Last year this offer was for a free mousepad, which felt like a freebie straight out of 1996! I was disappointed mine didn't also ship with a free AOL CD containing 100 hours of Internet.
This link for free Cuties diapers should take you straight to a signup form. It's been coming up and down all day, so if the form doesn't appear, try clicking the link a few hours later. Just tell your kid to hold it for a while. I'm sure they'll understand.
Since the dawn of HIF, major sports teams and their affiliates have offered free kids clubs. These offers are continually changing, but this week I compiled all of them into the post below! I'll continue updating this post going forward as new kids kits are released or updated.
So what do you get with a free kids club? Well, that depends on the team! The most common freebie are fan badges, lanyards, and draw string backpacks. However, some teams offer free tickets to games! How cool is that?!
Paid kids clubs are sadly more plentiful. While some are insanely expensive, I noticed quite a few in the $20-$30 range that came with nice swag and multiple tickets to games. Depending on your family plans to attend game, some of these look to be decent offers where you can save some money with the little ones.
Finally, I've included all the dud teams as well, who offer no free or paid kids club. I've also included instructions on where to look for possible new clubs, since these change with each sports new season!
As always, please share in the comments if you find any new or altered sports kids clubs!
Table of Contents
Free Baseball Kids Clubs βΎ
Professional MLB teams are tied for the most free kids clubs (9) out of 30 teams. That's 30% of teams offering offering freebies! They also lead the way in paid kids clubs at 18, leaving only 3 professional baseball teams offering no kids club whatsoever.
Fans ages 15 and younger are eligible for this free club. In addition to a membership card, you win prizes for each game you attend. Kids also received one free Sunday ticket at Chase Field during 2019! While the free tickets didn't happen in 2020 since there were no fans at the stadium, it's safe to guess they'll return in 2021.
This free club is for Braves fans ages 14 and under. They get a free Braves passport and lanyard, opportunity to earn prizes for attending Braves home games, and ongoing invitations to exclusive, Kids Club only events. There's also a paid, upgraded club available with more perks.
I first wrote about the free White Sox kids club back in 2009 and I love to see they're still going strong! This year, kids get a free personalized ID badge. These give to access a new prize each month at the Kids Club Prize Redemption Kiosk.
The Bucaroos Kids Club is exclusively for Pirates fans 14 & younger. Along with the paid upgrade option, the free club gets you a free Chick-fil-A sandwich or nuggets and a free Pirates ticket voucher! This is the first kids club I've come across that offers free food!
The Compadres Kids is for kids 14 and younger. You earn prizes for attending games, but the site also mentions earning points to redeem for rewards and experiences. Compadres Kids also get access to events like Kids Sunday Signings, Kids Run the Bases and Catch on the Field.
The Jr. Nats Rookie Membership is available for all fans ages 4-12. It comes with a membership card and lanyard, plus meet and greet opportunities. There's also a paid, upgraded club available with more perks.
While their kids club is paid-only, the Orioles have brought back Kids Cheer Free. This popular program allows fans aged nine and younger to attend games at Oriole Park at Camden Yards free of charge. For each regularly-priced individual game Upper Deck ticket purchased, adults can add up to two additional free Upper Deck tickets.
While the official Twins Kids Club is a paid membership, they send out free Twins fan packs! There's even a field to mark it's for a child, so there may be some free kids swag that comes with this.
Unfortunately, I wasn't able to find any sort of kids club at all for these final teams. Maybe we should tweet at them and ask why?! If you get a response, be sure to tweet at @heyitsfree and let us know!
They say basketball is the most global American sport. Well, the NBA is doing a good job of exporting freebies! Professional basketball teams have overtaken their baseball counterparts for the most free kids clubs, offering 13 free clubs, up from 9 last year. However, they only have 4 paid clubs, leaving a whopping 13, or 43%, of teams with no kids clubs at all!
Now, for the bad news. The NBA season is currently suspended because of the pandemic! As such, many of the following free kids clubs might be closed for registration. However, they offered a free program for 2019-2020 and in most cases are still taking applications.
Again, these teams decided not to offer a kids club for some reason. Feel free to inquire on Twitter as to why. If you get a response, be sure to tweet at @heyitsfree and let us know!
This one seems like a kids club, but it's just a program for local youth basketball. Almost all NBA teams have these youth leagues, but not many of them try to classify them as a kids club.
