Moving out can be stressful, but ensuring that you have all the necessary pieces of furniture can be a headache. After finally sorting out all the paperwork and deposits, the last thing you need is to spend hours searching for all the random bits of furniture like couches, tables, chairs, desks, bed frames, and more.
What’s worse is that when you add up the average cost for all this stuff, you could spend a fortune on the bare necessities.
However, you don’t have to force yourself to pay a lot for all this furniture. There are plenty of ways to get your hands on some free pieces of furniture. Sure, they might not be the style or quality you wanted – but they can work as great placeholders until you are ready to purchase a more permanent replacement.
So, there’s plenty of free furniture out there for you to find – the question is where and how?
If you want to grab some free furniture to fill up your home until you are ready to buy your own, check out the below methods. Good luck!
Ask Around
This method is probably one of the easiest, yet so many people avoid it because they’re either too shy or don’t want to come across as desperate or greedy. However, there’s no shame in asking if anyone is getting rid of some furniture.
Everyone has something they want to throw out – whether it’s an old lamp or bit of decoration that no longer suits the style of their home, or an old couch or TV stand – but having the time and motivation to finally take it to the dump or put an ad up online. S, this means that there could be a piece of furniture cluttering up someone’s home, and they will jump at the chance for someone to take it away for free.
If you try to reach out and spread the message, you’re open to taking some clutter off their hands. Some companies charge their customers to come and pick up their junk – so your offering to pick it up and take it away for free is a huge favor.
So, ask your friends and get the message around to their families. Perhaps you may even want to put a status up on social media, asking anyone for their second-hand furniture – you’d be surprised how many people want to throw away terrific pieces of furniture!
Check the Curbside
The amount of excellent furniture that accumulates on the curb of sidewalks is unreal. Whether someone can’t get a piece of furniture into their home, or they’ve just got it out and dumped it outside until they have time to get rid of it properly – it’s unreal how many couches, sideboards, tables, and more you can find on the curbside.
So, drive around and check out what’s just sitting there waiting to be picked up. If you have found the furniture right outside someone’s home or business, then it’s worth knocking to double-check that you have their permission to take the furniture (the last thing you need is to be accused of theft!).
Although what you find may not always be in great condition, it’s surprising what a lick of paint and some Gorilla Glue can do.
Garage Sales
Anyone looking for a great deal or bargain knows garage sales are the first place to check.
Some garage sales are impromptu, and the people who show up usually want their things gone as soon as possible. This means they are more than willing to bring down the prices – and perhaps even part with a few things for free.
This is sometimes the case when it comes to big pieces of furniture. Unfortunately, not everyone has big enough vehicles to take them away or has the skills to take something apart and reassemble it later. So, sometimes you can find an owner who wants it gone and out of their way.
To score big at a garage sale, you will need a lot of luck and perhaps a bit of charm, but it’s always worth shopping around at a few garage sales to see what you can find! You only need one lucky day to grab a vital piece of furniture for no cost.
Goodwill
Ah, Goodwill – the go-to thrift store for anyone and everyone looking for a great bargain on all kinds of things. Depending on the size of the store, Goodwill can sometimes sell pieces of furniture, plus they also have an online marketplace where you can browse furniture items near you.
The only issue is that Goodwill might not be willing to part with their furniture for free but the longer a single piece of furniture sits there, gathering dust and taking up vital space that could be used to shift more promising furniture, the more likely you can score an absolute bargain.
If you are lucky, Goodwill might say take it – but the worst scenario is that you will find some excellent furniture for a steal.
It’s also a great place to find affordable cookware and tableware, decorations, office supplies, and more – so it is worth checking out your nearest Goodwill stores to see what necessities you can get.
Freecycle
Freecycle is a nonprofit online network that is devoted to reducing waste and recycling all kinds of unwanted objects and items. It works like an online advertising platform for people looking for free second-hand stuff, so you don’t have to deal with bartering and bargaining to try and get free furniture.
