70 Fun Things to do with Friends Beyond Going Out for Lunch
Searching for fun things to do with friends? Whether you’re looking for things to do on the weekend, activities to enjoy at home, or creative ideas beyond simply going out for lunch or dinner, I’ve got you covered.
In this article, I’ve rounded up 70 amazing things to do with friends to help you spend more quality time together. From cozy at home hangouts to fun outings and creative activities, these ideas will help you make memories, have fun, and simply enjoy each other’s company.
Fun Things to do With Friends
1. Go on a Picnic
There’s something so simple yet exciting about sitting outside, soaking in the fresh air, and munching on some delicious snacks. So if you’re looking for something fun and low stress to do with your friends, consider going on a picnic. The best part is that it can be as simple or as *extra* as you want.
For example, you can keep it super simple by bringing a blanket, packing some homemade sandwiches, and setting up at a local park.
You could also dress up in cute outfits or flowy dresses and make it feel a little more aesthetic. Or, if you really want to go all out, turn it into a full blown picnic party with games, lots of food, and plenty of time to relax and enjoy being outside together.
2. Go Shopping
Whether you’re heading to the thrift store, the mall, or even just the grocery store, going shopping together can be such a fun way to spend time with your friends. There’s something oddly enjoyable about walking around, browsing different items, and chatting as you go.
Personally, my friends and I love going to stores like Marshalls and HomeGoods and just looking through the home decor and clothing sections. Even if we don’t buy anything, it’s still fun to browse and gain inspo.
3. Have a Bible Study Session
Studying the Bible on your own is amazing, but having a Bible study with a friend or in a group setting can be even more impactful.
It gives you the opportunity to dive deeper into God’s Word while also hearing different perspectives and how others are processing scripture. Sometimes someone else can point out something in a passage that you may have completely missed.
It’s also such a beautiful way to grow in fellowship, do life together, and encourage one another to stay consistent in spending time with God and in His Word.
4. Have a Movie Night
One of my favorite things to do with my friends is have movie nights. There’s just something so fun and cozy about getting together, picking a movie, and spending the night relaxing.
Sometimes we’ll get together in person, make snacks, and watch a movie all in the same space. But honestly, most of the time we watch from our own homes and hop on FaceTime so we can chat and talk throughout the movie.
5. Go Bowling
Hit up the bowling alley and go bowling with your friends for a fun and laid back outing. Whether you’re actually good at bowling or just there for the vibes, this is a great budget friendly activity.
6. Visit a Coffee Shop
If you and your friends love coffee, pastries, or simply the aesthetic of a cozy cafe, then visit one together.
Grab a coffee, matcha, or your favorite drink, maybe order a pastry, and just spend time catching up with each other.
Fun Things to do With Friends at Home
7. Have a PowerPoint Night
PowerPoint nights became super popular a few years ago, and honestly, I still love them because they make for a fun girls’ night in. What makes them so entertaining is that you can literally make your presentation about anything.
The basic idea is to have everyone prepare a PowerPoint beforehand on a topic of their choice or based on a prompt. It could be something personal like a life update, something silly, or even a passionate deep dive into their favorite celebrity, movie, or random hot take.
For example, you could give everyone a prompt like, Create a PowerPoint on your favorite movie and explain why it’s the best. Someone might show up with a full presentation on why “Avengers Endgame” is the greatest cinematic masterpiece in history.
Then during the actual PowerPoint night, everyone gets a chance to present their slideshow and give their own mini speech. Half the fun is seeing how seriously people commit to their presentations.
8. Have a Game Night
Piggybacking off of the PowerPoint night, another fun thing to do with your friends is to have a game night. This is one of those activities that can be as casual or as extra as you want.
For example, you can keep it simple by inviting your friends over to play card games, board games, or even some DIY games.
Or, if you want to go all out, you can make it more of an event by planning themed games, putting together prizes, and preparing lots of fun snacks and food for everyone to enjoy.
9. FaceTime and Have Each Other in the Background
Who says video chatting always has to mean having a full on conversation? Sometimes it’s actually fun to just FaceTime and have each other in the background while you both go about your day.
Maybe one of you is cleaning, working, folding laundry, or getting ready while the other is doing something completely different. It’s super chill because you can randomly start talking at any moment and then go right back to whatever you were doing.
