40 birthday freebies and discounts
Got a birthday coming up? You could be in line to get bombarded with free stuff on your special day – provided you're signed up with the right places.
Even if your friends don't shower you with gifts, you can count on the offers below to spoil you rotten with free birthday treats when the big day comes around.
All you have to do is sign up to a few newsletters or loyalty schemes here and there (or sometimes just turn up with ID to prove it's your birthday) and you'll be able to go on a seriously cheap shopping spree on your birthday, whilst being well-fed and a bit tipsy from all the free birthday prosecco!
Just make sure you set up a separate email account to sign up for all these birthday freebie deals, so you can avoid being bombarded with all the spam (a small price to pay for all the birthday freebies, right?).
TRIVIA: How many people do you need in one room before it's probable that at least two people have the same birthday? Find the answer at the end of the guide once you've signed up for your freebies!
What can you get for free on your birthday?
Free birthday food
Credit: Daria Minaeva – Shutterstock
The kind of free food you can get on your birthday ranges widely, from a small celebratory snack to a full-blown meal free of charge.
Play your cards right and you could literally be eating your breakfast, lunch and dinner on the house for about a week before and after your birthday. It's all about doing your research and hatching a plan well in advance!
With that in mind, these are the best places to get free food on your birthday:
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Frankie & Benny's
Freebie: Voucher for free main meal.
How to claim your freebie: Sign up to Frankie & Benny's Rewards and you'll be sent a voucher 10 days before your birthday.
T&Cs: Free main meal available with the purchase of another main meal. Can't be used in conjunction with other offers and discounts.
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Shepherd Neame
Freebie: Voucher for a free main meal.
How to claim your freebie: Sign up to the Shepherd Neame Birthday Club.
T&Cs: Voucher will be emailed to you two weeks before your birthday and is valid for six months from the date of issue. Free meal is only available with the purchase of at least one other main meal.
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Greggs
Freebie: Free cupcake, cream cake or doughnut.
How to claim your freebie: Download the Greggs app and check the 'rewards' tab on your birthday.
T&Cs: Valid for one month after issue.
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Barburrito
Freebie: Free burrito.
How to claim your freebie: Join their loyalty card scheme 'La Familia' by picking up a card in-store and registering it online.
T&Cs: Your card needs to be registered at least four days prior to your birthday to qualify for your free burrito.
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Brewers Fayre
Freebie: Free main meal.
How to claim your freebie: Join the Brewers Fayre Bonus Club (you'll also get 250 bonus points when you do) and you'll be emailed a voucher around the time of your birthday.
T&Cs: You must also buy at least one other main meal from the main menu.
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Tasty Rewards (Cookhouse + Pub, Table Table and Whitbread Inns)
Freebie: Free main meal (no price limit).
How to claim your freebie: Join the 'Tasty Rewards' scheme by picking up a card in the restaurant and registering it online (you'll also get 250 bonus points when you do).
T&Cs: Only one voucher can be used per party. Valid for 6 weeks
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Krispy Kreme
Freebie: Free doughnut of your choice (plus a free doughnut for your significant other on their birthday).
How to claim your freebie: Join Krispy Kreme rewards (you also get a free doughnut just for signing up!) and add the birthday reward to your Krispy Kreme app to show in store.
T&Cs: Valid in Krispy Kreme stores only, not concession stands that you may find in Tesco and other shops.
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Las Iguanas
Freebie: One free meal.
How to claim your freebie: Sign up to the Las Iguanas newsletter and you'll be emailed a voucher a week before your birthday.
T&Cs: You must buy at least one other main, and the voucher can't be used in conjunction with any other offers. The voucher is valid for 14 days.
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Beefeater Grill
Freebie: Free main meal.
How to claim your freebie: Sign up for a Beefeater Grill Rewards card (you'll also get 250 bonus points when you do). Around your birthday, you'll be emailed a voucher that you'll need to present either printed or on your phone.
T&Cs: At least one other main meal must be purchased from the main menu.
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Hotel Chocolat
Freebie: £5 off when you spend over £5.
How to claim your freebie: Sign up for a Hotel Chocolat VIP card and activate it online (you'll also get 15% off your next purchase when you sign up).
T&Cs: Reward will be sent two weeks before your birthday and is valid for 30 days.
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Costa Coffee
Freebie: Free cake.
How to claim your freebie: Sign up for the Costa Club and enter your date of birth on the website or app. You will receive an electronic Cake Voucher on your birthday.
T&Cs: Cake Vouchers expire seven days after they are issued.
