25+ Cheap Date Night Ideas That Will Make Your Friends Jealous

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Whether you’ve been married for a few months or a few decades, fitting even one cheap date night into your regular monthly routine is a great way to make sure you can stay connected to your partner no matter what life throws your way.

Now if you’re anything like we are, you tend to brush date nights off as “stupid” or “a waste of time.” I mean, why bother going out when we can be together and alone after our kids are in bed, just as easily? And for less money?

True – while “splurging” and renting a movie on your Amazon Prime Instant Video account (and maybe even ordering takeout) might be considered a good cheap date night idea at home, is that really the best you can do? Or worse, is that THE routine date night you’ll end up stuck in, every time, eventually losing its “special” feel?

Creative Date Night Ideas

My example of renting a movie to stream was an easy one to think of. I’ll be the first to admit that that’s as close as we have gotten to a real “date night” in years. Like, basically since we had our first kid almost 4 years ago.

And I think that tends to be the norm for most parents of young kids.

So let’s face it: maybe it’s tough to find a regular babysitter you trust.

Maybe you don’t want to impose on your parents to take the kids too often.

Or maybe you’re working hard at getting your finances in order and extravagant, romantic date night ideas just don’t fit into the budget right now (I hear you there).

I’m here to tell you that there’s hope.

You CAN have a romantic date night. For FREE, even.

All it takes is a little creativity on your part to come up with a cheap date idea that is sure to rekindle the spark and make for a memorable night, no matter the low cost. Even if you have no choice but to have a date night at home because you can’t get a sitter, it CAN be done.

And no matter how silly you may think it sounds to “date” your spouse, it really is THE way to feel more fulfilled with your marriage. By thinking about how to make the other person happy, you rewire your brain to make this habit instead of just a once-in-a-while thing.

So here it is, your list of 25+ cheap date night ideas (some are or could be free!), that literally anyone can make fit into their schedules and budgets! There’s enough here to have biweekly dates for a year or monthly dates for 2 years! That’s enough to make your friends jealous of your rekindled romance AND your ability to have so much “us time” so easily!

Read through a little description of each to get more ideas, or you can just cut right to the chase and scroll down to the bottom of the post for a summarized list!

Cute Date Ideas at Home

I’m starting with this category because I think this is where most of us in this season of raising kids often end up – stuck at home. Not to mention that the newlywed head-in-the-clouds feeling has worn off. If you try a little, most all of these could be free dates!

Book club

This isn’t your Aunt Enid’s book club!

I think there’s really something unique about having your relationship come back in sync by reading a book together. Or maybe that’s just the book nerd in me talking.

Either way, try to find a book that both of you would be interested in or flip a coin to see who gets to make the other person suffer first. Put it on the calendar to have a slightly more “friendly” book club meeting where you make some snacks, snuggle under a blanket together, and talk about what you’ve read.

Make it free: make good use of your local libraries and get 2 copies if you can!

Game night

What better way is there to connect with someone than to share a laugh? If a puzzle won’t do and your game selection is small, hit the thrift store for cheap (or borrow a game from friends), put the kids to bed and try not to laugh too loud!

I mean, even a simple card game like poker could really make things special, if you know what I mean. 😉

Netflix roulette

Instead of the usual routine of sift-through-movies-for-45-minutes-until-one-of-you-falls-asleep, try this: have one of you choose a number 1-10. Click down that many rows on the Netflix home page. One person closes their eyes while the other holds the arrow button until they are told to stop. That’s your movie, so break out the popcorn.

Yes, chances are good you’ll end up with a movie that totally sucks. Treat it like a bad lip sync reading if it’s really that terrible, by muting the movie and filling in the dialogue yourselves. Pull out all the stops and enjoy!

Bake cookies together

Try hard to go the extra mile and make cutout cookies for this one.

Why? Because it’s more time spent together, and because you can have a lot of fun getting creative with what cookies you cut out. I mean, we have dinosaur cookie cutters, so why not? Make a whole scene and tell a story together with your cutouts.

Plus your kids will thank you in the morning. It’s a whole family win-win.

Have an at-home spa night

This one can be a double-hitter because it’s both a cute date night idea and a romantic date night idea!

You can get single-use face masks for just a few dollars per mask, or you can get a small jar of face mask cream to work from.

Put on comfy robes and slippers, slice some cucumbers, and maybe enjoy a drink together while you can relax, talk, and reconnect.

You could even take a nice bubble bath or find some YouTube videos and try your hand at giving your spouse a massage, to make the night even more enjoyable.

Paint together

Either on the same canvas or each with your own, having your very own art class together can be a memorable date. Who knows, one of you may have a hidden talent!

