Money challenge: how many freebies can I get in a month?

You may get the odd freebie when you're out and about, but how easy is it get them when you’re actively looking? I took on this challenge for one month to find out.

It’s often claimed the best things in life are free, but how easy is it to get hold of freebies?

I decided to try and snag as many freebies as I could in a month – here's how I got on.

Where did I start?

If you're planning to sign up for a load of freebies, you can expect to receive a fair amount of spam.

So to preempt this, I set up a throwaway email account, and then started my search on the MoneySavingExpert forum, specifically visiting the Freebies section.

It didn't take me long to find the option to sign up for a free 2020 calendar from the Open University.

It took three weeks to get the calendar through the post, and on average would have cost me £10 (based on prices for other BBC wildlife calendars) on Amazon. 

Next, I signed up Clicks Research, which promises freebies from the likes of M&S and Boots in return for reviewing them. However, after spending half an hour filling in details, I didn't qualify for any free trials (which I found quickly filled up).

Similarly, I was disappointed with the Toluna review site as they sent lots of surveys that I was not eligible for, so I unsubscribed, giving up the chance to be rewarded for my opinion.

Overall, I would say signing up for these sites wasted around 45 minutes.

7 things you can get for free from your local council

Free meatballs (and peace of mind)

After having a look on Save the Student, I discovered a whole treasure trove of freebies that were surprisingly not exclusive to students.

I signed up for the Leon newsletter and picked up Sicilian Chicken Meatballs for dinner. As it was on my way home, it only took me a few minutes to get the food and would have cost me £5.65.

As a fan of the meditation app Headspace, I was delighted to discover they offered two months of premium access for free thanks to its partnership with TfL.

This was significantly better compared to the usual two-week free trial.

Strangely, signing up didn’t require any proof that I used TfL, but you did need to provide card details.

Unfortunately, I struggled to sign up as it wasn’t processing my details and I was worried about the security of my information.

When I got in touch (as a member of the public), I was offered an extra month of premium access for free – plus they didn’t request any card details, so there’s no risk of me getting charged.

As a monthly subscription costs £9.99 a month, my free trial is worth £30.

Money and mental health: getting therapy on a low income

Free beauty treatment

I read on the Save the Student website that I could get a free facial (and a few samples) from Origins.

When a friend and I decided to meet up in Kingston, I knew there was an Origins’ beauty counter in the local John Lewis so I popped in for my freebie, which lasted half an hour and was really eye-opening.

I was asked about my skincare routine, given some handy tips and emerged with softer and thoroughly cleansed skin.

By looking at the cheapest local prices on Treatwell, I'd say the facial I received was worth at least £20 although facials can easily double in price, depending on where you go.

I wasn’t offered three free samples (as implied on Save the Student), but I did ask for some and received two.

The samples were for Origins United State Balancing Tonic and Origins Checks and Balance frothy facewash. I estimate these are worth around £2 based on the 16.6ml weight.

Beauty Pie UK review: can you save on designer makeup and beauty products?

On a (sushi) roll

There's a company near my work that offers free lunchtime events via Eventbrite to meet new people.

These events were open to everyone, so I didn’t necessarily have to work nearby although that obviously helped.

I signed up for a sushi-making class, but sadly this was cancelled.

After finding out it wouldn’t be rescheduled, I was invited along to a different sushi making event that would already be going ahead.

It was a lot of fun; I got to meet some new people and also learned a tasty new skill.

On top of that, I was also allowed to keep the avocado and cucumber sushi that I made although the rice was pre-cooked, so I wouldn’t say this is an in-depth class.

If I went for a sushi-making class with YO! Sushi, it would cost £30 for a 90-minute session although that does include learning to how cook sushi rice (a vital part of the process).

I attended the local class for half an hour so I would estimate this is worth around £10, while the sushi itself would set me back £2.

The best bank accounts for switching bonuses

Free foundation sample and cake

As I was heading back to Kingston for another catch-up with my friend, I decided to head to a local Bobbi Brown counter to find my right foundation shade.

This only took a few minutes and I received a sample for one week (weighing 8.3ml) of Bobbi Brown longwear weightless foundation, worth £8.85.

On my way home, grabbed a slice of cake and a pot of tea from John Lewis (completely free of charge) as I recently joined the My John Lewis scheme.

The tea and cake would have cost me £6.15 without the offer, and it was pretty delicious.

How much free stuff did I get?

Overall, I would say the freebie challenge was a success as I scored roughly £90 worth of free stuff.

While I could have gone on a wild goose chase in my quest to find freebies, I went for free stuff that was near work or home.

As part of my challenge, I made it a rule not to travel anywhere solely for a freebie as the cost of getting there would obviously erode the benefits. But if you are willing to do so, you'll probably get access to a lot more free offers than I did.

The biggest time wasters

As you might expect, not everything I tried out paid off.

I signed up to Schweppes 1783 Club and didn’t receive anything in the post – only those lucky enough to be selected scored a free (miniature) booze bottle and mixer.

I also joined a waiting list for free tickets to see Knives Out and missed out, as well as signed up to a site for free events, but didn’t realise you had to pay an admin fee – so it’s not technically free.

Signing up to the Glamour Beauty Club also yielded no rewards, but this could change in the future as they send personalised samples.

Get a £10 cashback bonus with your first purchase with Quidco

The biggest time-waster was signing up to sites for free stuff (either from product testing or filling out surveys) and not getting offered much, so I wouldn’t recommend this.

I pretty much spent a few minutes every day or two checking for freebies on offer at Save the Student and MoneySavingExpert, which I feel paid dividends.

But if you’re reluctant to hand over your data, this may be a stumbling block as I signed up to a few loyalty schemes for a freebie.

If you’re okay with this, there are certainly a lot of free stuff you can get.

While I won’t be continuing this challenge any longer, I have found out where I could look if I want to try and nab a freebie.

*This article contains affiliate links, which means we may receive a commission on any sales of products or services we write about. This article was written completely independently.