They had a free kids club for the 2018-2019 season, but it got folded into a newsletter when quarantine started. I wouldn't be surprised if this came back at a later date through.
The NFL must have gotten the message! While last year they only had 4 free clubs in the league, it's now up to 8 free kids clubs out of 32 teams! That means 25% of the league offers a free kids fan club.
Another 8 (25%) look to have paid clubs for 2020. That leaves 14 (44%!) of teams with no kids club to speak of. Smart business?
Choose Your Adventure: You have a multi-billion dollar industry rife with long-term safety issues. Do you A: invest in both safety and the next generation of fans by offering kids clubs or B: Ignore kids altogether. If you're the following teams, you picked B!
Uh oh, hockey. Professional hockey teams barely eked out victory over football last year, but have fallen to last place this year. They remain at 5 teams out of 31 (16%) providing free kids clubs for their young fans. That's the lowest percentage of all the major US sports.
Of the remaining clubs, 11 (35%) are paid and 14 (45%) have zilch.
Hockey has a very similar schedule to basketball. Like the NBA, the NHL is also entering their playoffs at time of publication. We should have more info on the 2019-2020 kids clubs later this year.
Don't ask how I found all these free minor league baseball kids clubs! When I started looking, my expectations were rather low. I was pleasantly to find seven great free clubs! If you live near any of these towns, be sure to check them out.
Another idea is to search for your favorite college sports teams kids clubs! There are thousands of colleges across the country and some of them are bound to have some awesome free programs! If you find any, please don't be shy and share in the comments!
If you know of any free clubs, kits, or caboodles I missed, please share!
Staples has an offer only available through Saturday, July 4, where you can get 50 free black & white copies with free in-store pickup!
Everyone has a part to playβto support parents juggling working from home and homeschooling, we're offering free printouts on anything from homework to coloring pages, and curbside pickup in 90% of our stores
This seems like a great deal for some homemade coloring pages or educational material. Heck, maybe you just need 50 pages of “Don't worry, everything will be fine” printed over and over.
The information below is current, assuming Apple sets up proper social distancing requirements.
If you're scrambling for ideas and events to occupy the munchkins this summer, you should check out the annual free Apple Camp returning for 2020! These free events run each summer for kids 8-12. During the three 90-minute sessions, kids will explore their creativity through fun, hands-on projects across four tracks: coding, robotics, moviemaking, and musical storytelling.
Apple Stores across the country are accepting reservations for limited slots. In past years, these slots filled up fast, so I'd sign up today if I were interested.
I first wrote about this freebie back in 2009, so Apple's been doing it a while! It always sounded like a pretty cool activity to me. Then again, I'm 37 years old, so I may not be on the cutting edge of what's cool these days.
As long as you count the backs of cereal boxes, I'm quite the voracious reader. I read on average two books a month and if your children are anything like me, they might be interested in this list I compiled of free summer reading programs! I've been updating this list since 2014 and was pretty surprised at how many of the offers stilled existed in 2021!
Below are all of the 2021 summer reading freebies and deals for kids! Most follow the “read X books, get 1 free” model, but there are a few that differ. Hopefully your little one enjoys reading or at least getting freebies π
These will be updated with 2021 freebies and offers when they're released. Typically, that occurs around April & May each year.
I also have an idea I wanted to pass along. With some of these programs, you earn a free book off a list of available books. If your child reads this summer, but isn't interested in the freebies, consider donating them! School and public library are always desperate for books. Donating them to The Salvation Army or Goodwill is another possibility. Regardless, showing your child that freebies can be fun and helpful to others is a cool idea!
Confirmed 2020 Summer Reading Freebies
Amazon – Grades K-8 can read any 8 books this summer and get a free book$1 off your next book purchase. Man, they really downgraded this offer for 2020, huh?
Barnes & Noble – For kids in grades 1-6, get a free book after reading 8 books and filling out a Reading Journal by September 18. For adults, share your school's required reading list and get a free tall hot or iced coffee from the cafe. They also have coupons and discounts listed under the right-most “Summer Reading Deals” tab.
Books-A-Million – Read 4 books and take the form in-store to get a free Dog Man baseball cap.
Chuck E. Cheese – They have a ton of methods for kids to earn freebies, from good grades to sports achievements to reading in Spanish or English! This reading rewards calendar doesn't expire until 12/31/20 and gets 10 free Play Points with any food purchase.
