From cake to pizza: How to get the best birthday freebies (and why there's a catch)

From cake to pizza: How to get the best birthday freebies — and why there’s a catch

From meals to beauty products, there are plenty of freebies available on your birthday.

“It’s your birthday!” That usually means a flood of emails with all kinds of free offers.

If you join the right apps and loyalty programmes, you could spend the day with free cake, meals out, beauty treats and even cinema snacks.

Here are some of the things you can get on or around your birthday — and why they may not be quite as free as they first appear.

Most major coffee chains and bakeries give a birthday treat through their loyalty apps. If you have already registered your date of birth, you can get a free sweet treat — usually a cake, cookie, muffin or doughnut — from Greggs, Costa, Caffè Nero, Krispy Kreme, Gail’s, Subway and Ole & Steen.

Lidl Plus members can claim a free bakery doughnut within seven days of their birthday, while M&S Sparks members can pick two gifts on their birthday from a selection of 15, including cookies and chocolates.

Hotel Chocolat gives members a £5 birthday reward with a minimum spend of £5.50, and Lindt offers a free box of truffles when you meet its minimum spend requirement.

Would you lie to get a birthday freebie?

Some fast-food chains offer a free birthday meal or snack. Burger King members can claim a free Whopper or Plant-Based Whopper, while Chopstix offers a free small noodle box.

But most restaurant birthday deals are buy-one-get-one-free offers rather than fully free meals.

At Harvester and Zizzi’s, you get a free main when you buy another full-price main. At Frankie & Benny’s, you get a free main when you purchase two or more main meals.

Byron offers a free burger with a £5 minimum spend, while Wagamama offers free gyoza when you spend £12 and have earned at least one stamp on your loyalty card in the last six months.

Some chains offer money off instead.

Turtle Bay gives members a £20 birthday credit with no minimum spend, while Bella Italia gives you £15 off your total bill when you spend at least £30.

Las Iguanas offers a free main when two other meals are purchased, or a 20% off voucher.

Pizza Express birthday rewards depend on your loyalty level. Bronze members may get a free dessert with a £10 spend, while higher tiers can get a free pizza or drinks with a £15 minimum spend.

At Prezzo, members receive drinks or desserts when they spend at least £25, while Bill’s offers a bottle of prosecco or pancakes when qualifying meals are ordered and the booking is made in advance.

Fashion brands usually offer birthday discounts rather than freebies.

Members of schemes run by brands such as Nike, Asos, River Island, Levi’s, Timberland and H&M may get money off, but some offers are personalised and not guaranteed for every customer.

Beauty birthday gifts are often tied to your purchase history or require you to buy something.

Space NK members can receive a free set of three beauty minis, provided they have shopped with the retailer during the previous year.

The Body Shop offers a £5 birthday voucher to members.

At Rituals, a birthday gift of a full-sized product or deluxe mini comes with another purchase, while Sephora rewards vary depending on membership tier.

Boots usually offers double points during your birthday month rather than a free product.

Odeon Extras members can claim a free large popcorn, even without buying a cinema ticket, while Hobbycraft Club members receive £5 of birthday credit with no minimum spend.

You can get 20% off at the Disney Store during your birthday month and £5 off with a minimum spend of £20 at Smiggle.

Sign up to mailing lists using a second email account so your main inbox does not get filled with offers.

Always check the small print, as some freebies have exclusions and cannot be used with other discounts.

Consider whether it is really a freebie if you have to spend a certain amount to qualify.

Many of these offers require you to join a loyalty scheme, enter your date of birth and opt into marketing several weeks before your birthday.

Consumer finance expert Sue Hayward says the most generous freebies do not last very long and must be redeemed on your birthday, within the week or sometimes within the month.

Some only unlock after a qualifying purchase or once you have reached a particular membership tier, so they can encourage you to spend money you had not planned to.

Emma Richards, operations manager at Data Privacy Advisory Service, says businesses can collect more than just your date of birth when you sign up for a freebie.

“People like something for nothing without considering the implications,” she says.

“So always read the small print and check to see whether your personal data will be used purely for generic marketing, or whether this will be used to build a profile of spending habits.”