Make this a recurring date night, so you can choose different themes each time: still life, freeform, each other/caricatures, or watch a Bob Ross episode and try to copy his work!

Sketch out your dream house

This is probably the ultimate free date for budget-conscious couples!

Chances are good your “dream house” board on Pinterest looks a heck of a lot bigger and fancier than your current house, right?

Grab some paper and some pencils, and get to work. Sketch out floor plans, bring your perfect kitchen to life, or design the most killer outdoor landscaping anyone could imagine. Whatever you draw though, talk about it together as you draw to make sure you’re on the same page!

Bonus: if you do this enough times, when all your hard work on your finances finally pays off and you can build that dream house, all the hardest choices will already have been decided on!

Coloring book night

We’ve done this one before and it’s strangely good for relaxing!

Similar to the paint night but it’s a lot less messy and likely a bit cheaper, all you’ll need is an adult coloring book and even a kid’s set of colored pencils. Work on your coloring page, talk about whatever comes to mind, and just enjoy some peace and (somewhat) quiet time together with no big distractions or sensory inputs.

Dance party

I call this a party, but you might choose to have more of a class.

Hop on Pandora and make a station of your favorite type of music to dance to. Let loose together and just move to the beat!

If you’re not so good at just letting it all go, then try finding dance tutorials for couples on YouTube and do those instead. You might discover a new favorite activity to do together!

Outdoor movie night

While this isn’t exactly the cheapest idea on the list, it IS a pretty darn good value considering it’s probably about the same cost as what you’d spend if you went out to dinner for your date night.

All you’ll need is a flat white sheet and a mini HD smartphone projector, some comfy seating, and some snacks!

This is an especially fun date night idea for couples of any age (or marital status)!

Workout together

I’ll put my hand straight in the air and say I hate working out. But I LOVE when we’ve done sports games on our PlayStation move together (it counts as a workout, don’t judge me)!

You could do Zumba or dance videos on YouTube, or find workouts on FitnessBlender (it’s totally free!) to save yourself the gym membership (and public embarrassment if you’re like me) and get your sweat on together after the kids are in bed.

Remember: couples that get fit together, feel less guilty when they just sit (on the couch) together!

Have a cooking competition

This will require just a little planning ahead on your part. Each of you will plan a fancy, gourmet meal for the other, pick up the appropriate ingredients if needed (or skip the pick-up by getting groceries delivered with Instacart), then cook up a serving of each recipe.

Split each serving in half and serve up 4 plates of food between the two of you, to decide who chose the better recipe and “who did it better!”

Fun Date Night Ideas

This next group of ideas is for when you’ve got access to a good sitter. They give you a way to get out of the house, spend little to no money, and still enjoy yourself as if you’d just won the lottery.

Watch planes take off

Not just a line in a country song, but actually a cool thing to do, assuming it’s legal at your airport – make sure to check!

Find a place to park and marvel at modern technology together. Either treat it as a drive-in or go 80s music video style and lay on the hood of the car.

Free concerts

In our city, there’s an entire weekly summer free concert series. It’s crowded, it’s a mess, but it’s also a great time.

While you may not get to hear any big-name bands play, you’ll likely hear some good music and enjoy this kid-free activity where you can just let loose!

Check your city’s parks and recreation site to see what they might offer, and check music lineups for any festivals and fairs happening nearby.

Take a drive

This is best done as a daytime date and (in the right area of the country) in the fall. Up here in NY, we get some very pretty autumn leaf displays! Try driving through parks for the best views!

In other seasons, you could:

• go enjoy seeing Christmas lights
• marvel at a perfect, fresh snowfall
• see the spring flowers in bloom, or
• simply flip a coin to turn right or left and see where you end up!

Go ice skating

Even if you’re terrible or terrified, it’s worth giving this a shot.

Many cities have seasonal rinks in the cold months, and many colleges have periodic “open skate” nights where for a few bucks the public can come rent skates and use the rink. We used to do those sometimes before we had kids and even though I don’t belong on the ice I still loved it!

Cross country skiing/snowshoeing

Clearly, this one is meant for wintertime, and not everyone will have this opportunity.

There’s a county park near us that offers rentals of snowshoes or skis in the winter to let you enjoy the park in a whole new way! It’s a great way to not just enjoy some time together but get in a great workout, too!

Do a renovation together

Send the kids and dog to grandma’s house, grab a bucket of paint, and get that room painted that’s been waiting for years!

Yes, seriously. It’s depicted in movies all the time – couples painting a room together have fun!

If you live somewhere where renovations aren’t an option, switch it up to an activity that gives back to the community. Sign up to work on a Habitat for Humanity build together. You’ll feel good about your work and you’ll likely pick up a couple of new skills!