Free birthday drinks
Credit: BBC
What better way to celebrate your birthday than with a bottle of chilled fizz? Oh wait, how about some FREE birthday fizz?!
These are the best deals for getting free drinks on your birthday (just remember to drink responsibly!):
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Pizza Express
Freebie: Bottle of prosecco.
How to claim your freebie: Join the My Pizza Express newsletter mailing list and you'll be emailed a voucher for a free bottle.
T&Cs: Your voucher needs to be redeemed two weeks before or after your birthday date (bring ID to prove when that is!). Only valid with the purchase of at least two main meals.
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TGI Fridays
Freebie: Free cocktail or mocktail for you and up to five friends.
How to claim your freebie: Download and register with the TGI Rewards app and you'll receive the code seven days before your birthday.
T&Cs: Offer does not include 'ultimate cocktails' and is only valid with the purchase of a main meal. Can't be used in conjunction with other offers.
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All Bar One
Freebie: Sharing cocktail.
How to claim your freebie: Sign up to the A-List newsletter via the All Bar One app and you'll receive a voucher around the time of your birthday (you also get a complimentary cocktail when you sign up!).
T&Cs: You must also buy two main meals to be eligible for the free cocktail.
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Hungry Horse
Freebie: One drink (alcoholic or soft – scroll down this page for the full list).
How to claim your freebie: Sign up for the Hungry Horse newsletter.
T&Cs: You need to sign up at least 21 days before your birthday.
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Brewhouse & Kitchen
Freebie: Pint of beer.
How to claim your freebie: Sign up to the mailing list and you'll be emailed a voucher around the time of your birthday.
T&Cs: You must have registered at least three weeks prior to your birthday.
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Kaspa's
Freebie: One milkshake or a slice of cake.
How to claim your freebie: Bring in a valid photo ID (displaying your date of birth) on your birthday.
T&Cs: Can be any medium-size milkshake, excluding those under the VIP section of the menu or any limited-edition shake. You must also spend a minimum of £6.95.
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Nicholson's
Freebie: A pint of Nicholson's Pale Ale or a 25ml Bombay Sapphire gin and tonic.
How to claim your freebie: Sign up for Nicholson's newsletter (you'll also get a voucher for 25% off your food bill, valid for 28 days after you sign up).
T&Cs: Can only be used with eat-in or drink-in orders, and isn't valid with any other offers. Must be used within 30 days of receiving the email.
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Loch Fyne
Freebie: Bottle of Joseph Perrier champagne.
How to claim your freebie: Sign up for their newsletter.
T&Cs: Must be in a party of four or more diners.
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Miller & Carter
Freebie: Bottle of prosecco.
How to claim your freebie: Sign up for their newsletter (you'll also get a free glass of wine for doing so!).
T&Cs: Four or more people must order main meals. Must sign up two weeks prior to your birthday.
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Boost
Freebie: Juice of your choice.
How to claim your freebie: Pick up your Vibe Card in-store, register it online and bring it in with you on your birthday. Or, download and register via the app.
T&Cs: Can only be redeemed on your birthday. The date of birth on your Vibe Card must match your actual date of birth.
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Starbucks
Freebie: Handcrafted beverage, food item, or ready-to-drink bottled beverage.
How to claim your freebie: Join the Starbucks Reward program and add your birthday to your account information. Simply scan your app or card at a Starbucks store to get your freebie.
T&Cs: You must have joined the reward program seven days before your birthday and have made at least one star-earning transaction in the last year.
Free birthday beauty treats
There's nothing more fun than pampering yourself on your birthday – and the companies mentioned below know this all too well. Grab yourself a new nail polish and a free brow wax and you're ready to begin the celebrations.
So without further ado, here are the best beauty birthday treats from all the top brands:
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Space NK
Freebie: A gift on top of your online order (gift changes monthly).
How to claim your freebie: Sign up to their N.Dulge loyalty scheme and you'll be emailed the promo code.
T&Cs: You'll need to sign up for the loyalty scheme at least six weeks before your birthday.
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The Body Shop
Freebie: £5 voucher to spend online or in-store.
How to claim your freebie: Sign up for the Love Your Body loyalty scheme and they'll put £5 on your card on your birthday.
T&Cs: Valid for one month after your birthday, and there's no minimum spend.
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Cult Beauty
Freebie: 15% off.
How to claim your freebie: Sign up for a Cult Beauty account and you'll be emailed a voucher in the month of your birthday.
T&Cs: One use per customer, minimum spend of £25 and cannot be used in conjunction with any other offers. Full list of exclusions here.
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Superdrug
Freebie: No freebies, but triple points up for grabs!
