13 Ways to Get Free Ice Cream (Today!)

The first written account of people eating ice cream in North America discussed a night on May 19, 1744. On this date, a group of VIPs dined at the home of Maryland Governor, Thomas Bladen. One of the guests was a Sottish colonist who said “Among the rarities was some fine ice cream, which, with the strawberries and milk, eat most deliciously.”

The first person to manufacture it on a large scale was Jacob Fussell of Baltimore, Maryland. He built his first ice cream factory in Seven Valleys, Pennsylvania in 1851. This mass production reduced the cost of ice cream, which made it more popular.

Now, 96% of Americans eat ice cream, with chocolate being the most popular flavor (it’s one of my favorites too!)

Chocolate, strawberry, Oreo – whatever flavor is your go-to-pick, wouldn’t it be great if you could get a scoop for free?

There’s a surprising amount of stuff you can get for free like free coffee, free chocolate and even free donuts.

I love free things, because, well, they save you money. While making more money is key to improving your finances, saving money is also an effective tactic. One of the best ways to save money is to get things for free because you can leave the money you would have otherwise spent in your bank account and save it instead.

Ice cream is another one of those things you can get for free – yes, really. Who wouldn’t want free ice cream, right?

In today’s post, I’ll cover some easy ways you can get yourself a scoop at no cost.

How to Get Free Ice Cream Near Me!

Let’s get started on that list and get you some complimentary ice cream!

1. Get a regular scoop for free from Baskin-Robbins

Love Baskin-Robbins ice cream? What if I told you that you could get it for free?

Yes, with the company’s mobile app, you could get free ice cream.

You’ll get a regular scoop for free when you download the Baskin-Robbins app and sign up for mobile deals. That’s not all, the app also provides you with access to awesome coupons and promotions. Give it try!

2. Get free ice cream on your birthday Dippin’ Dots

Perhaps it’s Dippin’ Dots ice cream that’s your favorite? Well, then, you’ll be happy to hear that Dippin’ Dots gives away free ice cream on your birthday if you sign up for its Dot Crazy! Email Club. Yup! It’s that easy!

Also, you’ll get special coupons and offers and the latest promotions.

3. Free Cone Day at Dairy Queen

Each year, Dairy Queen has a Free Cone Day at participating locations. Each customer gets a small vanilla soft-serve cone for free and no purchase is necessary. Because it’s one cone per customer, you could take the whole family so everyone can get one.

Now, Dairy Queen normally has its Free Cone Day in the spring, often in March, to celebrate the warmer weather. In 2021, however, Free Cone Day was cancelled because of COVID, but make sure you check on the company’s news section for when details are released for next year’s event so you could get a free ice cream cone.

4. Get free cash to spend on ice cream with Ibotta

Are you using Ibotta?

If you answered no, then you should be!

This one is a no brainer. If you want to find an extra $5, $10, or even $30 in your PayPal account after a trip to the grocery store, then Ibotta is the app for you.

Yes, Ibotta really does give you money.

If you don’t already know, Ibotta is a website and app that gives you rebates when you purchase certain products and then upload a photo of your receipt as proof of purchase.

Sounds easy, right?

Well, it is!

Just open up the app, select the rebate offers you’re interested in, purchase the products featured in the offers you selected, and then upload a photo of your receipt to show that you’ve purchased the items.

I’ve seen rebates of between $1 and $3 available, and occasionally, I see even bigger rebates than that, like $5 back.

You’re able to have your rebate sent to your PayPal account, bank account or Venmo account. Or, you can choose to get a gift card instead.

Use the money you get from your Ibotta rebates to get yourself some free ice cream!

5. Join the Marble Slab rewards program

Marble Slab Creamery has been serving fresh homemade ice cream since 1983! Get yourself a free scoop from the brand by signing up for its Slab Happy Rewards program.

Get a $5 reward once you sign up for the program and make your first purchase.

As a member of the rewards program, you earn a point for every dollar you spend and once you’ve earned 50 points, you get a $5 reward.

And, you can enjoy sweet treats and rewards during special holidays, birthdays, anniversaries, and much more.

With more than 75 flavors and unlimited mix-ins, there’s plenty to choose from at the Marble Slab Creamery.

6. Häagen-Dazs Free Cone Day

Another brand that gives away ice cream is Häagen-Dazs.

Now, Häagen-Dazs ice cream is really great, right? I love the brand’s chocolate ice cream in particular. If you’re a fan too, then you’ll be happy to know that every year, Häagen-Dazs has a Free Cone Day where you can get a free kiddie scoop in a cup, sugar cone, or cake cone. You even get to choose from ice cream, sorbet, or gelato.

The time this event happens varies from year to year, but most of the time the brand hosts its annual Free Cone Day at its shops around the country each spring, typically in May.

Now, sadly, Häagen-Dazs has postponed its Free Cone Day for this year. Look out for it next year though!

7. Join the TGI Fridays rewards program

TGI Fridays has a rewards program called Fridays Rewards and if you sign up for it, you’ll earn points that you can redeem for free food.

You’ll earn a point for each $1 that you spend. You even get a free dessert on your birthday. So you could use your rewards to get free ice cream, and on your birthday, you could get that free ice cream for dessert!

You can even redeem coupons. Plus, get 10% off your next order if you sign up for texts from TGI Fridays.