Mini-golf/batting cages

We have a cute little place near us that offers both a mini-golf course and batting cages, plus an indoor arcade area. It’s super affordable to do either of the outdoor sports activities, and a little friendly sports competition never hurt anyone.

We sometimes mix things up by using our non-dominant hand to lead, making things tricky and a little silly!

Watch the game out of the house

In our house, THE sport to watch is Syracuse University Men’s Basketball. But in our effort to cut costs and shrink our budget, we’ve sacrificed cable and sports streaming services. We do have an indoor TV antenna that gets the big name local channels, but NCAA basketball is rarely playing on those, until the March Madness tournament.

For a Saturday afternoon game, nothing would make my husband happier than if we could go to a cheap sports bar/restaurant and watch the game. Our favorite way to keep this budget-friendly it to eat lunch before we go, and just order an appetizer to split while we watch the game. Just eat slowly so you don’t need to spend extra money before the game is over!

Go fishing

Think this isn’t your cup of tea? Try again.

No, seriously. If you’ve never gone fishing, you have to try it, at least once. You might be surprised at how good at it you are, and you’re definitely going to love just sitting out on the water in a boat, enjoying the scene and serenity around you.

We love to load up the canoe (that we bought years ago at Dick’s Sporting Goods for about $250!) and the poles (Walmart fishing kit cheapies that do the job) and head to the creek near our house, because even if you don’t catch any fish (we never do) you get a decent workout by paddling to a good fishing spot, and you can find some very cool scenery as you go! It’s fun to have a casting competition, too, for nothing more than bragging rights.

Go paddling

Alright, so you tried fishing and it really wasn’t your thing. But being on the water still makes for some very relaxing, peaceful time together.

If you don’t own your own paddling boats to use, find a local paddling center to rent from. They’ll offer decent rates for a couple hours out on the water, and all you need to do is show up and pay the fee!

I can’t say enough how peaceful it is to be out on the water. And for someone like me who hates exercise, it’s a good workout that you don’t even think about!

Bonus:  bring along a blanket and a picnic lunch, and find a nearby park to relax and recharge in when you’re done paddling!

Go to brunch

So maybe this one isn’t a “date night” idea but a “date morning” idea. It’s still worth doing!

Sometimes grandparents want an excuse to sit on the couch and watch those Saturday morning cartoons with the grandkids. Let them, and let THEM cook the breakfast for the kids while you two go have someone else make you breakfast! I mean, I make some killer pancakes but they still taste better when someone else made them.

Visit the farmer’s market

This is a great way to kill a lot of birds with one stone.

It’s a good way to share some time alone together, it’s a little bit of exercise since you’re outside and walking, and it’s a budget-friendly way to buy fresh produce for a great value! Can your average date do all of that?

Go camping

I left this one for last because it requires a little more planning than the rest. There are 2 ways to do this date:

• Send the kids to have an overnight with the grandparents, and set up your tent in your own backyard for a night. Treat it exactly as if you were camping out in the woods somewhere (maybe except for peeing outside…unless your backyard is really secluded from your neighbors’ view!).
• Coordinate a Friday or Monday off of work, find a local park to camp in for a few days, and have the kids do a 3-day stay with their grandparents. Pack up the gear and the food and head out for a few days all to yourselves. What you do in that time is up to you, but the key thing to remember is to enjoy each other’s company with as few distractions (phones, technology, other people) as possible! Consider this your annual “marriage retreat” to pump you up for the rest of the year with all your responsibilities.

The list, to re-cap:

1. Book club
2. Game night
3. Netflix roulette
4. Bake cookies together
5. Have an at-home spa night
6. Paint together
7. Sketch out your dream house
8. Coloring book night
9. Dance party
10. Outdoor movie night
11. Workout together
12. Have a cooking competition
13. Watch planes take off
14. Free concerts
15. Take a drive
16. Go ice skating
17. Cross country skiing/snow-shoeing
18. Do a renovation together
19. Mini-golf/batting cages
20. Watch the game out of the house
21. Go fishing
22. Go paddling
23. Go to brunch
24. Visit the farmer’s market
25. Go camping

Any and all of these dates can be fit in for just about every situation and budget. I love how many of them can be entirely free if you’re willing to do a little work planning it – even a camping weekend can be basically free if you stay at a free camping site and can borrow the gear from friends or family!

(Even better, I love how just about all of these ideas could just as easily be turned into family events, to work on improving your family togetherness, all around!)

Are you going to make it a point to start fitting date nights into your life, and give your marriage the attention it deserves? I know we are!

Leave me a comment below with your most favorite date night activity, and don’t forget to pin this list for later!

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