DOGOBooks – Ten participants who review the most books will be eligible to win a Prize Pack of seven books shown on the site. The next twenty-five participants with the most reviews will be eligible to win a $10 Gift Card.
Half Price Books – Starting June 1, children 14 and under who read 300 minutes over June and July (that's only 5 mins/day) will receive Bookworm Bucks. I don't see where it says how much you'll get, but it was $5 previous years.
Teens can also earn HPB Bookworm Bucks by reading any of the listed titles and writing a short review.
New York Times – Every Friday from June 12 through August 21, children aged 13-19 can read one article in the NYT and write in about why they read it or what interested them. At the end of the week, judges from the Times newsroom pick favorite responses and publish them here. Aside from broadening their horizon's and randomly posting some of the selected weekly responses, there doesn't look to be any “reason” to do this. Still, 15-year-old-Goob would have gone crazy over this offer so maybe there's a kindred Hiffer out there who would enjoy this.
Pizza Hut – I can't find any details on what the prizes are, but Pizza Hut has run their Book It summer programs for many years now and people seem to love it.
Public Libraries – Be sure to check with your local libraries, as they often host multiple weekly, monthly, and seasonal events and reading competitions.
Scholastic – From May 4 until September 4, kids ages 6-17 can log their reading time online as part of the Scholastic Read-a-Palooza Summer Reading Challenge. Over the course of 18 weeks, kids can enter their summer reading minutes online, unlocking digital rewards as they complete weekly reading challenges; and access book excerpts, videos, and other summer-exclusive content.
SYNC – This free program offers audiobooks each week to teens ages 13+. You don't get any rewards, but hey, free books!
TD Bank – Finally we have the classic offer by TD Bank. Kids in grades K-5 have until Aug. 31 to read 10 books. They'll be rewarded with cold, hard cash in the form of $10 added to their free savings account.
Previous Summer Reading Deals Unconfirmed for 2020
The items below were summer reading deals during 2018-2019. If I find confirmation they'll return this year, I'll move them up above.
American Girl – Select locations in large cities are being held for girls ages 8 and up. Kids get to decorate their own bookmark and summer reading log and can take home a doll-sized poster.
HEBuddy – After reading 10 books, send in the form to receive a “cool prize,” which looks to be a free t-shirt.
LifeWay – Take your completed Summer Reading Journal to the register at your local LifeWay store to get one of nine books plus receive a free Bible, while supplies last.
Showcase Cinemas – Bookworm Wednesday rewards your little one with free admission to a select children's film when they present a book report. Accompanying parents or guardians and children under six years of age receive free admission and do not need to submit a book report!
I was a nerdy, smart kid with my nose perpetually in a book and that trait carried over into adulthood. I'm the guy at the end of the bar more interested in reading my Kindle than socializing with strangers. Yet I've never been offered freebies based on how much I read or how smart I am! Oh, to be a kid again.
I should note I started this post in May, but kind of lost track of time π No worries though, as all the offers below should still be active for the rest of this summer or beyond.
There are a lot of other websites with outdated information on freebies for good grades. I only included offers I could verify to some degree, but I strongly encourage you check with your own locations no matter what! Since these restaurants are usually franchises, offers heavily vary by location.
Rewards via Report Cards
Applebee's – While not quite nationwide, they confirmed on Twitter that it's up to your local restaurant as to whether or not they give out freebies for good grades.
One of the largest Applebee's franchise, RMH Franchise, operates 135 Applebee's locationas in 15 states. They offer an A is for Applebee's program, where students 12 and under can get a free meal from the Kid's Menu if they receive an A on their report card. Many other freebie sites erroneously say this is a nationwide deal, but it's a great example of what kind of offer you can expect if your local franchise participates!
Baskin Robbins – They also confirmed on Twitter that giving away free scoops is “at the discretion of each franchise owner.” So call your local creamery!
Cheryl's Cookies – Their Cookies for A's program is for K-8th grade students. It's so popular, they enshrined it within their Public Relations page!
A very popular program at Cheryl's is the Cheryl's Cookies for A's. Students present their report cards at retail locations and receive a free cookie per A, for up to 3 A's they have earned.
Chuck E. Cheese – Anybody can print their Super Student Award π It's a redeemable certificate for 10 free tokens per day, however a food purchase is required.