8. Ben & Jerry’s Free Cone Day

Ben & Jerry’s is another brand that has a Free Cone Day where you can get your hands on some complimentary ice cream.

Usually, the brand holds its Free Cone Day in the spring, normally in March or April. You can stop by a store an get a free single scoop cone in the flavor you choose.

Sadly, because of COVID, the brand has had to postpone its Free Cone Day.

9. Get free frozen yogurt when you join the Menchie’s rewards program

If frozen yogurt is more your thing, then you will definitely want to sign up for Menchie’s mySmileage rewards program.

With the program, you earn smiles that you can redeem for free froyo.

You get 25 bonus smiles just for registering, and 10 extra smiles when you visit within 7 days of registering.

Each time you earn 50 miles, you’ll get a free $5 froyo. You even get a free $5 froyo on your birthday as well.

10. Get cash and gift cards for free ice cream from Swagbucks

If you’re not using Swagbucks already, then you really should be!

For those who don’t know, Swagbucks is an easy to use app and website where you can make money online.

Swagbucks will give you points, appropriately called “Swag Bucks,” for doing super simple tasks.

Tasks you can earn points for include:

• Playing games
• Watching videos
• Shopping online
• Browsing the internet
• Taking surveys
• Completing offers

Once you’ve earned enough points, you’re able to cash out your Swag Bucks for money to your PayPal account – so free cash to spend on ice cream!

Or you can opt for a gift card, and this is where it gets good for ice cream lovers. Swagbucks actually offers gift cards for a ton of brands, retailers, and restaurants that sell ice cream.

You can get gift cards for:

• Cold Stone Creamery
• TGI Friday’s
• Walmart
• Burger King
• McDonald’s

Give Swagbucks a try to get some free cash or gift cards to spend on ice cream.

11. Look out for free ice cream promos

Okay, so I’ve given you quite a few brands that provide free ice cream to their customers, but that’s not the only way to get it.

I’d also recommend looking out for promos at ice cream shops because, often, you can get freebies, if not at least just a huge discount.

These shops often have free ice cream promotions, but not on a regular basis. Usually, these stores run promotions for certain holidays, like Mother’s Day or for special events like grand openings.

Here are some places you should keep your eye out on:

• TCBY
• Carvel
• Rita’s Ice
• Cold Stone Creamery
• Kona Ice
• Menchie’s Frozen Yogurt

You could get a free scoop at your local store.

12. Contact chocolate brands directly

That sure is a lot of places where you can get free ice cream, right?

What if I told you there’s an easy way you could get TONs of ice cream brands and stores that sell ice cream to give you freebies?

All you need to do is contact these companies directly. This is one of those tips that can be so effective for getting free stuff from companies.

Brands want to please customers because having loyal consumers means sales, which means more income for that company. This is why brands are willing to mail out samples or coupons to customers who get in touch.

After all, a person could try a chocolate ice cream from a brand and absolutely love it, and then purchase one in the future. It’s those future sales and brand loyalty that these companies are trying to encourage.

Make a list of your favorite ice cream brands, and then look for the contact page. This is usually displayed at either the top or bottom of a company’s website.

Once you have the company’s contact details, get in touch and tell the brand how much you love its ice cream. Then, politely, ask if they have any free samples that they would be willing to mail out to you.

If that’s not specific enough for you and you’re still thinking, “what the heck am I supposed to say to these companies?” well I have you covered.

Below, is a sample message that you can use when contacting brands.

Simply tailor it for each company that you plan to get in touch with.

Here’s what you should say:

“Hi,

My name is [your name]

I just wanted to say that I’m a huge fan of your company. I love your [name of ice cream product that you like] and I always recommend it to my friends and family.

As someone who’s been a loyal customer for years, I just wanted to say you’re doing fantastic work!

I was also wondering if you have any coupons for free ice cream that you could send to me, because I’d love to try more of your products, and would appreciate anything you could send me.

Thank you so much and have a great day!

[Your name]”

This is an effective way to get your hands on some ice cream for free.

Companies will unlikely mail product samples, because, you know, ice cream melts in the mail, but they might mail you a coupon for free ice cream. Now, I’m not saying that you’re going to get a free ice cream coupon from every company that you get in touch with.

While you won’t always get coupons for free ice cream, you may at least get a discount coupon or some other reward from the company.

That’s why it’s worth contacting these brands directly.

Get Free Ice Cream on National Ice Cream Day

National Ice Cream Day is celebrated every year on the third Sunday in July. So each year, it falls on a different day.

On National Ice Cream Day, many retailers and brands give out free ice cream to mark the occasion.

These are the dates for the next ten years:

• 18 July 2021
• 17 July 2022
• 16 July 2023
• 21 July 2024
• 20 July 2025
• 19 July 2026
• 18 July 2027
• 16 July 2028
• 15 July 2029
• 21 July 2030

So, look out for promotions from retailers and brands around these times.

Closing Thoughts

Perhaps you love chocolate ice cream? Or maybe you’re more of a strawberry fan? Whatever your favorite flavor is, you’re sure to be able to get a scoop, tub, or cone of it for free!

Give these tips on how to get free ice cream a try, and feel free to share any tips of your own for getting complimentary ice cream in the comments section below.