30 At-Home Date Night Ideas That Are Budget-Friendly
Written by
Caitlyn Moorhead
Edited by
Melanie Grafil
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Romantic date nights don’t have to be expensive ones. Your favorite date may just far prefer you spend your time with them rather than your cash on your next night out. It’s always good to look into different ways you can save money as being frugal is the new love language.
30 Cheap At-Home Date Ideas
In today’s fast-paced world, finding quality time to spend with your significant other can be challenging. However, you don’t always have to splurge on fancy dinners or expensive outings to have a memorable date night. With a little creativity and planning, you can enjoy meaningful and budget-friendly date nights right in the comfort of your own home.
Whether you’re looking to spice things up or simply unwind together, here are 30 fun date night ideas that are sure to ignite the romance without breaking the bank.
- Cook a Meal Together
- Have a Picnic Indoors
- Movie Marathon
- Paint Night
- Board Game Night
- Create a Spa Experience
- Stargaze from Your Backyard
- Karaoke Night
- DIY Pizza Night
- Book Club for Two
- Create a Scrapbook
- Home Movie Premiere
- Virtual Travel Night.
- Learn Something New Together
- Trivia Night
- Camp in Your Backyard
- Home Beer or Wine Tasting
- Create a Time Capsule
- Themed Dinner Nights
- Indoor Treasure Hunt
- Virtual Game Night with Friends
- Build a Fort
- Outdoor Movie Night
- Candle Making
- Bake and Decorate Treats
- Virtual Museum Tour
- DIY Photo Booth
- Write Love Letters
- Create a Vision Board
- Volunteer Together
1. Cook a Meal Together
Choose a new recipe to try and have fun cooking together in the kitchen. Don’t forget to set the mood with some romantic music and a candlelit dinner for a fun at-home date.
You could even join a meal-kit service such as Blue Apron, Purple Carrot or Hello Fresh where you can have the ingredients sent to your house and have a standing date night once a week or month. It’s cheaper and healthier than going to a restaurant or paying delivery fees when you order takeout.
2. Have a Picnic Indoors
Lay out a blanket, prepare some finger foods, and have a cozy indoor picnic complete with your favorite snacks and drinks. Taking this time and effort is a nice way to show you care, save some money and think outside the box when it comes to a unique date night at home.
3. Movie Marathon
Pick a theme or a series of movies you both love, grab some popcorn, and snuggle up for a movie marathon night. There’s a certain element of reliving your childhood when binge-watching a string of favorites on a rainy night. A stay-at-home date like this is comfortable and helps you conserve some cash.
4. Paint Night
Set up your own painting station at home, pour some wine, and unleash your and your partner’s inner artist as you create masterpieces together. All you’ll need is a cheap watercolor set and some paper to make a memorable night. One fun idea is to each paint a portrait of the other, which often leads to hilarity without ever having to leave your living room.
5. Board Game Night
Dust off your favorite board games or try out new ones for a night of friendly competition and laughter. Video games also work if you are both a little less analogue. Game night is also a perfect activity if you have been wanting to do a double date with your other couple friends.
6. Create a Spa Experience
Transform your bathroom into a spa with soothing music, scented candles, and pampering treatments like facials and massages. You can both treat yourself luxuriously without having to spend spa pricing.
7. Stargaze from Your Backyard
Grab a blanket and head to your backyard or balcony for a romantic evening of stargazing. You can even plan for nights when you know there will be meteor showers, full moons or eclipses in your area. Viewing astrological bucket list items is both romantic and budget friendly.
8. Karaoke Night
Sing your hearts out with a karaoke session at home. You can find karaoke tracks online or use a karaoke app. YouTube is a great source for free karaoke songs and lyrics and you can buy a microphone or just use a hairbrush like the true rock stars you are in your hearts.
9. DIY Pizza Night
Make homemade pizzas with your favorite toppings and enjoy a delicious and personalized meal together. Not only is this a healthier alternative to ordering in pizza, it is also a wallet friendly one as you can include the ingredients to your weekly grocery list.
10. Book Club for Two
Choose a book to read together and have your mini book club discussion over wine or hot cocoa. It’s a great way to bond with your partner or have lively discussions without breaking the bank–talk about financial literacy.
11. Create a Scrapbook
Compile your favorite memories and mementos into a scrapbook together. It’s a fun way to reminisce and create something meaningful. It’s also a great way to organize all your old photos and memorabilia that have just been cluttering a drawer somewhere in your house.
