What are custom employee rewards?

Custom employee rewards are rewards that an organization designs itself to reflect its culture, values, and employees' interests, rather than choosing only from standard options provided by external vendors.

They can be anything the organization is able to offer: an extra day off, lunch with the CEO, a seat at a conference, the right to name the next internal project, a team pizza night, or a hoodie created exclusively for the team.

For example, a remote-first company might offer "A home office upgrade," "A virtual cooking class for your family," or "A Friday off to recharge," while an engineering team might offer "Choose the theme of the next hackathon."

Custom rewards turn a generic rewards program into one that feels unmistakably like your company.

Why are custom employee rewards important?

Reflect company culture

Rewards like "Pick the next team offsite location" or "Present your project at the all-hands" express what makes your organization unique.

Feel more personal

Employees often remember a unique experience longer than a standard gift card.

Stretch the budget

Many custom rewards, such as flexible hours, mentoring sessions, or choosing the team playlist, have a low financial cost but high perceived value.

Reinforce company values

Rewards can be connected to values. A learning budget supports growth, while a charity donation supports social impact.

Involve employees

Employees can suggest custom rewards, which increases ownership and engagement with the program.

Types of custom employee rewards

Type	Description	Examples
Time-based rewards	Extra time for rest or personal life	Day off, long weekend, birthday off
Experiences	Activities organized or funded by the company	Concert tickets, cooking class, escape room
Growth rewards	Development opportunities	Mentoring with a leader, course, conference
Privileges	Special rights with symbolic value	Choose the team playlist, name a project
Exclusive merchandise	Items created for the team	Limited-edition hoodie, custom stickers
Social rewards	Moments with colleagues or leaders	Lunch with the CEO, coffee with a mentor
Team rewards	Shared celebrations	Pizza night, offsite, team game night
Giving back	Donations or volunteering	Donation to a chosen cause, paid volunteer day

Custom employee reward ideas

Reward idea	Approximate cost	Best for
Choose the next team activity	Free	Team engagement
Lead a demo at the all-hands	Free	Visibility and growth
Late start or early finish	Low	Work-life balance
Book of your choice	Low	Learning
Exclusive team merchandise	Low to medium	Team identity
Lunch or coffee with a leader	Low to medium	Connection and mentoring
Dinner for two	Medium	Personal celebration
Extra day off	Medium	Rest and recovery
Online course or certification	Medium to high	Professional development
Conference ticket	High	Growth and networking
Team offsite or experience	High	Collective achievements
Mystery gift	Variable	Fun and surprise

See custom rewards in action

Explore your company's rewards

Custom rewards are most effective when they appear in the same catalog as other rewards and can be redeemed with points.

With Karma, organizations can add rewards like "Day off," "Dinner for two," or "Movie time" alongside gift cards and charity donations.

Try "Explore company rewards" to see how custom rewards look in a catalog.

Custom rewards vs. standard rewards

Custom rewards	Standard rewards
Designed by the organization	Provided by external vendors
Reflect company culture and values	Universal and widely available
Often require manual fulfillment	Often delivered automatically
Can be low-cost or free	Usually have a fixed monetary cost
Examples: day off, lunch with the CEO	Examples: gift cards, retail vouchers

The strongest reward catalogs combine both: standard rewards for flexibility and custom rewards for personality.

How to create custom employee rewards

1. Collect ideas from employees

Ask teams what they would enjoy. Suggestions often reveal rewards leadership would not think of.

2. Connect rewards to your values

Think about which rewards express your culture. A company that values learning might offer conference tickets; one that values community might offer charity donations.

3. Define each reward clearly

Write a title, description, and conditions. For example: "Extra day off: one additional paid day off, to be scheduled with your manager within three months."

4. Set fair point prices

Estimate the financial cost and perceived value. Free privileges can be priced lower; experiences and time off may require more points.

5. Assign a fulfillment owner

Custom rewards usually need someone to organize them. Decide who processes each type of request and how quickly.

6. Collect necessary details

Ask employees for information such as size, address, or preferred date when they redeem the reward.

7. Check fairness and accessibility

Make sure custom rewards are available to remote employees and people in different locations.

8. Refresh rewards regularly

Add seasonal or limited-edition rewards to keep the catalog interesting.

Common mistakes with custom rewards

Rewards that are hard to deliver

A reward that requires weeks of planning can frustrate employees.

What helps: Choose rewards you can fulfill reliably.

Office-only rewards

Rewards like "Best parking spot" exclude remote employees.

What helps: Offer location-independent alternatives.

Vague conditions

Employees may be unsure when or how they can use a reward.

What helps: Include clear terms and timelines in each description.

Rewards leadership likes but employees don't

Not everyone wants lunch with an executive.

What helps: Validate ideas with employees and track redemption data.

How Karma supports custom employee rewards

Karma lets organizations create any custom reward and offer it alongside automated gift cards, so the catalog reflects company culture rather than a generic vendor list.

Create rewards in minutes

Admins add a reward in the Rewards settings by entering a title, description, category, and price in karma points. They can add an emoji or upload an image to make it stand out.

Start with reward ideas

Karma suggests ideas such as "Dinner for two," "Mystery gift," "Charity donation," "Day off," and "Movie time." The Randomize button shuffles more ideas.

Choose manual fulfillment

Custom rewards can be fulfilled manually by an administrator, while gift cards can be delivered automatically.

Collect redemption details

Admins can make a comment required during redemption, for example to ask for a T-shirt size or preferred date.

Notify the right people

Users with the Rewards fulfilment permission receive notifications when rewards are redeemed and mark them as fulfilled. The employee is notified automatically.

Create shared team rewards

Custom rewards such as a team dinner or offsite can be set up as group rewards, where colleagues pool points toward the goal.

Match your brand

Organizations can rename points, add their logo, and choose an active color across the Karma experience.