How to claim your freebie: Sign up for a Superdrug Health & Beautycard and you'll get triple points on your birthday.
T&Cs: Valid for 14 days after your birthday.
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House of Fraser
Freebie: No freebies but bonus points up for grabs!
How to claim your freebie: Pick up a House of Fraser Recognition Card in-store or online and shop in-store anytime during the month of your birthday to receive bonus points.
T&Cs: Card must be registered online.
Birthday clothing discounts
Credit: Warner Bros
Ok, so the following birthday freebies aren't technically freebies – more like partial freebies.
If you're on the hunt for some new clothes to sport when you go out for your free birthday meal, start collecting your birthday discount voucher codes and treating yourself!
Just make sure you sign up to these well before your birthday so you give them enough time to send you out your code/voucher, as well as leaving yourself enough time to go shopping.
These are the best birthday discount offers:
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ASOS
Discount: 10% off.
How to claim your birthday discount: Sign up and shop at ASOS, and you'll be emailed a code around the time of your birthday.
T&Cs: Can't be used in conjunction with other offers, including student discount.
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Gap
Discount: 50% off.
How to claim your birthday discount: Download the Gap+ loyalty app and you'll get 50% off on your birthday, plus 5% off every day.
T&Cs: Can't be used in conjunction with other offers, including student discount. Excludes sale items.
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New Look
Discount: 20% off.
How to claim your birthday discount: Sign up to the newsletter and you'll be emailed a unique code to use online for your discount (plus 20% off your next purchase just for signing up!).
T&Cs: Valid for up to two weeks after your birthday, and can't be used alongside other offers. You also must register 30 days before your birthday to receive the discount.
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Nike Store
Discount: 25% off.
How to claim your birthday discount: Sign up to the Nike Store's newsletter and in the month of your birthday they'll email you a unique code that's valid for the whole month.
T&Cs: No minimum spend, but there's a maximum spend of £450 and it's not valid in conjunction with other offers.
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H&M
Discount: 25% off one item.
How to claim your birthday discount: Sign up (for free) to the H&M Club (which also gets you 10% off each purchase and free delivery!).
T&Cs: Valid for two weeks after your birthday.
More free birthday stuff
Credit: 20th Century Fox
The following offers are a bit hard to categorise, so we made the executive decision to lump them together as 'free stuff'. Here's the best of the rest of the free stuff you can get on your birthday:
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Paperchase
Freebie: £5 voucher.
How to claim your freebie: Pick up a Treat Me card in-store, register it online and they'll pop a fiver on your account on your birthday.
T&Cs: Valid for 28 days after your birthday, no minimum spend.
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IKEA
Freebie: £5 voucher.
How to claim your freebie: Sign up for an IKEA Family Card and you might get a voucher around your birthday. Not all members get one, so check your emails around the big day!
T&Cs: Valid for 28 days, no minimum spend.
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Hobbycraft
Freebie: £5 voucher.
How to claim your freebie: Sign up for a Hobbycraft account and you'll be emailed the voucher at the relevant time.
T&Cs: Valid for 14 days from the date of issue.
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Pets at Home
Freebie: Treats for your pet.
How to claim your freebie: Sign up to the free Pets at Home VIP Club and you'll receive a voucher on your pet's birthday.
T&Cs: Remember this is on your pet's birthday, not yours!
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Lovehoney
Freebie: 30% off.
How to claim your freebie: Create a Lovehoney account (you'll also get £5 worth of vouchers and points when you sign up!) and become a Lovehoney Unlimited member.
T&Cs: Minimum spend of £40 required.
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shopDisney
Freebie: 15% off.
How to claim your freebie: Sign up for a shopDisney account and you'll be sent a voucher for the month of your birthday.
T&Cs: You have to sign up two months prior to your birthday. Some products are excluded from the offer (listed here).
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Hobbs
Freebie: Candle.
How to claim your freebie: Sign up for the Hobbs newsletter and you'll receive an email on your birthday which will let you pick up your free candle in store.
T&Cs: You have 30 days to go in store and pick up your candle.
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Swagbucks
Freebie: 55 free Swagbucks (SBs).
How to claim your freebie: Sign up for a Swagbucks account and they'll send you a 55SB rebate on a Gift Card redemption.
T&Cs: Must be redeemed within 30 days of your birthday.
TRIVIA: Turns out you only need 23 people in a room for it to be likely that at least two people have the same birthday! We won't pretend to understand why, but this Wikipedia article explains it.
If you are willing to fork out for a pressie but are on a tight budget, take a look at our handy list of gifts for under a fiver.
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