Let’s be honest, everyone is well-served when they spend some of their free time on a hobby. Hobbies you’re passionate about and genuinely enjoy can also be incredibly productive and benefit your life in several ways! If you’re interested in hobbies that help you stay productive, check out my list of those. In this article I’ll be going over frugal hobbies. Now, the point of a hobby isn’t necessarily to be frugal or stay productive – it’s to have fun and relax a bit. However, when a hobby is frugal (or has cost-cutting options), it makes it far easier to do regularly. When a hobby is cost effective, it lets us partake much more often!
1. Cooking Or Baking
These could potentially be the most common hobbies on this list. Arguably, this is something everyone should try their hand at anyway. We all need to eat, so this hobby offers daily opportunities to enjoy it and reap the rewards (like tasty meals). Beyond that, cooking and baking your own stuff is usually much healthier than eating at a restaurant or buying premade food from a store.
What makes this hobby frugal is that it saves you money when you know how to cook. Eating out is a huge expense for most people, and one they have a hard time cutting from their budget. Even though ingredients can be expensive sometimes, overall you’re likely to save money just by cooking or baking as a hobby.
2. Basketball
Basketball is another great frugal hobby. This is actually true for a lot of sports, but I’d like to focus on basketball specifically here. It’s easy to do regularly, and it’s not as expensive as many other sports can be sometimes. For example, if you go to a gym, then you likely already have access to everything you need to play basketball. Even if you don’t go to the gym, basketball courts are frequently found in public parks and the like. It shouldn’t be hard to gain access to a court – at which point all you need is a ball to play or practice.
Another useful tidbit is that basketball is a sport that makes it easy to practice alone. You don’t necessarily need a full roster to do proper drills, and you can always play small 1-on-1 or 2-on-2 games.
3. Painting Or Drawing
Next up we have another pair. I’m sure we’re all aware of how cheap and accessible drawing can be. It can be as simple as sketching with a pencil. Of course, there can be more expensive parts of that hobby when you really dive in, but it’s inexpensive overall.
Painting is similar to drawing, at least conceptually. There is a significant amount of overlap, so it is possible that someone who likes one will enjoy the other as well. In that case, drawing can be a cheaper outlet. If you really prefer painting, it can still be manageable. Make sure you find good deals on paint and canvases – it will save you a lot of money.
4. Scrapbooking
I know this hobby screams of a middle-aged parent, but it’s not a bad one to start. It can be enjoyable to look through scrapbooks and get lost in a piece of the past. Additionally, it’s not an insanely expensive hobby to start up. It probably ends up being more expensive than drawing, but not necessarily as much as painting – it really depends. That makes it affordable, something you can bond over, and a worthwhile pastime.
5. Knitting
Knitting surprises people, but it’s a quality hobby. It keeps your hands busy, gives you something to work towards, and is pretty easy to keep to a budget. On top of that, at the end of the project you’ll have something tangible to keep as a reward for your labor. It can be a hobby that is off-putting to many on the surface level, but if you give it a shot you’re likely to be surprised.
6. Hiking
Hiking and walking are amazing hobbies that are perfect for a frugal lifestyle. Even if you’re busy and on the go, this could be a great fit. Got a few extra minutes during your lunch break? Take a walk. Want to talk to your significant other one on one and have some quality time? Go for a stroll. You can break it off into bite-sized chunks that are easy to do, cost nothing, and keep you healthy.
As you incorporate walking into your schedule, try going for longer and longer walks. During your weekends, or time off work, go to a good local hiking trail and have some fun! It’s usually much longer than your normal walks, but there is often wonderful scenery to go with it. The only cost that comes with this hobby is the gas it takes you to get to the entrance of the trails. If you have trails near your house, then you’re set!
7. Reading
I’m sure you know my opinion on reading – I wrote a whole article on how it’s important for personal development and growth. In that article, I also went over how cost-effective it is as a source of entertainment. For each dollar or two you spend on a novel, you can get hours of entertainment from it. If that isn’t cheap, I don’t know what is. It doesn’t stop there though, since there are so many free ways to read. You can browse the internet, read your favorite blog, or even look up technical white papers if you want.
The point is that there is a wealth to read for free, making this a great hobby for those with a frugal mindset.
8. Writing
Writing is a perfect frugal hobby, at least for people like me. If you have access to a computer, you can write for free. Otherwise, the cost is just whatever is needed for pen and paper. The limit is just your creativity, and the rewards you get from it are priceless. Writing makes you a more thoughtful person, a better communicator, and it helps you stay sharp. If that’s not enough, you could always try to make money by publishing a novel or starting a blog.
9. Yoga
Yoga is another cheap workout you can do. All you need is a yoga mat and some basic knowledge. That can provide endless hours of activity – which is great for staying fit. If you have none of the knowledge required, you can always do research online. For those who still aren’t comfortable, you can take a class or two at your local gym. That can be expensive at first, but once you’re set you’ll never have to do that again (unless you really like yoga classes, specifically).
