What Is a No-Spend Weekend?

A no-spend weekend is a period of time when you decide to take a break from discretionary spending, like shopping, eating out, and non-essential purchases. By filling your time with free activities at home or in your community, these weekends allow you to reflect on your purchasing habits and encourage you to take a mindful approach to spending. If you’re looking to pause your spending, try one of these free activities.

Free Activities For Your No-Spend Weekend

Franchise Film Spree

Movie nights are one of the most fun things to do for free at home. Regardless of what fandom you’re a member of, each franchise takes at least eight hours of your time to complete, and they can bring feelings of familiarity and nostalgia to your weekend. Spend the day running with the vampires in Twilight, save the world from evil with a weekend of Lord of The Rings, join the rebellion in the The Hunger Games, or defeat He Who Shall Not Be Named alongside Harry Potter.

Take A Relaxing Bath

After a long week of grueling courses and workloads, a night spent unwinding in the tub is exactly what you deserve. This free activity can be elevated by creating an at-home spa simply by adding candles and dimming the lighting in your bathroom. Complete the relaxing ambiance by creating your own bath salts or bubble bath mixtures with ingredients that you can find in your kitchen!

Organize Your Cabinets & Pantries

I’ll be the first to admit that my pantry desperately needs some love. Every time my spice cabinet is opened, I enjoy a high-stakes game of catch with my bottle of cayenne pepper. If your cabinets are like mine, whether it’s your skincare and makeup section, spices, or snack pantry, take the weekend to organize them and toss any expired contents.

Tackle Your To-Be-Read Pile

Thanks to TikTok, all of our TBR piles have grown an overwhelming amount. Your next no-spend weekend is the perfect time to host a reading marathon by yourself or with your friends to help make a dent in your evergrowing mountain of books. If you don’t want to purchase each book, head to your local library branch or check out a digital library.

Bake Something New

Nothing can top a fresh-baked pastry made in your own kitchen. Use this no-spend weekend to try new recipes with supplies already in your cabinets. This is the perfect time to try your hand at making bread, bake a cake from scratch, or experiment with a dessert you love, but are too intimidated to make (for me, this was creme brulee, but it’s much easier than you’d expect)!

Exercise

You don’t need fancy gym equipment to enjoy a quality workout. Even if you don’t have “proper” equipment like dumbbells, you can easily improvise at home with items found around the house. Substitute traditional dumbbells for soup cans, replace your step platforms with a step stool, and you’ve got your own miniature gym right at home. 

Take a Free Online Course

Spend time learning new things with a free online course. Whether you’re looking to advance your career, expand your knowledge in another area of study, or feed into your curiosity, there are so many classes available online at no-cost to you. This is an ideal time to finish your foreign language lessons or discover the legends of Greek mythology.

Clean Out Your Phone

How many times have you browsed your photos just to find a random screenshot you accidentally took while you were carrying groceries inside (not speaking from experience, obviously). Take time out of the day to finally clear out your photos that are taking up precious storage that could be better used for your pets. This is also an ideal time to go through and delete all of the apps you don’t use!

Declutter Your Email

While you’re on your phone decluttering your photo storage, you might as well declutter your email inbox, too. Go through and delete all those newsletters that have piled up over weeks, unsubscribe from the ones that you never read, and respond to any pending communications that you may have. You’ll feel instant relief when the red bubble finally disappears.

Journal

Practice prioritizing your well-being by starting a journal on your next no-spend weekend. Grab an empty notebook and begin releasing pent-up emotions and stressors. This safe-space is just for you, so don’t be afraid to explore various forms of creative writing, including poems and short stories.

Clean Your Car

Reset your car for the week ahead by giving it a thorough clean. Toss any trash, restock any essential items, and, if available to you, give it a quick vacuum. This can help set the tone for your upcoming week, so as you drive to work or class, your mind is more at ease.

Plan Your Weeks

For me, planning for the weeks ahead always makes me feel more organized and prepared for upcoming obligations. Sit down with your planner and mark important meetings, assignment deadlines, and appointments that you have coming up this month. If you want to take it a step further, try planning your meals for the week, too!  

Write Letters To A Loved One

Getting mail from friends or family can be an instant mood booster. Spend some time spreading this warmth to your loved ones by sending them a hand-written letter. This is a great way to show someone you care and are thinking about them. If you want to add personality to your letters, dress your letter’s margins up in one-of-a-kind doodles or stickers.

Craft Something

You can make several quirky creations from items you probably already have in your home. A fun and free activity that’s suitable for the entire family, try making a slime ball to squish, craft a collection of paper rings, or make your space shine with itty bitty paper stars.

Build a Fort

You’re never too old to build a fort and enjoy a movie night. Grab your couch cushions, pillows, every blanket that you can find, and start creating the coziest fort with your loved ones or best friends. Any fort, whether sturdy or collapsed, provides a comforting shelter for movie nights and snacking. 

Listen To a Podcast

Take a break from the noise of everyday life and wind down with some of the best storytellers on a new podcast. Whether you’re interested in true crime, fun facts, or drama, there are several podcasts available at your fingertips to fulfill any mood you may be in.

Take a Stroll Down Memory Lane

Dig out that box of old photos and mementos and begin to reminisce on good times from your childhood, college years, and the present. Looking through these old photos can spark wonderful memories filled with joy, laughter, and some tears. This experience can not only help reduce stress, but also boost your overall mood and well-being.  

Create a Playlist For Every Occasion 

Curating the perfect playlist for every occasion takes time. Begin building a playlist composed of your top artists and tracks for any event or mood you may encounter. Getting ready to start your day? Create a playlist filled with uplifting tunes. Your cat’s birthday party is coming up? Build a set list for that, too. Whatever the occasion or mood, there’s a playlist just waiting to be made for it.

Go Flower Picking 

Get a breath of fresh air and go for a nature walk. While you’re walking, search for fresh flowers, four-leaf clovers, and stunning leaves to take home and press. Once these beauties have dried, use them to create one-of-a-kind works of art.

Gaze at the sky

To this day I still love admiring the blue skies and searching for familiar shapes in the clouds. Spend the day laying on the grass as you watch the sky. As you watch the clouds roll by, soak in the serene sounds of the wind and the leaves of the trees dancing in harmony. 

Search for Cool Rocks

While you’re enjoying the day outside, go on a treasure hunt for the coolest rocks in your area. If you find any rocks that catch your eye, take them home and paint them. Turn them into fun characters or paint beautiful, scenic views all over them. These can make a great addition to a rock garden, or, take a stroll in your downtown region and place them around the heart of your city for all to view and admire.