24 Best Free Things to Do in NYC

There's no shortage of cool things to do in New York City, from visiting historic sites to trying some of the best food in the world to filling your camera with photos of the city's magnificent skyline.

Unfortunately, a lot of the best things to do in the Big Apple also happen to cost a big chunk of change. Heading to the top of the Empire State Building, for example, will give you an incredible view of the city, but it will also cost a pretty penny. A visit to Times Square to enjoy a Broadway show may be on most visitors' lists, but tickets for the most popular plays aren't exactly cheap.

Don't fear, as there are plenty of things to do in New York City that don't cost a dime, but still allow you to appreciate its history and culture. These are the 24 best free things to do in NYC.

Ride the Staten Island Ferry.

The Staten Island Ferry is a great way to get close to the Statue of Liberty without the pricey ticket, making it one of the best free things to do in NYC. Grab a good viewing spot and appreciate the skyline from the water as the boat departs from Battery Park. If you choose to hop off the ferry and explore Staten Island, visit Snug Harbor, once a refuge for retired sailors, now a cultural center and botanical garden. It's a bit of a trek (40 minutes on foot or 15 minutes by bus) but well worth it.

Relax in the sand at the city's public beaches.

You don't need to go to the Hamptons to find a good beach near the city. Head to Coney Island to combine the beach with a trip to the amusement park (the Coney Island Cyclone has been around since 1927). Or, travel further down to Brighton Beach, where you can also find some great Eastern European and Russian restaurants. Hop on the ferry for the cost of a MetroCard ticket and make your way to Rockaway Beach, where you can combine a day of sand and surf with good food (like fish tacos from the Rockaway Beach Surf Club).

Go bird-watching in Central Park.

There are about 210 different species of birds found in Central Park, with many paying a visit to the Big Apple to rest and feed during their spring and fall migrations along the Atlantic Flyway. Bird-watching novices can find tips and a map of the best viewing points around the park in the Central Park Conservancy's Birding Guide.

Check out the public art at Socrates Sculpture Park.

Socrates Sculpture Park is a free outdoor museum set on an abandoned riverside landfill in Astoria, Queens. The public park hosts temporary exhibitions from emerging and internationally renowned artists across its five waterfront acres. Many works are built on-site in a studio space, giving visitors a peek into the creative process. The park is open 365 days a year, and admission is always free. If possible, plan your visit around the special exhibitions or pair it with a stop at the Noguchi Museum, located only a block away.

Pay your respects at the 9/11 Memorial.

The 9/11 Memorial has two reflecting pools, each marking the footprints where the Twin Towers once stood. It honors the lives lost during the terrorist attacks on the site in 1993 and 2001. The names of every person who died in those attacks are inscribed on the edge of the memorial pools. The memorial is always free to visit, and the museum is free on Mondays from 3:30 p.m. to 5 p.m.

See the mausoleums at the Green-Wood Cemetery.

Founded in 1838, the Green-Wood Cemetery is a National Historic Landmark set on 478 landscaped acres in Brooklyn. Now a destination for history, art, and nature lovers, the cemetery is home to one of the largest outdoor collections of 19th- and 20th-century granite and brownstone mausoleums. Several notable artists, politicians, athletes, and musicians are buried here, including Leonard Bernstein and Jean-Michel Basquiat. Entrance to the cemetery is free, though guided trolley tours and special events cost extra. 

Walk across the Brooklyn Bridge.

The Brooklyn Bridge is one of the most iconic attractions in New York City, and walking across it gives you a dramatic perspective on its architecture. When the bridge was finished in 1883, it was the longest suspension bridge in the world. Now, the Brooklyn Bridge has been designated a National Historic Landmark by the National Park Service, and it happens to be one of the best places to view the downtown skyline. Go early, as the bridge gets very crowded during the day.

Take a free walking tour.

New York City is full of history, and a walking tour is one of the best ways to experience it from an insider perspective. Sandemans New Europe offers free two-and-a-half-hour tours of downtown Manhattan, covering some of the most notable sites in the city, including the Charging Bull sculpture, Wall Street, and the 9/11 Memorial. While the tours are technically free, tips for the guides are encouraged, so bring some cash.

Let the kids loose in one of the city's inventive playgrounds.

New York City has no shortage of playgrounds for kids to burn off some energy, but some are cooler than others. At Ancient Playground, next to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, kids can explore pyramid-shaped climbers and check out the obelisk and sundial, both inspired by the Met's collection of Egyptian art. The Imagination Playground at Burling Slip, designed by architect David Rockwell, encourages kids to use their imagination with giant foam blocks, fabric, and crates. Pier 6 in Brooklyn Bridge Park features playgrounds like the Sandbox Village, where kids can play in little wooden houses in the sand, and the Water Lab, guaranteed to leave them soaking wet and cool on hot summer days.

Hang with farm animals at the Queens County Farm Museum.

Find cows, sheep, pigs, and more at the Queens County Farm Museum, which dates back to 1697 and is one of the longest continuously farmed sites in New York state. Spread out across 47 acres, the museum is free to enter (except on certain event days), and it allows people to learn all about what the area was like before a bustling city sprang up around it.

See Shakespeare in the Park.