All you have to do is sign up for free, input your address and see what’s on offer in your neighborhood. Because the organization is nonprofit, there are no hidden fees – you have to find the free stuff you want, claim it, and then head over to pick it up. You can even post about what you are specifically looking for so people can contact you immediately when they are ready to part with a piece of furniture for no cost.
The whole point of Freecycle is to stop filling up landfills with excellent quality and useful things – including furniture. This means that you can find pretty much everything and anything on this online platform!
Facebook MarketPlace
Facebook MarketPlace is a goldmine for all kinds of furniture in excellent condition and is being given away for free – even though you may have to scroll and search for the correct items.
Even if you don’t have Facebook, it’s worth making a profile so that you can access this feature and potentially strike gold.
Facebook MarketPlace is so highly recommended when it comes to finding free stuff because it’s usually the first place people advertise free furniture. Sometimes, it’s gifts they don’t like or never used, or they’ve just had their new couch delivered, and they need the old one gone as soon as possible because it’s taking up all the room.
Whatever the reason or situation, it’s not uncommon to find advertisements with ‘free’ written in caps. All you’ve got to do is go pick it up – easy!
To access Facebook MarketPlace, log into your Facebook account (or set one up if you don’t have one) and then find the little house icon at the top of your menu. If you are using the app, you can still access MarketPlace by finding the same icon at the top of your screen.
From there, you can just browse until you have found what you need.
The marketPlace is continuously updated with new additions, so check it daily until you have everything you need!
Craigslist
This option may be a blast from the past for many of us but believe or not; Craigslist is still around! This means that it’s still a perfect place to check out for any free furniture or make a post of your asking for free furniture!
For those who don’t remember Craigslist, it’s an advertisement website that blew up a few years ago. People will advertise all kinds of things there, from jobs, furniture, and even houses. While not everything is advertised for free, it still functions as a platform many people use to promote their second-hand belongings.
So, if you haven’t had much luck with other advertising platforms and marketplaces, Craigslist is a good one to check out.
NextDoor
NextDoor is an app designed to help people find items for sale in their area, allowing you to connect to your neighbors for quick and easy communication regarding selling and purchasing second-hand items.
This means that you can also easily find free furniture but are limited to your close community area. This is an excellent option if you don’t have a car or transport, so you need to carry the furniture back to your place, but it does cut down the options you can choose from if you do have transportation.
It’s also free to sign up and download the app, so there are no hidden or additional costs – create an account and start browsing.
So, NextDoor may not be for everyone, but if you need to find free furniture within easy walking (and carrying) distance, NextDoor could be the best option for you.
Letgo
Letgo is another app you can use on your smartphone to browse for free furniture quickly. Of course, you can also use it on your desktop, but because advertisements are constantly being uploaded, it’s best also to download the app so you can always keep an eye out for any new free furniture in your area.
Many people use Letgo due to how easy it is to filter and refine your search. For example, you can search by price, relevance, and post date, so it’s super easy to stay on top of what is new and outdated.
Plus, it’s free to sign up and download!
The only issue is that not all the furniture on Letgo is strictly free. So, unlike with other advertising platforms like Freecycle, you may have to haggle with others to try and get them to give you their furniture for free. But, remember, the squeaky wheel gets the grease, so don’t hold back from pushing your luck and asking those selling furniture to drop their price tag down to zero.
OfferUp
Our final recommended app to try out is OfferUp. Craigslist’s main competitor and a super easy-to-use app used by many to shift a lot of unwanted furniture. Usually, the sellers on the app want their stuff gone as soon as possible (likely because they are moving out last minute or have new furniture moving in), so there’s plenty of good quality furniture on there.
And the best part is that it’s all free! No membership fees, no hidden costs.
This means you can access plenty of free furniture for nothing – so download it and give it a try!
Conclusion
So, as you can see from all the options above, there are plenty of different ways and methods you can use to get your hands on some free furniture.
While these pieces of furniture can vary in terms of style and quality, it does mean that you don’t have to fork out a fortune in funds to fill up your home with all the necessities. So, why bother paying for something new when you can find something second-hand for no cost?
Check out the methods above, find the best ones for you, and try them. Hopefully, you will have all the necessary furniture pieces in no time. Good luck!