10. Lifting weights
Lifting weights is a great hobby to stay in shape. It’s one of the more expensive ones, but there are ways to cut costs. If you already have a gym membership, then you’re set. For many, including myself, a gym membership may seem like an outrageous cost depending on what you’re getting. In this case, building yourself a home gym may be the best thing for you. It will be expensive at first, but it will pay for itself in no time.
For those with little or no experience lifting, I recommend you have someone help you learn (or take a class). If you don’t have proper form and patience with lifting, it can lead to serious injury.
11. Volunteering
This is another topic for which I’ve been clear about my opinion. Volunteering doesn’t cost any money – just some time. It’s a great way to contribute to the community, build relationships, and get that rewarding feeling that only comes with helping others. If that’s not enough to convince you, some non-profits are actually willing to train you in valuable skills. In those cases they don’t lack the knowledge or skills, but they need more manpower to help them out. That can be a win-win for both of you!
12. Gardening
Gardening is another good frugal hobby. How expensive it gets is up to you, but you can make your landscape prettier or go for raw utility. If you go the utility route, you can always grow valuable crops. Once you’ve done that, you can use those crops and partake in a little bit of homesteading, or you can sell them for a profit. Whichever way you go about it, gardening is definitely an interesting hobby to get into.
13. Couponing
I get it, it sounds silly to a lot of you. However, growing up I met many people who were religious about couponing. As far as frugal hobbies go, it has to be mentioned. The whole hobby is an effort in frugal living in and of itself. For those who get good at it, you can save a lot of money and free up some extra wiggle room in your budget.
It’s a niche hobby that few are interested in, but if you are even considering it right now then I’d suggest giving it a whirl. It doesn’t cost money and can save you a lot in the long run – if you don’t enjoy it you can always decide to do something else with your time.
14. Sewing
Like knitting, this is a hobby that people generally associate with older people. I don’t understand why, as it’s a great skill to have and can be a hoot as well. If you have tears in your clothes, a simple project could be to sew them and make them look like new again. Once you get more skilled, you can make your own clothes if you want to! Fabric may seem expensive at first glance, but when you look at how much clothes cost these days, then you’ll realize how much this hobby can save too.
Besides, everyone likes having someone around who can sew – especially during wedding season.
15. Singing
Music in general is a wonderful thing to take an interest in and learn about. Singing, specifically, tends to be on the cheap side. It doesn’t take much to practice on your own, and online resources can help you learn the basics. If you get serious about it, you could always take lessons – which would bump the costs up a bit and put it more in line with many other music-centric hobbies.
16. Being An Autodidact
Learning on your own is a wonderful and rewarding thing. Also, as I’ve mentioned several times, you have so many resources available to you these days. There is nothing stopping you from picking a topic and researching it. You can learn an immense amount this way. I know a lot of people whose main hobby is just researching and learning new concepts in their entirety. Once they’ve fully grasped one thing, they move on to the next and repeat the cycle. Eventually, that gives them an immense wealth of knowledge!
17. Hosting A Podcast
Ever thought about becoming some sort of influencer? Podcasting is a great way to do that! All you need is some basic audio equipment, a topic, and the tenacity to start and stick to it. When it comes down to it, anyone can start a podcast quite easily. If it’s something you’ve thought about, take your shot. It’s a cheap hobby, and it can teach you a lot along the way.
18. Photography
This one is a bit rough on the frugal side of things. To get started, it is fairly cheap. You can use your phone, or purchase a beginner’s camera, to get started. That will serve most amateur functions and give you a lot of pictures you can work with using free software on the computer. Of course, if you get really into it then cameras can get prohibitively expensive. In fact, some of the more advanced software gets pricey too! Fortunately, the larger expenses probably aren’t necessary unless you plan on turning it into a side hustle.
19. Board games
Board games can be a great frugal hobby. It may initially seem expensive at first, but it’s not once you think about it. For $20-50 you can easily find a great board game, for 2-6 people (or more). Now, think about how many times you can play that board game over and over. A good board game is one that should be replayable with friends and family, which provides a great bonding experience. If you’re looking for a good family pastime, this could be it.
When thinking about board games, if you can’t imagine replaying it, then it may not be a great board game for you. Many people just aren’t into it like that, which is fine – it may just not be a good cost-effective hobby for them.
20. Video games
Videos games are last on this list, but they’re definitely a great option. Prices vary wildly, but you can certainly find amazing games for cheap prices. Even on the more expensive side of things, the replayability you can get from video games may make it well worth the price. A lot of people like to scoff at video games as a hobby, but it’s definitely a decent one to consider.
Conclusion
Hopefully these 20 frugal hobbies gave you an idea for something you can try yourself. If you have any hobbies of your own to throw in the mix, or ways to save on them, let us know in the comments! For more content like this, and a free budgeting template and financial goals worksheet, be sure to sign up for the Bitter to Richer newsletter.
