Whether you’re someone who loves or hates to celebrate your birthday, it’s pretty cool to get free stuff just because you were born. Whether it’s a birthday meal, a dessert, a free drink at your favorite bar, coupons or rewards, it’s a great time to cash in where you can. Although a lot of freebies require you to sign up with your email for a rewards program or club, we’ll let you know which ones don’t, so as to save your inbox from an ocean of promo offers.
Table of Contents
Free Birthday Stuff
People often like to go out and celebrate with food and drinks on their birthdays, which is why so many restaurants offer free food or drinks for people with an ID that indicates it’s their special day. While free food and bevies are a great way to celebrate, this is also a great time to cash in on birthday deals like free movies, gift certificates and other rewards.
The month long deals are the ones to seek out. That wa,y if you plan a bunch for your birthday and run out of time to claim your present, you’ll still have plenty of opportunities to seek out your gift. You can plan it out and treat yourself!
- American Eagle — You can get 15 percent off during your birthday month when you create an AEO account.
- Anthropologie — Get a 15 percent birthday discount when you sign up for Anthroperks.
- Aveda — For a 10 dollar enrollment fee, you’ll get a birthday gift valued at 23 dollars when you become a Pure Privilege Rewards Member.
- Banana Republic — BR will send you a special gift on your birthday when you sign up for email updates.
- Barnes and Noble Booksellers – Kids get a free cupcake from the cafe on their birthday if you sign them up for the B&N Kids’ Club!
- Benefit Cosmetics – If you live near a Benefit Cosmetics Lounge, they offer a free brow arch for your birthday – No sign up required!
- Chuck E. Cheese’s – The Chuck E-Club gives your kid free birthday tokens to help them celebrate their special birthday.
- CVS — Get a free birthday gift when you join CVS’ Extracare Birthday Club.
- Famous Footwear — Get 10 dollars off on your birthday when you sign up for Gold Rewards.
- GameStop – Join the Powerup Rewards Program (free or Pro) with Gamestop and get a 20% off coupon in your inbox for any pre-owned video game! The coupon lasts the entirety of your birth month.
- Hallmark – Card kings, Hallmark, will give you (in-store) a free card and (via email) a 20% off coupon on your birthday if you sign up with their Crown Rewards program.
- J.Crew — Join the factory email club for a 20 percent discount plus free shipping on your birthday.
- KMart – KMart has a special Birthday Club through their “Shop Your Way” website, just for kids! They will give them a $5 coupon, enter your child into a monthly drawing, and give them a special “birthday gift pack” on their big day.
- Old Navy — Get a free gift on your birthday (likely a coupon) when you subscribe to Old Navy Emails.
- Payless Shoes – Sign up for the Payless Shoes Reward Program and get a 20% off coupon via email on your birthday.
- Redbox – Movie-philes who join the Redbox Play Pass will get a free one-night rental on the day of their birthday at any Redbox kiosk.
- Sephora – Sephora loves to show some love for their customers, and if you come into the store during the week of your birthday, they will offer you a free small gift if you sign up for their email list.
- ULTA Beauty – Another makeup giant, ULTA will give a free gift in store on the day of your birthday if you sign up for their Ultimate Rewards Program.
- Victoria’s Secret – Join the Victoria’s Secret email list or get an Angel Card and get a ‘$10’s off $10 or more’ coupon in your inbox that’s good for the week of your birthday!
- World Market — You’ll get a surprise offer on your birthday when you sign up for World Market Rewards.
Free Birthday Stuff Online
To make sure you cash in on the free birthday stuff stores offer, sign up for the company’s rewards program, email list, or royalty club. These programs should almost always be free, and you can even opt out of most of the regular emails they will send you. Some have a rule that requires you to sign up a week in advance, so do it as soon as possible to avoid missing out.
Whether you are a faithful customer or not, companies that have your birthday and email address may use this time to reach out to wish you a happy birthday and remind you of all the goodies they have to offer. Most companies that offer rewards and points offer complimentary gifts certificates, coupons, products and other digital freebies.
It’s not uncommon for people to sign up for store credit cards to get birthday freebies, just to cancel them after they get their rewards. If you’re considering doing this, just make sure to read the fine print so you know what you’re getting into.
Pro tip: create a separate inbox made for special offers, email sign ups and retail newsletters to keep your primary or work email from becoming a cluttered disaster.
Free Birthday Meals
Depending on the deal and location, some places will ask that you have a valid ID on you to verify your birthday, and some of the deals only happen right on your birthday. Other companies might do it the week of your birthday, or throughout the entire month.
- Au Bon Pain — Get a free sandwich or salad on your birthday when you sign up for Au Bon Pain’s eclub.
- bd’s Mongolian Grill — Get a free meal on your birthday when you sign up for My bd’s Rewards.
