Patrick Hearn · February 20, 2024 · 5 min read Everyone loves food, but everyone loves free food even more. While cooking at home is the most economical way to cut down on food costs, you should eat out every once in a while and enjoy yourself–and we don’t mean just ordering delivery!
When you decide to make a night of it and find fantastic meals for you and your family, try to find a coupon or deal to help you save a few bucks. Some apps can help you find deals on food–and these are some of the best.
Before you decide to just pay full price for some grub, search for a deal on one of these apps.
Restaurant.com
The Restaurant.com app has a lot going for it. Not only do you often find coupons for as much as 50% off, but you can redeem all coupons directly from your phone–no need to print anything out ahead of time. This makes it the ultimate last-minute way to save cash when you’re dining out somewhere.
Restaurant.com also offers the Dining Discount Pass, a $25 value that provides free items and other coupons at dozens of national chains. If you love eating out at restaurants and you only want a single deals app, this is the one.
Groupon
Groupon is one of the most popular deals apps anywhere. At any given time, you can find more than 100,000 deals on the site. Best of all, you can narrow the deals down by your area, as well as sign up to receive relevant deals straight in your inbox. Whether it’s a few dollars off or savings of more than $50, you can find plenty of restaurant deals at Groupon.
Dairy Queen
Dairy Queen is the perfect place to stop on a hot summer day. With the warm months just around the corner, download the Dairy Queen app to stay on top of all of the deals, such as buy one, get one Blizzards.
Dunkin Donuts
Dunkin Donuts has a high return rate on rewards. You’ll get a free drink when you download the app, and then you get 5 points for every dollar you spend. At 200 points, you get another free drink. That’s one drink per $40 spent.
Living Social
Living Social is a lot like Groupon in that it provides discounts on local attractions and food. In fact, deals often overlap from both sites. Living Social tends to offer better discounts on group purchases, which makes it a great option for dining out as soon as it’s safe to.
Chili’s
If you love Chili’s cajun pasta as much as the rest of the world, you should download the app. You’ll get either free chips and salsa or a free drink every time you go, and; you also get a coupon for a free dessert on your birthday.
Buffalo Wild Wings
One day soon, you’ll be able to return to your favorite sports bar and watch the game. When that day comes, you’ll want to save money–and the Buffalo Wild Wings app is a great way to do so. You’ll receive 10 points on check-in and 100 points for every $10 spent. You can use these points to get free food.
Chick-Fil-A
Chick-Fil-A offers free food perks periodically, often for no real reason. You can also earn free food by making purchases through the app. If you purchase one of their themed “Cow Calendars” in-store, you will receive another free food item each month.
McDonald’s
McDonald’s isn’t just one of the most popular fast food stops in the world, but it’s also one of the best apps for coupons and rewards. For example, every Friday you can get a free medium fry with any purchase, and you can rack up free McCafe drinks if you regularly order coffee.
Panera Bread
Panera Bread not only has excellent soup and coffee, but it’s a fantastic place to spend an afternoon working. If you’re the type of person that enjoys sitting in restaurants to get your tasks finished, download the Panera Bread app to receive a free pastry and earn points on every purchase.
Chipotle
Chipotle offers one of the best reward points apps for free food out there. You’ll earn 10 points for every dollar spent, and after you get 1,250 points you receive a free entree. You can also earn rewards like free appetizers and discounts on your meals.
Wendy’s
Wendy’s is known for its discounts; after all, the $2 keychain the restaurant sells that gives a free Frosty throughout the year is fantastic. The app is no exception. You’ll find discounts on meals as well as coupons for free menu items. Download the app and you can redeem coupons as soon as you open it up.
Applebee’s
The Applebee’s app offers users free food coupons, as well as discounts on entrees. You can also receive a free entree on your birthday each year. It doesn’t have the best rewards program, but even a few dollars here and there is better than nothing.
Next time you go out for food, whether it’s at a sit-down place or fast food drive-thru, take the time to look for coupons on one of these apps for free food and meal deals. There’s no need to pay full price if you don’t have to.
