10 Cheap Ways To Hang Out With Your Friends

One of the struggles with trying to hang out with your friends consistently is being able to see each other but not spend all the money you earned from work that day. As fun as catching the newest movie, or checking out the newest restaurant can be, it’s super costly. And if you want to see your friends more than once a month, you need a new solution. These are fun, easy and cheap ways to hang out with your friends.

1. Netflix and Chill

If we’re being honest, we are not usually the ones who pya for our Netflix account. It’s either a parent, an ex or your old college roommate; but if you are the unfortunate soul who actually does pay for the account everyone munches off of, this is a great cheap way to hang out. This isn’t just for people on their third date, this is actually a really cheap way to hang out with friends and a very relaxed way to do so. You (or your friends older sister) are already paying for the Netflix account so you don’t have to do anything more cost wise with this plan. Sometimes a chill, relaxing night in is all we really need with our friends. After a long week at work, this is an easy way to relax but still see your friends.

2. Wine Night

This is my favorite way to hang out with my friends. It’s so much cheaper than going out to dinner or bars, buying a bottle (or five) of wine and sharing it with your friends while you hear all about your friends latest Tinder date is a fun way to catch up, without spending $50 on drinks. It’s a relaxing and fun evening, where you don’t have to dress up or impress anyone. Throw on your favorite sweatpants, grab a few bottles of wine and run to your friends house for a wine night.

Or, if you want to do wine night in a more sophisticated fashion, i.e. no sweats; make it more like a wine tasting. Have everyone bring their favorite cheap wine and cheese and you can spend the night comparing the wines and cheeses while discussing only the most elegant topics. But let’s be real after the fifth bottle of wine someones gonna be in a corner crying about their ex, but until then, you can pretend you’re classy.

3. Pizza Party

This feels very middle school to me, but honestly a pizza party is all we really want on a Friday night. Splitting a few pizzas among friends is both cheap but also actually fun. You can catch up without spending tons of money on going out, instead of paying $30 for your own meal, you’re paying that for everyones. Plus, everyone loves pizza so it’s an ideal scenario.

4. Movie Marathon

Do you and your friends loves a movie series and you just can’t get enough of it? Or has your friend never seen the Harry Potter movies? Planning a day where you binge watch these movies is so much cheaper than going out to the movies. With everything available to stream now, why would you ever leave the comfort of your own home? Like Netflix and chill this is a super easy option, with as much as rent costs, it’s honestly a crime to go anywhere other than your apartment.

5. Study Party

This may seem lame but with school and work it’s hard to get in time to socialize. One of the easiest ways to do that is combine them. Have your friend come over and work on your homework together, or maybe you both need some motivation to actually get working on your research paper. Having a friend there will help you not get distracted by social media, but if you need a break, you have a friend there to talk to. Just being in the company of your friends is sometimes just enough, and I find that I actually work better with other people around.

6. BYOBrunch

A BYOBrunch is exactly what is sounds like. Brunch is honestly everyones favorite meal, but we millennials have gotten a lot of flack for spending money on avocado toast. While that may not be entirely true, brunch is usually pretty expensive. Having your friends come over to your apartment for a brunch is a much cheaper way of doing that, everyone can bring a dish and you’ll be able to spend more time with everyone and not be pressured to leave because the restaurant is on an hour wait. Plus those mimosas won’t cost you $10 a drink, you’ll be able to drink as many as you want for half the price.

7. Museumes

This may seem lame, or super hipster (nerds and hipsters are essentially the same), but museums are usually free and if you live near a big city these are easy to find. You may have gone to them a long time ago for a field trip, but museums evolve and cary different exhibits. You can spend hours here and usually they are free or very minimal in cost. It’s a cheap option for a way to get out of the house and also learn a thing or two.

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8. Hike/Walk

Depending on where you live, finding a place to go hiking may be hard, but hiking is a really fun way to get outside and exercise and it’s a great way to do something cheap with your friends. If you don’t have access to any hiking trails, there are always plenty of places to walk. Parks offer a great free solution if you can’t go hiking, when you haven’t seen a friend in a while you usually have a lot to catch up on, this allows you plenty of time to cover every topic and you’ll be able to enjoy the outdoor while you’re at it.

9. Game Night

I’ve been doing these a lot more recently, that when I do go out I actually would rather be having a game night. There are so many fun games these days that creating an entire night out of it is necessary to get through them all. We all have a board game or two lying around the house that you won’t even have to go out and buy anything. Make this a monthly thing and keep track so at the end of the year you can see who the ultimate champion is.

10. Workout Together

You know that gym membership you pay for but never use, the one that basically everyone you now belongs to? You could actually use that and get your moneys worth instead of paying extra to see your friends. Working out together is a cheap way to see your friends and actually motivate you to go to the gym. The only times I have ever got hot the gym was with a friend, I aways looked forward to doing it too because it ensured that we would be able to see each other and you can catch up on their love life or work drama while working out. Even if you don’t already have a membership, most places will either have a discounted cost or free trial if your friend belongs there. You won’t be out a whole lot of money, but you’ll be able get in shape and catch up!