Love reading magazines but hate paying full price? Well, never fear, we’ll tell you how to get magazines for free, without signing up for a bunch of spam online. Don’t miss these six smart but simple ways to get plenty of magazines to read without spending a dime!

I have a confession to make…..I am a hopeless magazine junkie!

The vibrant covers, glossy pages, and multiple tips and tricks buried inside each page hold a magnetic attraction that is oh-so-hard to resist. Even though Pinterest has replaced magazines in a way, I’m still a paper gal who loves to browse from cover-to-cover, and rip out pages of ideas to save for later.

But magazines aren’t cheap, and if you’ve looked at the cover prices lately, they range from $4.99 all the way up to $9.99. I don’t know about you, but I hate paying that kind of money for something I am only going to read once! However, I literally have a stack of 50+ magazines at home waiting for me to open their crisp covers and read their glorious contents.

So how did I get so many? I certainly didn’t pay for them…..in fact, I didn’t pay for any of them! Here’s how I get most, if not all of my favorite magazines for absolutely free.

How to Get Magazines for Free

Keep an Eye on Deal and Coupon Sites

About once or twice a week, various deal and coupon websites will share super affordable magazine subscription deals, but every once in a while, a free subscription will come along with absolutely no strings attached except a request for a name and address.

I’ve received Martha Stewart Living, Country Living, Entrepreneur, Kiplinger, and Better Homes & Gardens for nothing out of pocket. I have no idea how long the subscriptions will last, but I certainly take advantage of them while I can!

The best way to stay informed of these freebies is to bookmark each site to check throughout the day, or sign up for alerts through their email list. I’ve found most of my free magazines throughMoneySavingMom.com.

Do you love reading magazines? Grab a friend and check out these free magazine resources!

Borrow from Family and Friends

My grandmother has the same love for magazines that I do, and when she’s finished with her copies, she will gladly pass them along to me. I’ve also had friends who graciously gave me a stack of home decorating magazines right after we bought our new home.

If you have family and friends who buy magazines, ask if they would be willing to save them for you to read before throwing them away. Chances are they would love to re-purpose their magazines and have someone else get use of them before they’re tossed.

However, do make sure you check to see if they want their magazines returned or not after you’re done reading. Some like to keep their magazines as reference, and you don’t want to lose magazine borrowing privileges!

Request a Copy from the Doctor’s Office

I used to work in a doctor’s office, and we always had multiple copies of magazines for our waiting room and to hand out to patients. The majority of them were parenting magazines, but we would also get additional genres, such as People or Women’s Health.

Because these magazines are intended for patients to pass the time, don’t ever take a copy without asking, but it never hurts to check with the receptionist to see if you can have back issues. Most just throw them away when new ones arrive in the mail, and who cares if you’re reading them just a few months behind? Not me!

Magazines can be recycled. Look through recycle bins to see if you can find any discarded magazines to flip through!

Pick Through Recycle Bins

One of the best ways to find free magazines is to take an evening walk around the neighborhood before garbage day, and take a peek inside people’s recycle bins. I know this may sound a bit presumptuous, but as long as you ask the owner of the home {and there’s nothing gross in the bin!} you can find some great magazines that are usually in perfect condition.

I once stumbled upon a gold mine of someone who use to work in the magazine selling industry, and picked up about 30 new magazines ranging all the way from home decor issues to recipes. In fact, I still haven’t finished reading through that stack, and it was over a year ago!

Do you have the newsstand app on your phone? It's a great resource for finding magazines to read.

Browse the Apple Newsstand App

Although I prefer paper magazines or digital ones, you can still grab multiple free issues just by using the Newstand app on your iPad or iPhone.

I’ve found that almost every magazine will let you download the most recent issue for free, but the catch is you only have access to that one issue and nothing more. If you want to read additional issues, you have to subscribe to the magazine, but if you stick with the freebies, this is a great way to get some new reading material and see which magazines you like without spending a thing!

Use Reward Points

Many programs like Swagbucks, MyPoints, and Kellogg’s Family Rewards let you rack up reward points and use them to purchase 1-year magazine subscriptions in addition to coupons, gift cards and more. All you have to do is fill out surveys, enter codes from specially marked packages, or use a specific link when making an online purchase.

This is a guilt-free way to get magazines and depending on how much you earn through each program, and can be a great gifting option around the Holidays!

Next time you’re at Barnes and Noble salivating over the glossies just begging for your attention, feel free to browse, but resist the temptation to buy. Remember, you can get those same magazines for absolutely free, especially now that you know the secrets of where to find them!

To recap, here is How to Get Magazines for Free

1. Borrow from Family and Friends
2. Request a Copy from the Doctor’s Office
3. Pick Through Recycle Bins
4. Browse the Apple Newsstand App
5. Use Reward Points

Other helpful resources:

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Love reading magazines but don't want to pay full price? Don't miss these six smart but simple ways to get all your favorite magazines absolutely free!

Have you ever scored a magazine for free? Which of these methods do you use?

Kalyn Brooke
Kalyn Brooke is a life management expert for busy women who crave a simpler and more organized life. Through her recognizable, down-to-earth approach, she provides a daily dose of inspiration and guidance, whether you’re looking for smart money tips, time saving routines, or anything in-between. When she’s not experimenting with ways to do even the most mundane tasks more efficiently, you can find her crafting detailed to-do lists in her bullet journal, or indulging in—yet another—personal development book. Meet Kalyn and learn how stay on top of it all at KalynBrooke.com.
Kalyn Brooke

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