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YOUR FRIENDS' ACTIVITY

    7 Ways to Score Free Stuff

    We've explored the world of freebies a couple times on Financially Fit from free vacations, to free yoga, to free cell phones. And yes, there's more! Here's another round up of totally free offerings that can potentially help you save you thousands of dollars a year.

    Free Media, Language Classes & Children's Events
    What magical place houses all of the aforementioned freebies? The library, of course! When was the last time you visited yours? These days, the library has become the best destination for free content, but also free classes, ebooks, family events and WiFi. Likewise, your local YMCA or college may offer a variety of free classes to members.

    Online Courses

    "You can learn anything in the world online for free from the frivolous to the serious," says Jody Rholena, senior editor at Consumer Report's ShopSmart Mag. She recommends AcademicEarth.org if you want to tap into lectures from Ivy League professors on anything from art to architecture. There, you can even take courses for free. Meantime, if you want to learn every day fun skills like how to play charades to juggle, check out HowCast.com.

    Free Pantry and Medicine Cabinet Goods

    Retailers often give away free samples of their latest products, hoping you'll try it, love and buy it. Online freebie directories include ThunderFap, TotallyFreeStuff and AbsurdlyCool offer things like free floss, vitamins, coupons and from fee samples of medicine cabinet items, coupons and even some groceries. The catch is that you have to register with these sites and, at the least, provide your email address. "Getting the freebie here does come with some strings. You get the product; [retailers] get your information," says Rholena. Her advice: If you're signing up for any of these free product giveaways, set up a special email account to help keep all that information separate from your personal account. Also read through the company's privacy policy. "I know they're long but take a quick scan through there and just make sure that you're giving your information to a legitimate organization," she says.

    Free Cosmetics

    Walk into any Sephora store within 14 days of your birthday and receive a free gift - usually a sample size of the store's latest product -- when you show your Beauty Insider Card, which is Sephora's free rewards card.

    Free Meals

    Find free meal deals for the family at sites like HeyIt'sFree.net and if it's your birthday, check out EatFreeOnYourBirthday.com for a list of restaurants offering giveaways on your special day. For example, I learned that if I join the Birthday Club at Baskin Robbins, I can get a free 2.5 oz scoop of ice cream on my birthday. Parents note: some participating Chili's restaurants offer a "Kids Eat Free" promotion on Tuesday evenings with the purchase of one adult entrée, birthday or not!

    Free Odds and Ends

    For free household items such as used paint, furniture, TVs and maybe even kayaks, check out the neighborhood giveaway site Freecycle.org, where you can also post for free things you want. Score even more free household stuff by hosting a party for a sponsor. Sign up at HouseParty.com to receive a hosting package full of products, cooking tools and party decorations.

    Swap for Freebies

    Bookmooch.com is a great place to trade old books for new ones and maybe score free college text books.Swapstyle.com is a free fashion site where you can swap clothes and accessories with its growing community of 47,000 members.

