SWEETIESAL

There are many freebie sites online but some of these sites have better offers than others. These are my top five freebie sites with the pros and cons you need to know about before signing up.


Everyone loves to save money and get items for free, which is why freebie sites are so popular. Brands often give out free samples and items as a part of their promotional strategy. I took the time to try several freebie sites to put together a list of the five best websites you can use to get free items.


Freecycle.org

Freecycle.org is actually an American site but it quickly became one of the world's largest freebie sites with its 8 million members. You can join a group that corresponds to your borough and see which sellers offer items in your area. You can browse to see the offers or post a wanted ad if you are looking for a specific item.


Pros:

• Freecycle.org is a non-profit organization that is dedicated to reducing waste. Users are encouraged to offer the items they no longer need for free online instead of throwing them away.

• There is a huge selection of items to choose from. This site is always growing and you can find appliances, electronics, furniture, toys and many other types of household items. You can also browse through ads posted in other groups if you can't find what you are looking for in your area.

• You can sign up for free and can either sign up with an email address or with your Facebook account.

Cons:

• A lot of ads do not have pictures of the items. You might have to drive to go pick up an item and end up being disappointed if the ad didn't accurately describe the item.

• Freecycle.org is free to use and Yahoo! hosts this site for free. However, Yahoo! makes money by displaying adverts when you browse this site.

ilovefreegle.org 


Ilovefreegle.org has been around since 2009 and even though it is similar to Freecycle.org, there are only two million members. You will find that there are fewer ads and items available, but using ilovefreegle.org is easier. You can see how many people are in your local group and how many new ads were posted since your last visit. You can also easily see which areas are covered by the group you joined.


Pros:

• This site has won awards for its environmental mission.
• There is a Twitter page that you can follow to see information about the best offers posted on the site.

Cons:

• You need a Yahoo or a Google email account to sign up but can also create an account with a Facebook or Twitter account.
• Some of the groups require you to get approved by a moderator, which means you might not be able to start looking for freebies right away.

Gumtree.com

Gumtree is one of the most popular freebie sites. You will find that Gumtree is somewhat similar to eBay and allows members to list the items they want to sell. You can find houses for sell, toys, clothes, electronics, appliances and even cars. You can also browse this site to find job ads or to adopt a pet.


Pros:

• You can find a wide range of items on Gumtree. There are usually a good number of items available for free, including furniture, appliances and even some services. You might be surprised by what you find - there are currently ads offering an hour long violin performance at your wedding or a life-size cardboard cut-out of Ryan Gosling. (No judgment here)
• You can use Gumtree even if you are not a member. All you have to do is browse through the ads and send an email to the seller.

Cons:

• You have to go pick up the items in person, which might not always be convenient.
• You will come across a lot of ads and sponsored links, which can make browsing annoying.

Freestuffbaby.co.uk

FreeStuffBaby site offers vouchers, samples and free items from different companies. You can find many different types of items depending on what companies are giving out at the moment.


Pros: 

• You can sign up for the newsletter to receive updates about the latest promotional offers.
• You can sometimes find details about giveaways and competitions to get more chances to win free items.
• Members can leave ratings on the offers, which is a great way to easily find the most interesting promotional offers available at the moment.

Cons:

• You usually need to log in via your Facebook account to get access to the promotional offers.
• Some of the offers listed on the site are expired.

Gratisfaction 

This is another free stuff site that lists promotional offers. You can usually find free samples for food items or cosmetics as well as free digital downloads.


Pros:

• The site is very easy to use and clicking on an offer will automatically redirect you to the company's page so you can complete the offer and get a freebie.

Cons: 

• I haven't found any cons yet!

 Do you use freebie sites? What's the best haul you have had?