10. Invite Them Over and Cook Together
Invite your friends over for a little “cook with me” night where you all make a meal together. Pick a recipe, gather your ingredients, and have everyone in the kitchen helping with prepping, chopping, and cooking.
This is one of my favorite things to do with my friends, especially because I love cooking. There’s something so fun about being in the kitchen together, yapping, and of course, eating the food at the end.
11. Work on a Puzzle
Grab a big puzzle with lots of pieces, like a 500 or 1000 piece one, and invite your friends over for a chill puzzle night.
12. Have a Coworking Session
Having coworking sessions is one of my favorite things to do with my friends, because many of us create online content.
For your coworking session, invite your friends to bring their laptops and simply work side by side. If you and your friends are in school, use this opportunity to have a study session.
13. Make a Shared Playlist
Create a shared playlist where everyone adds their favorite songs and those they’ve been loving lately.
14. Take Personality Tests
From love languages to whether you’re more introverted or extroverted, take some online personality quizzes. This is a great way to learn more about yourself and you and your friends can share your results.
15. Have a Painting Night
Grab some paint, canvases, and brushes and host a painting night. You can all paint whatever you feel like or follow a step by step painting tutorial together.
16. Have a Dinner Party
Let’s be real, going out to dinner can get expensive, which is why hosting dinner parties at home is such a great alternative. Instead of going to a restaurant, make dinner and invite your friends over.
CHECK OUT: 33 Themed Dinner Party Ideas Your Guests Will Absolutely Love
Creative Things to do With Friends
17. Take a Class Together
When it comes to creative things to do with friends, taking a class together is a fun option, especially if there’s something you’ve always wanted to try.
It could be something like a candle making workshop, pottery class, cooking class, or any other hands-on experience.
18. Have Themed Parties
From hosting a 2000s themed party, to teaming up with someone and dressing up as an iconic duo, themed parties are such a creative thing to do with friends.
And don’t let the word *party* scare you into thinking it has to be something super elaborate or expensive. You can make it as simple or as extra as you want. At the end of the day, the basic framework of a great party is pretty simple: people, food, and games. And honestly, that alone is enough to create an amazing time together.
19. Have a Craft Night
If you’re looking for a hands-on activity to do with friends, consider having a craft night. It could be anything from making vision boards and jewelry to creating your own scrapbook or even hand sewing hair scrunchies.
20. Run a Marathon
If you and your friends are looking for a challenge, consider signing up for a marathon together.
21. Play a Sports Activity Together
Another active thing that you can do with friends is play a sport together. This could be anything like playing tennis, pickleball, volleyball, or basketball.
It doesn’t have to be super competitive either. You can simply play for fun, get some movement in, and enjoy spending time together.
22. Go to the Gym
Since we’re on the topic of moving your body, going to the gym is another thing that you guys can do together. If you or one of your friends have a gym membership that allows guests, definitely take advantage of it and invite each other to join for a workout session.
This is especially helpful if you struggle with staying motivated to work out on your own. Having a workout buddy can make the gym feel way more fun, less intimidating, and can help you stay more consistent with your routine.
23. Spend the Day Together and Vlog It
Spend the day together and vlog the whole experience. This is a great way to capture memories, be silly on camera, and document all the little moments throughout your hangout.
If you want to go the extra mile, you can even edit all the clips into a full vlog and watch it together later.
24. Make a Bucket List Together
Create a shared bucket list of things you and your friends want to do together. This could include restaurants you want to try, places you want to visit, or experiences you want to have.
25. Go Out to Eat
Going out to eat is a classic way to spend time with friends. You can meet up for breakfast, brunch, lunch, or dinner.
26. Start Seasonal Traditions Together
One of the best things I’ve started doing with my best friends over the past few years, is creating seasonal traditions together.
For example, during February we have an annual Galentine’s get together. In the winter, we host a Friendsmas party. And every summer, we either throw a pool party or plan a summer trip.
27. Go to Costco Together
I recently saw a video of a girl going to Costco with her friends to buy groceries in bulk and split everything between them, and I thought it was such a smart idea.
This can be especially helpful if you live alone and don’t want large amounts of food sitting in your fridge or pantry. Instead, you can split both the cost and the groceries with friends.
For example, you could buy a large pack of chicken, portion it into separate bags, and divide it among each other. The same idea works for fruits, veggies, and other meal staples.