Family Video – Throughout the month of June, students get a free overnight movie or video game rental for every A on their final report card.
Financial Institutions – Hundreds of small banks, credit unions, and even insurance companies offer rewards for good grades as well! I highly suggest checking the website of any smaller institution you're with, as well as asking your local branch. I've seen some small banks offering up to $25 for good grades! Others offered smaller cash rewards, discounts, and other prizes.
I wish these offers had been around when I was a kid. I would have made some serious cash!
Jason's Deli – They replaced their old JDPickleCards offer with a new Kids Cash system. Kids under 12 got a free kid's meal at participating locations.
Pizza Hut – Pizza Hut used to have a site dedicated to this, but I believe it's since degraded to a “location specific” freebie. I'd definitly call ahead and ask! Hopefully they still recognize the great and classic Pizza Hut good grades deal. Seriously, I can remember getting this freebie in the late 80s!
Each marking period, any child who has 3 Aβs or the equivalent thereof, will receive one Personal Pan Pizza and a small soft drink or carton of milk by presenting his or her report card to the manager. This offer is good for Elementary and Middle School students. Dine-in only. Students must be present and the original report card must be presented.
Unconfirmed or Old Freebies
Other sites report the following companies give freebies for good grades, but I've been unable to verify these claims on a nationwide basis. I've reached out to the following companies on Twitter, so please feel free to also message them and help get an answer π
In the meantime, before trying to redeem any of these below, I'd make sure you call ahead first.
Bob Evans – As of 2019, the Star Student program “is not a program that is currently active at our restaurants.”
Burger King – Free hamburger or ice cream cone for scoring 100% on a test. This sounds crazy regional.
Chick-fil-A – Free 8 pack of nuggets if you have all A's and B's on a report card.
Take the Butterfly Hero pledge and you'll get a free butterfly garden starter kit. Now I'm no lepidopterist, but I know a butterfly starter kit involves two butterflies who realllly like each other and a few milkweed flowers. Thankfully this freebie includes the seeds to start growing those flowers!
It turns out the monarch butterflies are in trouble and need more milkweed. So, pledge to grow the plants and help save the butterflies. In exchange, you'll get a free starter kit from the National Wildlife Federation. They're like the Federation in Star Trek, just without all the space ships!
This has been an annual offer since 2018 and it dies extremely fast! I wouldn't put off signing up if you want it.
This page is still under construction, but I've already found so many freebies that I wanted to publish them all! Since the pandemic started, I've literally found new offers to add each time I've worked on this.
I'll remove this notice once I believe I've found every baby freebie available. Until then, enjoy and congratulations!
I'm going to come right out and admit it: I've never had a child. But I did grow up in a household full of kids. And I have tons of friends with one kid to … like, seven? π¬ I can't even begin to imagine the amount of work, time, energy, and money it takes to have a baby. Diaper a child costs approximately $1,000 a year! Show me a parent who doesn't want free diapers and I'll show you a liar!
That's why I put together this huge list of baby freebies. You can get free baby stuff from dozens of places just by asking or signing up.
I've grouped all the free baby stuff by categories and how you get them. Most of these free samples come by mail, but a few require you to pick up your freebie at a local store.
Free Baby Samples
First up are the straight up free baby samples. No, not samples of babies, but samples for babies.
Enfamil
Their free Family Beginnings program offers up to $400 in free gifts! The free gifts for you and your baby are spread throughout your pregnancy, baby's first year and into toddlerhood. Freebies include belly badges to share special moments and formula samples.
Signup for a free MyGerber account and they'll send baby discounts and free products throughout the year. Each year they also send out occasional items like free coupons, baby food, and other cool stuff like free bibs!
Gerber also has a cool baby AI chat named Dotti available 24/7. It won't replace the advice of professionals, but I've known a few first time parents who needed some reassuring help from time to time. When one of my best friends had his first child, he texted me asking if he should be worried that his baby's vomit smelled weird. π€£ Turns out, he was just sleep deprived.
Similac Formula
If free baby formula sounds good to you, then sign up for Similac's StrongMoms Rewards program. They'll send out free formula samples and baby formula coupons with up to $400 in savings.
Vitafol
Vitafol has a free 12-day sample offer kit of their prenatal vitamins.
