- Lottery Tickets.
They're easy to find (gas station or grocery store), fun and different, and you can spend exactly what you want. Especially good for hard-to-buy-for friends.
Put them right in the card or wrap them with a ribbon.
- Personalized music.
Burn a CD with favorite songs. This is a good last minute gift idea if you happen to have a blank disc and plenty of songs in your online music library. Otherwise read on.
- Magazine Subscription.
Buy a magazine related to one's area of interest, stick a bow on it and attach a note saying:
"11 more on the way" Oh and don't forget to fill out the subscription card with the correct name and payment.
- Wine.
There are lots of decent wines for under $20 but if you're working last minute, you can't search online for that elusive bargain. The best selections of good wine under $20 you can run out and get NOW are at Costco, Trader Joe's, and Cost Plus.
Buy these if you see them: Kim Crawford Chardonnay, La Crema Chardonnay, Coppola Diamond Claret, Bogle Merlot, and any variety by Rodney Strong, Kendall Jackson, or Sterling.
- Baseball cap.
... for a favorite sports team. If it's a local team you should be able to find one just about anywhere, or else try the mall. Most have whole stores devoted to baseball caps, or else get one from a clothing store your gift subject likes such as Abercrombie or The Gap.
- Board games.
I like Twister or Yahtzee because they're good family and/or party games. Or a deck of cards along with a book of card games. That's like 20 fun gifts under 20 dollars.
- A Candle.
You can find them at Target, the drugstore, your grocery store, and of course any little boutique-y store nearby. It will probably be ready to present as-is, or else tie a ribbon around it or have the store put it in a little gift bag with tissue paper.
- Kitchen Gadgets.
Go to Bed Bath & Beyond and spend your 20 on one "big" thing like a digital cooking thermometer (I LOVE mine) or scoop up several little items with a theme like Baking: cake tester ($1), measuring spoons ($3), cookie scoop ($8), oven mitt ($3), and small cookie tin or jar or cookbook ($5).
- Beauty-related things.
Go to Sephora and ask someone there. They have tons of products, lots of ideas, and almost all of them are packaged adorably.
- Stationery.
This works for men or women, kids or adults, and can be found very last minute at a drugstore, Target, even some higher-end grocery stores.
- Coffee.
I just love gifting coffee. Assuming your target is a coffee drinker, they can use it any time of day, any time of year. Gift card or the real deal, either way it's one of my favorite picks for last minute gifts under 20 dollars.
- Candy.
You must have a See's or a Fannie May nearby. Use it!
- Home-baked anything.
Bread, cookies, scones, muffins... make bake it and take it. You're done. 
Here is my favorite last minute cookie recipe. It has just 4 ingredients and takes like 20 minutes from start to finish. It calls for chocolate cake mix but you can use whatever flavor you have on hand.
Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookies- 1 package chocolate cake mix
- 1/2 cup butter, softened
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
- Mix together cake mix, butter and eggs until smooth and well blended. Mix in the chocolate chips. Drop by spoonfuls onto ungreased baking sheets.
- Bake for 8 to 10 minutes. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Anything listed on the Hostess page.
For more gifts under 20 dollars, see the Hostess Gift Ideas page.
