on your wrist, and lets you manage Alexa features. It also gets 15 days of battery life so maybe cheaper is better?

This lighter is not just pretty, it’s a slick piece of technology that uses an arc of electricity to light candles and start fires. And because it’s electric, you never have to fill it with butane and it will never blow out. Plug it into a charger and wait for the four LEDs on the side to tell you it’s fully charged and light your candles. It comes in five colors.

If your protein powder beverages are lumpy, this electric mixing bottle is here to make smooth, creamy protein drinks quickly and easily. Just fill with water, add powder, press the button, and watch as the blades spin to blend it. It even lights up as it blends and you can drink right from the bottle.

Once you get this bag sealer hot — which takes only a few seconds — you might find yourself rifling through the kitchen cupboards closing all the open snack bags and creating single-serve packages for just about anything. Just put the open end of the bag between the two arms and press it closed to seal it airtight. It comes in five colors.