8 Easy Ways to Snag Freebies From Your Favorite Sites and Stores
Studies show that giving out free items turns shoppers into repeat customers — and retailers have taken note. Here’s how to get free stuff simply by sharing your opinion, watching short videos, and more!
Request your faves.
“Want to get a packaged good you love for free? Just ask! Sounds too good to be true, but all you have to do is call the company — you can find the number for the customer service line on the packaging or head to their website to search for an email address or locate a chat box — and tell them how you love the product and why, then ask for samples. I did this with Kashi, Tom’s and Stonyfield and was sent either free samples or coupons for free products — so easy!” — Carrie Rocha, founder of PocketYourDollars.com
Tap into these sample events.
“Over the years, I’ve seen many free sample notices on the Walmart Facebook and Twitter pages. I’ve also done a Google search for ‘Walmart in-store events’ to find details of upcoming free sample days and times. In-store, the freebies are usually items like food, shampoo, soap, lotion and shaving cream, which are easy to hand out and are designed to create impulse purchases — but no purchase is necessary.” — Kyle James, founder of Rather-be-shopping.com
Use your birthday.
“Going away? Google ‘birthday freebies’ and the name of your destination city and you’ll find sites with lists of free birthday loot. For example, birthdays are a great time to visit Las Vegas because of comps like a free 16 inch pizza at Grimaldi’s Pizzeria (normally $26) or a free trip to the top of the Eiffel Tower (normally $25) at Paris Las Vegas!” — Eva Keller, travel blogger at DiscoveringHiddenGems.com
Zero in on this site.
“You’ll find plenty of sites that offer freebies just for giving them your email address. But most then bombard you with spam and make getting to the actual freebies quite difficult. My go-to site? Hip2save.com/category/freebies. The page is up to date with the latest freebies and are legitimate offers, meaning I don’t get links from companies that just send spam. Plus, I like that I don’t have to hunt around on multiple sites to find freebies — they’re all listed in one place. I’ve gotten samples like a five-day supply of free allergy medication and a free Starbucks latte — either as codes that pop up instantly in my inbox or arrive via snail mail in a couple of weeks.” — Annie Brown, money-saving blogger at SavvyHoney.com
Share your opinion.
“If you buy a lot from Amazon, one entryway to get freebies is to write reviews. The Amazon Vine Program invites frequent Amazon shoppers who leave quality reviews to try new items out for free — everything from glue guns to electric kettles and more. The reason: Unbiased quality feedback helps give Amazon more credibility when it comes to the reviews. The key to snagging an invite to the program? Providing genuine, in-depth and quality reviews — both good and bad.” — Dustyn Ferguson, money-saving expert at DimeWillTell.com
Watch short videos.
“You may already know that you can earn gift cards by watching videos and taking surveys on various websites, but they can be boring and long and feel too much like a chore to make it worthwhile. I’ve found that doing it through a site like Swagbucks.com actually makes it fun. The site allows you to choose what sort of short clips you’d like to watch, ones you might likely watch for free anyway, answer a few questions about them and then cash in — you could rack up to $225 in gift cards a month.” — Annie Brown
Become a taste tester.
“Many food companies give away full-sized treats for free. For example, you can sign up at McCormick (McCormickConsumerTesting.at-hand.net) to receive and give feedback on drinks, snacks and more. And Betty Crocker recently gave out boxes of their Supreme Bar mix, just to get people to sign up for their email newsletter.” — Kelli Bhattacharjee, founder of FreebieFindingMom.com
Pay bills with a cashback credit card.
“You can get free money with rewards from a credit card. Here’s what I do: I pay as many bills as possible — cellphone, cable bill, electric — with my biggest cash-back rewards credit card and get anywhere from one percent to five percent of the total bill back in cash. Then, most cards offer the choice to keep the money or redeem the cashback bonus for all kinds of retailer gift cards for less than their retail value. For example, I traded $80 of my cashback bonus in for a Bed Bath and Beyond gift card worth $100!”— Stephanie Nelson, founder of CouponMom.com
A version of this article originally appeared in our print magazine, First for Women.
