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Photo: Sawyer Bengtson
Wondering what to do in Chicago this summer without overspending? To help you find the best free things to do in Chicago, our comprehensive guide will map out the best free landmarks, local neighborhood events, and insider strategies to experience the city without breaking the bank. From the biggest landmarks to more hidden gems, read on to see the best free things to do in Chicago this summer.
For budget travellers Chicago is an excellent place to land. Three of the city’s most famous landmarks cost absolutely nothing to enjoy.
Millennium Park attracts 25 million annual visitors for a reason: it’s a beautiful public green space functioning as a hub for art and culture. Open 6am to 11pm, it has a range of public art displays and venues, and houses something quite unique: ‘Cloud Gate’, or as it’s affectionately termed ‘The Bean’, a huge 33-foot stainless steel sculpture by Anish Kapoor. Visitors to Millennium Park can admire the warped Chicago skyline in The Bean’s surface, enjoy a show at one of Millennium Park's many venues like Jay Pritzker Pavillion, or admire interactive art and video sculpture Crown Fountain.
Another great free option is to visit the Chicago Riverwalk. It’s a 1.25 mile long waterfront walk along the south bank of the Chicago river. You can wander the river down the pedestrian path from Lake Shore Drive to Franklin Street to see iconic downtown bridges and skyscrapers, or watch the world’s largest digital art projection Art on theMART, showing video art projected season by season.
One of Chicago’s top attractions is completely free, with no reservation or booking required at all. Visitors can show up any day of the year during open hours and see nearly two hundred animal species including lions, bears, giraffes, penguins, and gorillas for no cost.
Around Chicago there are lots of scenic and structural gems that offer an enriching experience without an entry fee.
Entry to the Chicago Cultural Center is completely free. The center hosts art exhibits and displays, live music and dance performances, and you can also see the world’s largest Tiffany glass dome.
Garfield Park Conservatory is completely free to enter. Inside it, you can see thousands of plant species in rooms like The Fern Room, The Children’s Garden and Horticulture Hall, The Aroid House & Palm House. You can also take a wander around its 10 acres of grounds.
Lakefront Trail is an 18 mile path charting the Lake Michigan shoreline. Visitors can skate, rollerblade, run, bike or just stroll and explore for free with views of the Chicago skyline, various green parks and picturesque harbors. The trail has access to numerous beaches and parks, athletic courts and outdoor gym facilities, and facilities like public bathrooms and drinking fountains. For an active, sporty day out with a backdrop of Chicago’s skyline, Lakefront Trail is definitely one to check out.
One great free activity we’d recommend is taking a self-guided walking tour through the Loop, Chicago’s central business district. Here, you can spot world-famous outdoor masterpieces, sculptures and installations by artists like Picasso, Miro and Calder.
Grant Park is Chicago’s central green space and a huge cultural hub. It holds some great festivals including Grant Park Music Festival in summer, where you can see some outdoor classical music for free.
Buckingham Fountain is its centrepiece. It’s one of the largest fountains in the world and is designed in a rococo wedding cake style with two pairs of seahorses to represent the four states bordering Lake Michigan, and lights up with a light and water display reaching 150 feet high every hour.
Many of the best free events Chicago hosts take place during the summer months.
Millennium Park, as well as being a huge green space, also holds free outdoor concerts in summer. With free admission, it's a great opportunity to catch some diverse local and global artists at the Jay Pritzker Pavilion. Check it out from June to early August.
If you’re interested in film and cinema, or are looking for a low-cost night out outdoors, try Movies in the Parks. Across Chicago, neighbourhood parks host free, family-friendly evening film screenings.
Navy Pier hosts weekly firework shows, with lake and skyline views. You can enjoy them every Wednesday at 9pm and Saturday at 10pm from May to September.
Hit the beach this summer! Visiting the beach is one of the best things to do in Chicago. The city has 26 miles of beautiful beaches along Lake Michigan, and accessing them is completely free. From 11am to 7pm, cool off and swim in the water of Lake Michigan, or, if you want to avoid getting wet, sunbathe and lounge on the sand. You can access different amenities depending on the specific beach you go for.
For example, North Avenue Beach features cafes, water sports and volleyball, and a pier. Montrose Beach is the largest, and features water sports and a dedicated dog beach for those looking for a puppy day out. Other great options include Ohio Street Beach, Oak Street Beach, 12th Street Beach and loads more. Our tip is to be sure to check the Chicago Park District site on whether swimming is prohibited on the day you plan to go, and whether weather conditions allow it.
Maggie Daley Park is another great option for free outdoor activities in Chicago. Visit the Play Garden for free, bring your own gear and ride the Skating Ribbon to skate at no cost, or visit the beautiful green spaces like the Picnic Groves and eat lunch admiring the skyline. The park also has climbing wall, rollerblade and scooter rentals available for rental, but is a great option for a budget day out.
There are lots of ways to tap into the city’s world-renowned cultural scene while staying on a budget.
Museums around Chicago often offer free days to Illinois residents. Institutions offering free days include Art Institute of Chicago, Adler Planetarium, and Chicago History Museum. Every Wednesday throughout 2026 the Field Museum is free, and Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago is free every Tuesday evening. If you live in Illinois, the Shedd Aquarium is also completely free for select hours.
Smart Museum of Art is always free. The museum is currently closed, but reopens in the fall, where you can see exhibitions like teamLab: Everything Exists in Infinite Continuity, with digital art installations exploring perception and consciousness.
You don’t need to pay to see great art; Chicago is an urban canvas full of public murals on all sorts of buildings. For free, you can see art by world-renowned street artists in places like the Wabash Arts Corridor in South Loop neighbourhood, where you can spend a few hours admiring large-scale colourful artworks of all kinds. Other places to find great public art include Pilsen, Logan Square and Wicker Park, and Humboldt Park.
There are plenty of things to do in Chicago for free, even beyond the city's famous landmarks. A casual day out can easily transition into a low-cost evening plan. Every week, the city hosts free community concerts and neighbourhood block festivals. Our top picks include the Argyle Night Market, a weekly summer street festival from 11pm onward with food, arts and music, or the Glenwood Ave Arts Fest in the Rogers Park neighborhood, where you can see art by local and regional artists, enjoy live music and more.
Chicago also has a thriving local comedy ecosystem. You can grab cheap tickets to clubs like the Laugh Factory and Lincoln Lodge, which features a Live Comedy Cooking Competition Show where teams of comedians cook for pro-chefs while completing their sets.
One way to save money on navigating the city is by taking public transportation. Go for using the CTA instead of driving; this way you avoid paying expensive downtown parking costs.
It’s a great idea to check calendar sites like Eventbrite and Choose Chicago, where free community events are listed. Filter for events local to you, neighbourhood festival schedules, or to find pop-up free entertainment.
Tickets for Good is the ultimate summer companion for entertainment local to you. Free sights are excellent, but there are low-cost options that would suit those on a budget. Tickets for Good bridges the gap, giving eligible users access to premium live sports, concerts, comedy clubs and theater in Chicago for free*, or with huge discounts.
Eligibility is open to healthcare staff, charity organizations and education professionals. Signing up is easy and takes only a few minutes, and once you’re in, you’ve unlocked free* (*minus a small booking fee) and discounted access to some of the best art, entertainment and cultural events near you.