“This medication is a multivitamin, mineral, and fatty acid product used to treat or prevent vitamin deficiency before, during, and after pregnancy. Vitamins, minerals, and fatty acids are important building blocks of the body and help keep you in good health. This combination product also contains iron and folic acid.”
Wait, fatty acids are important building blocks for babies? My mom ate all those LEGOS for nothing…
Baby Registry Freebies
Multiple big box retailers have baby registries on their websites. When expecting mothers or fathers create a free registry, they'll receive stuff like free diapers, tons of baby product samples, and unique high value coupons not found anywhere else.
Free Amazon Baby Box
Free Welcome Box with $35 worth of samples for both the baby and the parents.
10% off registry items, 15% off for Prime members.
Full 1-year return window on all items purchased from your registry.
Universal Registry means you can add any item from any website to your list!
Amazon's baby registry starts us off with their free welcome box for Prime members. In order to receive this freebie, you'll need to purchase at least $10 worth of items from your registry. You can purchase the items yourself or have others buy them, either way works.
If you're not a Prime member, you won't be able to get the free welcome box. However, you'll still qualify for the free discounts, extended return window, and bonus diaper discounts.
Free Target Baby Kit
Target is next up with their free baby welcome kit packed with over $120 worth of coupons and samples. This is by far the highest-value baby welcome kit I found, but you will have to pick it up in-store.
Free Welcome Kit with $120 worth of products and savings.
15% discount on any items left in your registry, 8 weeks before the baby's expected arrival.
Universal Registry means you can add any item from any website to your list!
Easy gift tracking to see who gave you what and who you've already thanked.
Free Bed, Bath, Beyond Baby Goody Bag
Bed, Bath & Beyond give away free baby goody bags with samples, coupons, and a copy of their Registry guide. It's for pick up in stores after you create a registry and you get a 10% completion discount off your unpurchased registry items.
Free Walmart Baby Box
Our final Big Box Store offer comes from Walmart. Their bundle of baby essentials contains $40 worth of samples and freebies.
Free Baby Welcome Box worth $40 in savings.
Full 1 year return window on registry items.
Signing up is easy. All you need to do is head here and create a free baby registry. Then reload that page and look for the “FREE Welcome Box” image. Click it, fill out your info, and your free baby box will arrive in the mail in 4-6 weeks.
Free buybuy BABY Baby Bag
If you thought the baby registry freebies were finished, think again! buybuy BABY also has a free baby goody bag with samples, coupons, and a complimentary registry guide. Similar to Target's offer, the buybuy BABY goody bag is only available in-store.
Free Motherhood Baby Pack
Last up is Motherhood Maternity's baby registry. They give out sample products & exclusive offers from Motherhood, A Pea in the Pod, Destination Maternity, and other partners.
Up to $1500 in savings over 12 months.
From what I gather, Kohl's used to have an in-house baby registry program that offered a free kit. However, they've since discontinued their entire baby registry program.
Are you aware of any major baby registry freebies I missed? Please let me know in the comments or by email!
Free Baby Products
Free Breast Pump
One of the provisions under the Affordable Care Act requires all health insurance plans to cover the cost of a breast pump. It can either be via a rental unit or one you keep, but either way your insurance company is legally required to provide it.
If you're already paying for your free breast pump in month premiums, then be sure to get it!
Many health insurance companies offer either the Medela Pump In Style or Ameda Purely Yours pump. Be sure to check your health coverage plan and call your insurance company to find out which free breast pump you qualify for.
Free Birth Announcements
Unfortunately, while free birth announcements were once a common staple in the freebie world, they've dropped off a cliff recently.
One frugal idea is to use the frequent custom photo print freebies to make your own free announcements. These are regularly given away each month.
The Disney Bedtime Hotline is back through Thursday, April 30 at midnight PT. This free bedtime phone call is designed to help bring a little pixie dust to fans and families everywhere. Oh great, pixie dust gets everywhere. And I just freaking vacuumed…
Parents or fans can call 1-877-7-MICKEY for one of five special messages from Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck, Daisy Duck or Goofy. You only get 1 message per call, but you can always call back for more.
For a limited time, Sheetz convenience stores are giving away free Kids Meals Bags with no purchase necessary. Each day at all 600 Sheetz locations (in MD, NC, OH, PA, VA, WV), families in need can get a free bagged lunch for their children. Bags include a turkey sandwich, chips, and drink.
Meals are limited to one bag per child and are available daily while supplies last.