They say there’s no such thing as a free lunch. Well we’ve found a few at least! Not just lunches but free cosmetics, holidays, tuition and cinema visits among other things.
Because you don't have to pay for everything
It’s amazing how much you can get for free day-to-day if you know where to look. Here are 21 ways to do it plus how to find out more ways to get fab freebies.
Fill your bathroom cabinet with free toiletries and cosmetics. Get free shampoo, creams, household products and even caviar by reviewing them at Toluna.com which has lots of products to test. Recently they had Garnier hand cream, caviar and men’s shampoo up for grabs.
Eat free food from locals. You know what it’s like when you’ve made a lot of food and you don’t have enough people to eat it? A new app helps this food go to a good home. It’s called Olio and it puts you in touch with neighbours and cafes that have surplus food.
Furnish your home for free. It’s amazing what people give away on Freecycle.org and Gumtree Free Stuff. If you’re patient you can fill your home with furniture, electronics, kitchen accessories, towels and more. It’s all secondhand but it’s often good quality. Take a look.
Get a free eBook on how to live for free. Go to MoneyMagpie.com [https://www.moneymagpie.com/ebook/ebook-download-101-ways-to-live-for-free] and get a free eBook of 101 ways to live for free. Also sign up to the weekly newsletter that is full of the latest freebies.
Have (nearly) free holidays. Get into house-swapping to have (nearly) free holidays all around the world. Join an agency like Homeexchange.com, Lovehomeswap.co.uk or Homeforexchange.com and you will be put in touch with people all over the world who could stay in your home while you stay in theirs. All you pay for is your travel and food while you’re there. Swap with people in the UK or anywhere you feel like going in the world.
Get a free caravan. Park Holidays which has 25 sites in the south of England has second hand caravans that it offers for free to new people. The caravan is yours including furniture, carpets or key kitchen appliances and you’ll also have full use of any facilities the resort has to offer, such as swimming pools, spas and kids clubs. What you do have to pay for, though, is the pitch fee (usually £4,000-5,000) and the connection fee which is usually about £400.
Grab freebies every day. There are freebies sites that will send you notice of new free stuff every day. Sign up to sites like LatestFreeStuff.co.uk and Wowfreebies.co.uk for free food, cosmetics, magazines, tickets and more each day.
Get £750 a day for free. Who says you can’t win money for free? A great competition site called FreePostcodeLottery.com does just that. All you have to do is sign up with your email address and postcode then check the site every day to see if your postcode is the winner that day. If it is you will win up to £750. The great traffic from people checking the site every day means they get big money from advertisers which is why they can offer these huge cash prizes.
Get free meals in restaurants and pubs. Become a mystery shopper and eat out for free each week. Join a mystery shopping agency like TNS-Global, Grass Roots or JKS Mystery Shopping and once you’re in you can choose jobs near you. It usually involves eating in a restaurant or visiting a shop and then answering questions about it online afterwards. You can also download a free eBook about it here [https://www.moneymagpie.com/ebook/make-money-mystery-shopping-ebook]
Learn languages for free. Did you know that the BBC website has free language courses in French, Italian, Spanish, German, Russian, Japanese and more? Go to BBC.co.uk/languages, pick your language and learn at your leisure.
Free books and other services. Do you remember your local library? A lot of us have forgotten all about them but libraries are wonderful resources for free books, free information, free talks and very cheap rentals of DVDs and music. Use them or lose them.
Find family entertainment for free through your Council. Another forgotten resource for freebies is your local council. Some councils are more generous than others but it’s likely that your local council will put on free family entertainment here and there like firework displays, Christmas events or even a festival if you live in a big city. Find your local council’s website through Gov.uk/find-local-council.
Use free events sites. Yet more free entertainment and events can be found all over the country through websites like Free-events.co.uk, Londonforfree.net and Visitengland.com (look up ‘things to do for free’)
Free dinners with points. Sign up for free with Myice.com and every time you use your credit card in various shops and restaurants you can either get money off your bill or points that you can collect to buy the family a whole free meal in a cool restaurant.
Dress for free with swap shops. Get friends round for a ‘swap shop’ night where you each bring clothes, accessories, toiletries and other bits and bobs that you don’t want anymore. Swap with each other to get a whole ‘new’ wardrobe.
Free financial advice for the first hour. It costs to get good, independent financial advice but did you know that the first hour you spend with a new financial advisor is free? Find a recommended one on VouchedFor.co.uk. You could even try a few and get more than one free hour!
Have an evening of free entertainment. Get free tickets to BBC TV and Radio shows through BBC.co.uk/tickets. You could watch comedy shows, talk shows or light entertainment like The Voice. You also get to see celebrities in the flesh and all for free.
Get into festivals for free. Become a volunteer for Oxfam and get into festivals around the country for free. They need volunteers to help man their shops at festivals like Reading, Latitude, V and more. Sign up at Oxfamapps.org/festivals.
Free money through compensation. Have you had an accident on your bicycle or in the car because of poorly-maintained roads? If so you could get cash compensation. Whichever authority controls that road has a legal duty to maintain it to a fit standard. If it doesn't, and your car or your bicycle are damaged, the council should pay for repairs. Often you will only get a payout if you can prove negligence, but it's worth giving it a go.
Free cinema visits Sign up to See Film First and you could get the chance to see films before they’re released for free. Once you’ve signed up you’ll receive emails with a screening code which you can enter into the website to receive the free tickets.
Borrow money for free. There are some amazing 0% credit card deals around, both for purchases and for balance transfers. If you need to spend on something big – like doing up a kitchen or buying a car – you can borrow that money for free for up to thirty months on a 0% on purchases credit card. There may be an initial fee but after that you’re borrowing with no interest. See what deals are on offer on your favourite comparison site.
Written by Jasmine Birtles