Valuable (and Fun) Things You Can Get for Free

Who doesn't love a freebie? From birthday pancakes to fun activities for kids and courses for adults, here's the lowdown on getting valuable goodies for nothing.

By Emma Patch, Jason Steele, Anne Kates Smith, Ella Vincent, Liisa Rajala, David Milstead, Nellie S. Huang

published 31 July 2025

in Features

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(Image credit: Getty Images)

It’s hard to beat the satisfaction of getting something valuable — or just plain fun — without paying a cent for it.

Take learning a new skill, for example. Online learning platform Coursera offers a host of free courses.

Recently, for example, you could take a free beginner-level course on financial markets from Yale economist Robert Shiller or on computer programming with Princeton instructors Robert Sedgewick and Kevin Wayne. EdX also offers free online courses.

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Want to become handier around the house? Home Depot has free webcasts on topics such as removing and installing carpet or replacing light fixtures. Because the workshops are streamed live, you can ask the instructors questions.

Your kids can get in on the fun, too. Home Depot and Lowe’s both offer free monthly in-store building workshops for children.

During the workshops — which are usually on the first Saturday of the month at Home Depot and on the third Saturday of the month at Lowe’s — children make crafts ranging from model airplanes to miniature fire stations.

Get birthday and holiday treats

Some retailers and restaurant chains give you a complimentary item for your birthday if you’re a member of their rewards program (but check the rules — you may have to make a purchase of a certain amount before you can redeem the birthday offer).

To name a few: IHOP provides a free stack of pancakes, Panera Bread offers a pastry, and Ulta Beauty lets you choose a small cosmetic item. Budgeting website The Penny Hoarder lists more than 100 places that offer birthday freebies.

You can also find free items from restaurants on food “holidays” throughout the year.

For example, on National Ice Cream Day, which takes place on the third Sunday in July, vendors including Dairy Queen and Dippin’ Dots have offered complimentary treats. Watch for promotions on restaurants’ websites and apps.

Find more goodies

The website FreeStuffFinder.com is a catch-all resource for discounts, coupons and free offers on a variety of products, services and events.

Its “Free Stuff” page recently included information on the summer Kids Bowl Free program — through which more than 1,500 bowling alleys nationwide allow children two free daily games — and a state-by-state listing of days that you can go fishing without purchasing a license, among many other freebies.

Note: This item first appeared in Kiplinger Personal Finance Magazine, a monthly, trustworthy source of advice and guidance. Subscribe to help you make more money and keep more of the money you make here.

Nellie joined Kiplinger in August 2011 after a seven-year stint in Hong Kong. There, she worked for the Wall Street Journal Asia, where as lifestyle editor, she launched and edited Scene Asia, an online guide to food, wine, entertainment and the arts in Asia. Prior to that, she was an editor at Weekend Journal, the Friday lifestyle section of the Wall Street Journal Asia. Kiplinger isn't Nellie's first foray into personal finance: She has also worked at SmartMoney (rising from fact-checker to senior writer), and she was a senior editor at Money.