You don't have to fork over a ton of money to see a great theater performance. Each year, the Public Theater hosts Free Shakespeare in the Park, a summer series at the open-air Delacorte Theater in Central Park. The series draws celebrity names and offers the chance to score free tickets for each day's performance through an in-person standby line in Central Park and digital and in-person lotteries.

Tour the Brooklyn Brewery.

Learn the art of making beer during one of Brooklyn Brewery's free tours, offered every hour from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Sundays. While you wait, you can sample the beers in the Williamsburg tasting room.

Kayak at Brooklyn Bridge Park.

Get out on the water and try kayaking from Brooklyn Bridge Park any Wednesday, Thursday, Saturday, or Sunday during the summer. Even kayaking novices can join in the fun; the Brooklyn Bridge Park Boathouse will teach you all you need to know, and you can paddle around its protected embayment for 20 minutes. Reservations open two weeks in advance, and limited walk-in time slots are available.

Take a tour of the New York Public Library.

The New York Public Library's Stephen A. Schwarzman Building in Manhattan has a storied past, touching on some of the most important moments in world history. During World War II, allied military intelligence used the library's Map Division for research, and the library collected materials "from the left and the right" during the McCarthyism era, despite objections. Sex and the City fans may remember it as the setting where Carrie wanted to marry Big. Now, you can visit the iconic institution with a free one-hour tour.

Admire craft creations at the American Folk Art Museum.

Located on the Upper West Side, the American Folk Art Museum is New York City’s only museum dedicated to self-taught artists from the U.S. and beyond. The collection includes more than 7,000 works of art from four centuries, ranging from quilts to portraits to handcrafted board games. The museum is open from Wednesday to Sunday and offers free admission, but visitors are encouraged to reserve tickets in advance.

Walk around the floating art installation, Little Island.

Opened in 2021, Little Island is a public park on stilts set on the Hudson River. With concrete "tulips" resembling oversized golf tees propping it up, the park merges art with outdoor recreation. You can stroll its 2.4 acres via pathways that ascend artificial hills and wind through curated gardens. In the summer you're likely to run across live music, comedy, or theater on the island. The (fully accessible) floating urban oasis, located at Pier 55, is open daily from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. or later, depending on the season. While shows held at the amphitheater require tickets, entry to Little Island is always free.

Learn about the city's diverse communities at the Bronx Museum of the Arts.

Exploring the intersection of contemporary art and social justice, the Bronx Museum of the Arts strives to reflect the spirit of the borough’s vibrant communities. Founded on the belief that art should be accessible, the museum offers free admission, which includes temporary exhibitions. The 16,000-square-foot building designed by the Miami-based firm Arquitectonica is a work of art in and of itself, with a main gallery, flexible event spaces, an outdoor terrace, and a floor dedicated to education programs.

See Alexander Hamilton's Harlem estate.

Step back in time at Hamilton Grange National Memorial, which features the restored home of Alexander Hamilton. It was completed in 1802, and Hamilton lived there for two years before he was fatally wounded in a duel with his rival, then-vice president Aaron Burr. The house has been relocated twice and moved to its current site within St. Nicholas Park in 2008. You can see the historically furnished floor of The Grange on a free 25-minute guided tour. Reservations are available Wednesday through Sunday on a first-come, first-served basis, so arrive early to secure a spot.

Channel your inner flower child at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden.

Spend your morning surrounded by roses and water lilies at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, a quiet escape from the hustle and bustle of the city. Located on the northeastern edge of Prospect Park, the garden sits on 52 acres of land. Admission is pay-as-you-wish on weekdays from December through February.

Tour the High Line.

The famous High Line, an elevated freight line-turned-popular park, is always free to visit, but you can learn more about the space and its history, design, and landscape on a free, docent-led tour. Tour dates and times vary by season.

Take a fun (and educational) trip to the Brooklyn Children's Museum.

If you have kids between the ages of six months and 10 years old, head to the Brooklyn Children's Museum for an afternoon of engaging and educational hands-on exhibits. The museum is free to visit on Thursdays from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m., thanks to its partnership with Amazon.

Step inside one of the world's most beautiful libraries.

The Morgan Library & Museum is home to J.P. Morgan's beautiful private library-turned-museum, a must-visit space for bibliophiles (in addition to the obvious must-visit New York Public Library). It's free to visit on Fridays between 5 p.m. and 7 p.m., but reservations are required. Tickets are available one week in advance.

Catch a live taping of an NBC show.

Many NBC shows — Saturday Night Live, The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, and Late Night with Seth Meyers — are filmed at 30 Rockefeller Plaza. And if you're willing to put in some effort, you can score a free seat in the studio audience. Each show has its own system, from lotteries to standby lines, for distributing tickets to the live tapings. Check out NBC's website for the full list of shows and instructions for landing a coveted seat.

Watch a movie in Bryant Park.

Rounding out this list of free things to do in NYC is a seasonal favorite. Every summer, Bryant Park hosts its free Movie Nights series. Bring some popcorn and candy (or buy some beer and wine), lay down a blanket, and settle in for an open-air screening. Arrive early, as it gets crowded — the lawn opens at 5 p.m. for blankets and picnicking, and the movie starts at 8 p.m.