- Benihana — You can get a $30 gift certificate for your birthday month when you sign up to be a member of The Chef’s Table
- Famous Dave’s — Get a birthday bbq dinner for free when you join the Famous Nation.
- IHOP — The International House of Pancakes wants to treat you to a special birthday meal (on the day of) when you sign up for their Pancake Revolution club.
- Jersey Mike’s Subs — Sign up for their email club to get a free sub and drink on your birthday.
- Denny’s Diner — This one doesn’t require you to sign up for any clubs, and just needs your ID for verification: get a free Grand Slam Breakfast on the day of your birthday at participating Denny’s!
- Firehouse Subs — Sign up for Firehouse Rewards to get a free medium sub on or within the week after your birthday.
- Moe’s Southwest Grill — Get a free burrito on your birthday when you download the Moe’s app.
- P.F. Chang’s — Get a special offer during your birthday month when you create a Rewards account.
- Red Robin — You can get a free burger or garden entree at any point during your birthday month by joining their Red Robin Royalty Program.
- Red Lobster – Get a special birthday offer when you download My Red Lobster Rewards.
- Ruby Tuesday — Choose between a free birthday burger or garden bar entree when you join So Connected.
- Sbarro — Get a free birthday pizza when you become a member of the Slice Society.
- Spaghetti Warehouse – Nothing says classy like spaghetti. Join the Warehouse Club with Spaghetti Warehouse and get a free meal on the day of your birthday.
- Tucanos — Tucanos will give you a free meal when you join Club Tucanos.
Free Birthday Food
- Applebee’s — Get treated to a birthday dessert when you join Applebee’s email club.
- Arby’s — You can get a free birthday milkshake when you sign up for Arby’s email list.
- A&W — Mug Club members get a free rootbeer float on their birthday.
- Baskin Robbins Ice Cream – The Birthday Club with Baskin Robbins gets you one free scoop during the week of your birthday.
- Bonefish Grill — Get a free shrimp appetizer or coconut pie when you sign up as a BFG Insider.
- Bruster’s — You’re eligible for a free treat throughout your birthday month when you sign up for Sweet Rewards.
- Buffalo Wild Wings – Buffalo Wild Wings’ ‘Buffalo Circle’ is the club for wing-fans and gets you a tasty free dessert on the day of your birthday.
- Carrabba’s Italian Grill — You can get a free appetizer, plus a coupon for a BOGO free entree when you sign up for Carrabba’s Amici Club.
- Cheesecake Factory — Get a free ice cream sundae when you tell your server it’s your special day.
- Chick-fil-A — You’ll get a birthday reward when you sign up for the Chick-fil-A One membership program.
- Chili’s — My Chili’s Rewards guests get free chips and guac on their birthday.
- Cold Stone — My Cold Stone Club members get a BOGO free coupon on their birthday.
- Cracker Barrel — Cracker Barrel will give you free dessert when you go in on your birthday.
- Dairy Queen – Dairy Queen knows what their customers really want, so they send you a ‘buy one – get one’ coupon on your birthday for any Blizzards on the menu. All you have to do is join the Blizzard Fan Club.
- Dunkin’ Donuts — You can get a free drink on your birthday when you sign up for DD perks.
- Einstein Bros — Shmear Society members get a free egg sandwich with a purchase on their birthday that’s valid for 14 days.
- Great American Cookies — Get a free birthday surprise when you join the Cookie Club.
- Jamba Juice — Get a free small juice or smoothie when you sign up for Jamba Insider Rewards.
- Krispy Kreme — You can get a free doughnut when you join their Rewards Program.
- Macaroni Grill — Get a free dessert on your birthday when you sign up for their email club.
- Olive Garden — This italian restaurant offers free dessert on your birthday when you join their eclub.
- Orange Julius — You can get a free drink on your birthday when you sign up for the Julius League.
- Outback Steakhouse — Get a free dessert on your birthday when you download the Outback app.
- Rita’s — Get a free, sweet birthday treat when you join Rita’s birthday club.
- Starbucks Coffee – Starbucks will give you a drink, on the house, on the day of your birthday. You just have to join their Starbucks Rewards Program.
- Texas Roadhouse — Get a free appetizer and birthday surprise when you sign up for Texas Roadhouse’s email list.
- TGI Friday’s — Get a free dessert on your birthday when you join the Fridays Rewards program.
- The Melting Pot — Free chocolate fondue for two on your birthday when you join the Club Fondue.
- Waffle House — You can get a free birthday waffle when you join their Regulars Club.
- Wingstop — Get a free large order of fries when you join The Club.
There are hundreds of places to go on your birthday that will give you free gifts and discounts because it’s your special day. By doing some research you can earn rewards wisely and really cash in on business offers and discounts to save you money. Birthdays can be whatever you want them to be, and although they’re not about presents, it’s nice to feel valued on your birthday.
Image Source: https://www.pexels.com/
Shelly Bohorquez updated to this article.