12. Home Movie Premiere
Make a short film or a slideshow of your photos and videos, complete with popcorn and a “premiere” night at home. It’s cheap and easy enough to do with your phone and you can have a memorable night that saves you both money while making memories.
13. Virtual Travel Night
Pick a destination you both dream of visiting, research its culture, cuisine, and music, and create a themed night around it. You can plan a future trip but starting a savings account specifically dedicated to get you to your dream destination.
14. Learn Something New Together
Take an online class together, whether it’s cooking, dancing, photography or a new language. There are many online courses that cost little to know money and are a good way to spend quality time with one another while learning another skill set.
15. Trivia Night
Create trivia questions based on your relationship, favorite movies, or general knowledge, and challenge each other to a fun trivia night. You’ll get to know each other better and one of the things you’ll learn is you both value saving money.
16. Campfire Night
Set up a backyard campfire or use a fire pit, roast marshmallows, and share stories under the stars. You could also make it a staycation by setting up a tent in the back yard, which is a cute way to camp that will definitely save you some gas money.
17. Home Beer or Wine Tasting
Pick up a variety of beers or wines you’ve never tried before and have a tasting session at home. You can support your local vendors without having to add gratuity. A fun tip would be to add a blind fold so you and your partner don’t suffer from name-brand bias.
18. Create a Time Capsule
Gather items that represent your current life together, write letters to your future selves and bury them in a time capsule to open years later. Make sure to record exactly where you bury it and set a specific date in the future to open it again such as a later anniversary.
19. Themed Dinner Nights
Choose a theme such as Italian, Mexican, or Japanese cuisine and plan a themed dinner night complete with decorations and music. It’s great way to spice up just having a budget-friendly dinner together, but adding some intention to the time you spend together.
20. Indoor Treasure Hunt
Create clues and hide small surprises around your home for a fun and interactive treasure hunt. As it’s more about the fun of the hunt than the treasure, the gifts can be silly inside jokes and gag gifts as opposed to investing in more expensive flowers or jewelry.
21. Virtual Game Night with Friends
Host a virtual game night with friends or family members for a fun and social evening. You can catch up with long-distance friends by having a Zoom or FaceTime game night.
22. Build a Fort
Channel your inner child and build a cozy fort with blankets and pillows, perfect for cuddling and watching movies. You could even splurge on both of your favorite childhood candies and buy some cheap and cheerful matching jammy sets.
23. Outdoor Movie Night
Set up a projector and screen in your backyard for an outdoor movie night experience under the stars. Projectors are affordable and you can use a white sheet or wall outside as a back drop.
24. Candle Making
Get crafty and make your own candles together. It’s a fun and relaxing activity that results in personalized candles for your home. You can then use these candles, instead of expensive store bought ones on your next at-home date night.
25. Bake and Decorate Treats
Spend an afternoon baking cookies, cupcakes, or other treats, and get creative with decorating them together. You can make this date a productive one and give away your treats as presents which also saves you money on any gift giving you have coming up.
26. Virtual Museum Tour
Take a virtual tour of museums or art galleries around the world from the comfort of your couch. You can see great pieces of art from so many wonderful places without having to leave the comfort of your home or reach into your wallet.
27. DIY Photo Booth
Create a DIY photo booth with props and backdrops, and have a fun photoshoot together. Couples who are goofy together tend to stay together and there’s nothing more fun than a photoshoot. You can send the photos out as your next holiday card which also saves you money on getting a photographer for that endeavor.
28. Write Love Letters
Take the time to write heartfelt love letters to each other and exchange them over a romantic dinner. Your significant other will appreciate hearing why you love them so much more than an expensive night out on the town. Not that both aren’t nice, but you’ll be surprised how much the former more than the latter will be remembered.
29. Create a Vision Board
Dream and plan together by creating a vision board with your goals, dreams and aspirations for the future. This is a great way to spend time together making budgets and savings accounts for future trips, a down payment on a home or your next new car.
30. Volunteer Together
Find a virtual volunteering opportunity or organize a small project to give back to your community together. You can also look up volunteer opportunities in your community which is a great way to give back together.
Final Take To GO
No matter which idea you choose, the key to a successful at-home date night is to focus on spending quality time together, creating meaningful memories, and nurturing your bond without worrying about the cost. With a little imagination and effort, you can turn any night at home into a special and romantic experience. Those memories tend to far out last a fancy dinner or shiny trinket.