28. Go Grocery Shopping Together
Another simple but fun thing to do with friends is grocery shopping together. You can each grab your own cart or share one and shop side by side while running errands.
Walking through the aisles, chatting, and picking out things for the week; can turn an ordinary task into a treasured moment of quality time.
29. Start a Podcast
Start a podcast with your friend(s) and talk about topics you guys genuinely love. You could discuss pop culture, faith, lifestyle topics, favorite products, or anything else you find interesting.
30. Film a YouTube Video
Similar to starting a podcast, you and your friends could film a YouTube video together and share it online.
You could do each other’s makeup, vlog your day, talk about a topic you love, or create challenge style videos.
31. Paint in the Park
Grab your painting supplies, a blanket, and some snacks, then head to the park for a relaxing paint session with your friends.
32. DIY Flower Bouquet Making
Grab a few different flower stems from the grocery store or your local flower shop and host a DIY bouquet making session.
You can also turn it into a flower potluck by having everyone bring their own flowers to share. That way, everyone contributes something different, and you all get to mix and match stems to create your own custom bouquets.
Free Things to do with Friends
33. Go on a Nature Walk
Spend some time outdoors and go on a nature walk with your friends. It could be at a local park, a nature trail, or even just around your neighborhood.
34. Start a Book Club
If you and your friends have been wanting to read more, consider this your sign to start a book club.
It’s a good way to stay motivated, especially if you’ve been struggling to get back into reading. Once you push past that initial challenge, you may find yourself genuinely looking forward to picking up a book again.
Choose a book, whether fiction or nonfiction, read it together, and then meet up at the end of the week or month to talk about it.
CHECK OUT: How To Cultivate A Love For Reading In A Brain Rotting Era
35. Volunteer in Your Community
Whether it’s at an animal shelter, homeless shelter, church, or local library, look for volunteer opportunities in your community and consider serving together with your friends.
36. Go to the Library
When it comes to third spaces, I genuinely love the library. It’s such an underrated place because it offers a quiet environment to work, read, and simply slow down.
If you and your friends want a productive but relaxing hangout, go to the library together. You can cowork, study, browse for books, or simply enjoy the free resources available to you.
37. Play “How Well Do You Know Each Other?” Trivia
Come up with a list of trivia questions about yourself, like your favorite things, random facts, or personal preferences, and have your friends do the same.
You can each create your own personalized set of questions or come up with one shared list for everyone to answer.
Then, take turns guessing each other’s responses to see how well you really know one another.
For example, you could ask questions like:
- What’s my favorite dessert?
- Am I more of a sweet or savory person?
- Who was my celebrity crush growing up?
38. Go to Each Other’s Homes and Help Clean and Organize
Okay, raise your hand if you’ve ever fallen behind on cleaning or organizing your space. I feel like almost all of us can relate because life gets busy, and sometimes keeping up with everything feels overwhelming.
One creative thing you can do with friends, is create a rotation where you help each other clean and organize your homes. One week you can go to your friend’s house, and the next week they can come to yours.
Not only does this help make cleaning feel less overwhelming. But it’ll also give you time to catch up, chat, and lean into the beauty of community while taking care of your spaces.
39. Outdoor Yoga
Grab your yoga mats, head to the park, and have an outdoor stretching session with your friends.
Fun Things to do with friends on the weekend
40. Go to Local Events in Your City
When it comes to things to do with friends on the weekend, one of my favorite ideas is to go to local events. From festivals to concerts, check out your city’s website, social media pages, or platforms like EventBrite to find upcoming events.
41. Get Your Nails Done
Go to the nail salon and get your nails done with your besties.
42. Head to the Museum
Whether it’s a science, art, or history museum, I love a good museum day with friends. There’s something so fun about learning new things, exploring interesting exhibits, and letting your inner child light up with curiosity and excitement.
If you feel the same way too, plan a museum day. Or you can also visit an aquarium or zoo.
43. Go to the Movie Theater
If there’s a movie you and your friends have been wanting to see, grab some tickets and enjoy watching it together on the big screen.
44. Grab Ice Cream
From going to the grocery store and grabbing a pint, to going to an ice cream shop; grab some ice cream with your friends.
45. Go on a Run
Run clubs have become so popular lately, and it’s easy to see why. They’re a great way to build community while also staying active.
If you and your friends want to move your bodies more, consider starting your own mini run club and going for runs together. If running feels too intense, you could also create a walk club and enjoy walks around your city instead.
