29 Random Acts Of Kindness For Every Budget

There are so many ways to participate in Random Acts of Kindness on any budget! The best part of participating is it makes you and the recipient feel amazing.

Great things are happening in the world and there are so many people wanting to make a difference.

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You Can Make A Difference

Random acts of kindness can completely change a person’s day. And while it might sound dramatic, it can even change their life.

One of the things that our family loves to do is take items to the homeless people in our community.

One Christmas we decided that we were going to take bags of dog food, leashes, collars, and dog toys as well as blankets around to the homeless in our community that had pets. It brought us great joy to give these items to them. And they were SO appreciative.

That being said, there are so many things that you can do that cost you absolutely nothing.

Random Acts of Kindness On A Budget

There are so many different ideas on how you can have a positive impact on the people around you. We’re going to explore several different ways that you can do things for others and have a positive impact on the world and the people around you.

This post will be focused holistically on things you can do to have random acts of kindness for other people without spending any money.

Let’s go ahead and dig in.

You can do kind things for others everywhere! You can even help others while you are going about your normal daily routine.

To simplify this a bit the ideas for random acts of kindness are broken down into these topics:

Things you can do at home
In your neighborhood
While you shop
For your community as a whole
How you can encourage & help others by sharing your knowledge
Ideas for those most in need

Random Acts of Kindness At Home

Leave a note in your child’s lunchbox telling them to have a good day and how much you love them.
- Encouragement Notes or Lunchbox Notes are a GREAT way to remind your kids (or your significant other) that you are thinking about them.
- Grab my favorite Lunchbox Notes HERE!
Put a note in your spouse or your significant other’s car.
- As they leave to go to work or out for errands they will have a smile on their face being reminded how much you care about them.
One of the most important things that you can do as a random act of kindness is to give up any kind of toxic habit that you may have that disrupts other’s lives.
- Focus on living healthy, and having healthy habits. To be kind not only for yourself, but for others.
Give an hour of your time to someone special
- No technology distractions
- Just do what they love
Prepare your family’s favorite meal
- Even if it’s usually reserved for special occasions

Check out these Lunchbox Notes on Etsy by Simple Desert Designs!

Random Acts of Kindness In Your Neighborhood

Greet someone with a smile!
- A smile costs nothing and can completely change a person’s day.
Give someone a compliment.
- We’ve all seen something that we liked or thought was pretty and just kept going on about your business saying nothing.
- You can even compliment someone for something they did.
- Take just a few seconds to give someone a compliment and let them know their kindness was noticed.
Go out and pick up trash in your neighborhood.
- We’ve all walked past trash before and not picked it up at some point in our lives.
- Pick up the trash
- Sweep the sidewalk
- Whatever you can do to make your community feel a little brighter.
Volunteer to read to children.
- Ideas for reading to kids –
  - After school programs.
  - Schools
  - Day Care
  - Library
  - Book Store
- There’s nothing that brings more joy than getting in character, acting like a complete idiot and reading a book with so much excitement.
- When you see the joy it brings to their little faces it’s PRICELESS.
Consider taking care of a family pet or neighbor’s pet.
Maybe your neighbor would like you to walk their dog for them.
- It’s great for you to get out and get some exercise and some fresh air, vitamin D, and the dog gets a walk. Win – Win!
Next time you’re making dinner, consider making an extra batch, double it up and take dinner to someone in need.
- Or maybe just to put a smile on their face.

Random Acts of Kindness While You Shop

Next time you see someone that’s lost or looks confused, ask them if they need help.
- They may be a tourist or visitor and might just need a little bit of direction.
Leave an encouraging note at a public place.
- This is a really fun thing to do.
- There is something heartwarming about knowing greater forces are at work in WHO gets your encouragement.
- You don’t get the gratification of seeing it most of the time, but you have the satisfaction of knowing you encouraged someone today.
- They may even pay it forward.
Next time you’re out shopping or at a restaurant, be sure to say thank you to the staff at that business.
If a staff member does something especially kind or is especially professional, or maybe you see them do something kind for someone else, take a few minutes and ask to speak to the manager to compliment the employee.
- The difference that can make for them as a person during the day to have a good day could be huge.
- Not only that could help them in their work just a little bit of time, again could make a huge difference.
Next time you go to the grocery store or a department store, consider putting notes of encouragement on people’s windshields.
- Finding a random act of kindness and encouragement on your windshield is far better than receiving an advertisement.
- As the Principal of a high school I once had a graduating senior put notes of encouragement on every single car. It was very impressive and made a huge impact.

Encourage Others In Your Community

Give your seat to a stranger on a train or bus or to someone who needs it.
Take part in kindness projects.
- There are always projects happening around your community.
- Try Searching for volunteer opportunities and see what you can find right in your own neighborhood.
Donate books that you’ve already read.
- Schools are underfunded – see if they can use your books!
- Women’s shelters – especially if they are inspirational books
Donate your old stuff.
- Decluttering is an important part of your self care.
- Let things you don’t use anymore bring someone else some joy and usefulness!
If you go camping, leave the campsite cleaner than when you got there.
Next time you’re in the grocery store. Look around you for opportunities to help others.
- It’s easy to get in a rush and not notice what’s happening around you.
- I can’t tell you the number of times that someone was either hurt or struggling with a medical condition that didn’t allow them to reach something on a higher level.
- A simple random act of kindness helping out someone in a grocery store can put a smile on both of your faces.

If you have special knowledge about something in particular, consider being a tutor.
- Sharing your knowledge doesn’t cost you anything but time and it could have a huge impact on someone else.
Consider writing a genuine letter to someone that you care about, maybe even someone that you haven’t spoken to in a long time.
- Catch them up on the things that you haven’t talked about in a while and let them know how much you appreciate them.
If you’re super organized, consider helping a friend organize their stuff.
- This is something I love to do. brings you great joy to share your knowledge and great joy to see your friends feel great about the space that they’re in.

Random Acts of Kindness For Those Who Need it Most

If you have longer hair, consider donating your hair after a haircut.
- The difference you can make for someone who’s struggling with hair loss is life changing.
Babysit for a friend or a family member. giving the gift of a night out or even a night in.
- An evening without the kids could be just what the doctor ordered.
Consider donating your blood.
- It costs you nothing.
- A little bit of time could truly save a life.

There are so many things that you can do as a random act of kindness that cost you absolutely nothing.

Put a smile on someone’s face by a random act of kindness to help make the world a better place.