     
    • Ella  •  3 months ago
      I shop at sephora and i received a 6 oz. bottle of Philosophy's birthday cake scented body wash for my birthday. so I know that part is true lol
    • Samantha  •  Las Vegas, Nevada  •  3 months ago
      Most of you obviously don't know how to read. Yeah so what they are samples! But they ARE free. I always get them in the mail. I also do surveys online and get paid for it! So far I have gotten everybody in my family stuff for christmas and birthdays and also wii games and things like that!! $100's of dollars. Things can be free if you are willing to sit there and fill out your name and email address and info over and over again!
    • Lori  •  3 months ago
      spent over 1.5 hours and never completed to the point where I actually get to receive anything for free. I feel like this was a colossal waist of my time.
      • Shery D 3 months ago
        Just wondering just how big is your waist? Probably WASTE-ing [wasting] my time trying to explain!
      • LG 3 months ago
        I blame auto-correct and spell-check for the misuse of homophones.
    • Kyle  •  Mishawaka, Indiana  •  3 months ago
      free shipping on orders over 100 lol how pointless some of these articles have come to be
    • Robyn  •  3 months ago
      You have to know what you're looking for and also to remember to read the fine print. Otherwise you'll get suckered into buying something that you don't want to buy in the first place! Look around...you'd be surprised the kind of perks that you can get for your birthday. I love my birthday month. I get all sorts of freebies! Not to mention coupons galore for the things that I like. I look at it this way, if I don't get it for free, I at least get a discount. :)
      • Chipster 3 months ago
        I totally get where you're coming from. Just Awesome! :D
    • timeandtide  •  Atlanta, Georgia  •  3 months ago
      I get freebies all the time from manufacturers websites and signing up for offers from companies. Free t-shirts, cosmetics, lotions, medicines, I even got a free digital camera with no strings attatched. The birthday freebies from restaurants are legit as are the reward programs for places like TGI Friday's. You can get things totally free if you know where to look. And as for giving out information like your name and address, you can already find it on the web anyway so what is the big deal. I never have to buy lotion, or perfumes, and I don't have to buy shampoo and conditioner that often because of all the free samples I get. And a lot of food companies will send free samples or coupons for a free product to try it. So yes there are things in life that are free.
      • FED-UP 3 months ago
        Yup...ate for free for 2 weeks around my b-day.
    • berdag  •  Ann Arbor, Michigan  •  3 months ago
      love anything that is free as long as i need it
    • XYF166  •  Phoenix, Arizona  •  3 months ago
      I hate to dis, but I spent about 20 minutes checking out two of these sites and registering, and all I got that I could use was 40 cents off on SIX cartons of Yoplait. These sites are masters of time suckage oh and yeah I got spammed by one of them before I even logged out.
    • BAP84  •  Cleveland, Ohio  •  3 months ago
      Half of those sites didn't work. Even if you found something 'free', you have to keep clicking and clicking and you end up with junk mail.
      • KATTY1 3 months ago
        Me too. Now I've been "unsubscribing" for junk mail for about 2 weeks straight!
    • Gerbil  •  Elmhurst, Illinois  •  3 months ago
      yea, and what they fail to mention is all the advertiser #$%$ you have to go through, then you may or may not get this stuff.
    • Julie  •  Austin, Texas  •  3 months ago
      Bookmooch is terrific. I've been a member (free) for a few years and have given and received quite a few books.
    • Tom the Bomb  •  3 months ago
      "free" is always more expensive than paying for it
    • Jerry B  •  Englewood, Colorado  •  3 months ago
      At King Sooper Markets in their Deli they have self-serve soup with those little 1/2 ounce
      cups so people can "sample" the soups.I have seen people stand there and eat about 15
      of them making a complete meal(including crackers).One time I even mentioned it to a
      Deli employee but they didn't seem to care.Something to consider if your hungry on a
      cold day.
    • Vyakk  •  3 months ago
      Isn't this the same article that gets re-published every 6 months or so? Personally, I wouldn't want to share my clothes with others who aren't in my family.
    • Phoenissa  •  Seattle, Washington  •  3 months ago
      The only freebie mentioned here worth a darn is the Sephora one. I ordered some stuff from them for my birthday and was really happy with the freebie they tossed in: a sampler of lip glosses. There were about six of them and they were decent size; about the same size as Lancome's Juicy Tubes and they are expensive. The Sephora freebie is no #$%$ Just FYI.
    • Steve  •  Des Moines, Iowa  •  3 months ago
      WOW with all the negative reviews, I would think they would take the place down to place reviews that are almost 99% negative. just another person looking to not work for a living and tell people how to get rich, when this is how he's doing it, off the backs of working people. You're a leach, and shame on Bank of America for advertising on this ripoff site!
    • A Yahoo! User  •  3 months ago
      This is where successful men come to meet their beautiful and intelligent wives or girlfriends! It'ts worth a try!

      Yahoo news should be ashamed for placing this story ahead of the Norway tragedy on its homepage. Edward R. Murrow is spinning in his grave.58300104706
    • DEATH  •  Philadelphia, Pennsylvania  •  3 months ago
      If you have a twitter account do a search for free or other related topics and you can find people that posts lots links to freebies, coupons or samples. I get tons of free goodies that way. Not that i am cheap but free goodies are always nice =)
    • barbara  •  Richardson, Texas  •  3 months ago
      Sign up at restaurants for coupons, Red Robin gives you a free hamburger for your birthday, Quisnos gives you a free cookie, Texas Roadhouse gives you a free appetizer. You will also get discounts or buy one get one. I belong to several birthday clubs.
    • David  •  Richmond, Virginia  •  3 months ago
      The Hey It's Free link is bad. You have to type it in. FYI.

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