46. Go on a Day Trip
Plan a day or weekend trip to a nearby city and explore new attractions and sights.
47. Go on a Bike Ride
Whether you ride through your neighborhood, a local park, or along a scenic trail, go biking with your peeps.
48. Host a BBQ Cookout
Fire up the grill, prepare some good food, play music, and enjoy being outside together with a backyard BBQ.
49. Go Hiking
If you and your friends enjoy nature and long walks, go on a hike together.
Fun Things to do With Friends When You’re Bored
50. Make a Music Video
When it comes to fun things to do with friends when you’re bored, I love activities that feel super chill, carefree, and a little silly, and making a music video definitely fits that vibe.
You can film your music video right at home or head to a location. Pick a song you all love, play it in the background, and act out different scenes as if you’re starring in your own music video. Sing along, dance, be dramatic, and don’t be afraid to have fun with it.
Once you’re done filming, edit all the clips together and you’ll have your very own music video to look back on.
51. Run Errands Together
Sometimes finding time to hang out with friends can feel hard because life gets busy with errands, work, school, and everyday responsibilities.
So instead of waiting for the perfect time, invite your friends into the errands you already need to do. Whether you need to go grocery shopping or stop at a few stores, doing it together can make an everyday task feel way more enjoyable.
52. Wash Your Cars Together
If you enjoy hand washing your car, invite a friend over and wash your cars together.
53. Bake and Decorate Cupcakes
Another thing to do with friends when you’re bored, is baking and decorating cupcakes.
You can make them from scratch or use a boxed mix, then grab frosting and different toppings to decorate them however you want.
54. Watch a Movie or Show
Invite your friends over, get cozy on the couch, and watch a movie or binge a show together.
Or, if you’re all at home, you can still watch together while on video chat so everyone can react to the funny, shocking, or dramatic moments in real time.
55. Create Pinterest Boards
From outfit inspo to dream home ideas or even future wedding inspiration, create Pinterest boards together with friends.
56. Take Advantage of Seasonal Activities
From hanging out by the pool, to going to a fair, or visiting a pumpkin patch; take advantage and do seasonal activities with your friends.
CHECK OUT: 60 Things To Do In The Summer With Friends
57. Write a Story
Tap into your creative side and write a story together. You can take turns writing different parts, create characters, and build a fun storyline as a group.
58. Have a Photoshoot
Plan a fun photoshoot with your friends and capture some cute memories together.
59. Have a Play Date With Your Pets
If you and your friends have pets, arrange a play date for them.
60. Have a Pajama Party
Pajama parties aren’t just for kids and teens. They can still be so much fun as adults. Put on cozy pajamas, make snacks, and come together for some cozy activities. Like baking cookies, playing card games, and watching movies.
61. Play “Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?”
Turn your hangout into a fun trivia night by playing “Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?”
CHECK OUT: 150 Are You Smarter Than A 5th Grader Questions
62. Color
Grab some coloring pages or a coloring book and have a coloring session with your friends.
63. Go to a Theme Park
If you and your friends love roller coasters or simply enjoy the fun atmosphere of a theme park, consider planning a trip together.
Being Florida natives, my friends and I love visiting Universal Orlando Resort and Walt Disney World Resort, but there are so many other amazing theme parks to explore depending on where you live or where you’ve always wanted to visit. You have places like Dollywood and Six Flags, along with many other parks across the U.S.
64. Tie Dye Shirts
Head to Walmart or your favorite craft store, grab some plain white T shirts and a tie dye kit, and spend the day making custom shirts together.
65. Customize Sweatshirts
Another fun craft idea is customizing sweatshirts with your friends. Grab some plain sweatshirts from a craft store along with iron on patches, stickers, or fabric paint and design them however you want.
66. Watch a Play
If you enjoy theater or live performances, consider going to watch a play with your friends.
67. Go to a Concert
If your favorite band or artist is coming to town, grab tickets and go to the concert together as a friend group.
68. Go to Church
Invite your friends to come to church with you, especially if they don’t currently have a home church or if your church is hosting a special event.
69. Watch a Sports Game
From baseball to basketball to football season, invite your friends over, make snacks, and watch a game together at home.
70. Go to a Sports Game
Whether it’s professional sports, college games, or even a local high school football game, go to a sports game with your friends.
