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Things to do when you're bored: 188 ideas, plus a button that picks one

Updated October 2026

Scrolling a giant list is its own kind of boring. So start here: press the button and do the first thing it gives you. If you'd rather browse, every idea is sorted below by who you're with, what it costs and how you're feeling.

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Things to do with friends

Ideas for two or more people, from a quick text to a road trip.

  1. Compliment someoneFree2+ peopleTakes minutes
  2. Host a movie marathon with some friends3+ peopleTakes hours
  3. Have a paper airplane contest with some friends4+ peopleTakes minutes
  4. Go swimming with a friend2+ peopleTakes minutes
  5. Have a bonfire with your close friends4+ peopleTakes hours
  6. Have a picnic with some friends3+ peopleTakes hours
  7. Hold a video game tournament with some friendsFree4+ peopleTakes hours
  8. Catch up with a friend over a lunch date2+ peopleTakes hours
  9. Go to a music festival with some friends4+ people
  10. Have a football scrimmage with some friendsFree8+ peopleTakes minutes
  11. Invite some friends over for a game nightFree4+ peopleTakes hours
  12. Text a friend you haven't talked to in a long time2+ peopleTakes minutes
  13. Bake a pie with some friends3+ peopleTakes hours
  14. Go see a Broadway production4+ peopleTakes hours
  15. Go see a movie in theaters with a few friends4+ peopleTakes hours
  16. Go to a concert with local artists with some friends3+ peopleTakes hours
  17. Go to an escape room4+ peopleTakes hours
  18. Have a jam session with your friends5+ peopleTakes hours
  19. Play a game of Monopoly4+ peopleTakes hours
  20. Play a volleyball match with some friendsFree4+ peopleTakes minutes
  21. Take a spontaneous road trip with some friends4+ people
  22. Go to a karaoke bar with some friends4+ peopleTakes hours
  23. Go on a fishing trip with some friends3+ peopleTakes hours
  24. Go to a concert with some friends4+ peopleTakes hours
  25. Play a game of tennis with a friend2+ peopleTakes minutes
  26. Play basketball with a group of friendsFree5+ peopleTakes minutes
  27. Cook something together with someone2+ peopleTakes hours
  28. Have a photo session with some friends4+ peopleTakes minutes
  29. Start a band4+ peopleTakes minutes

Free things to do when you're bored

Zero cost, and most need nothing you don't already have.

  1. Draw something interestingFreeTakes minutes
  2. Explore a park you have never been to beforeFreeTakes hours
  3. Give your pet ten minutes of focused attentionFreeTakes minutes
  4. Learn Morse codeFreeTakes hours
  5. Learn about a distributed version control system such as GitFreeTakes hours
  6. Learn and play a new card gameFreeTakes minutes
  7. Learn how to whistle with your fingersFreeTakes minutes
  8. Learn the NATO phonetic alphabetFreeTakes minutes
  9. Listen to a new music genreFreeTakes minutes
  10. Memorize the fifty states and their capitalsFreeTakes minutes
  11. Plan a trip to another countryFreeTakes hours
  12. Play a video gameFreeTakes hours
  13. Start a daily journalFreeTakes minutes
  14. Take a napFreeTakes minutes
  15. Watch a Khan Academy lecture on a subject of your choosingFreeTakes minutes
  16. Write a list of things you are grateful forFreeTakes minutes
  17. Write a poemFreeTakes minutes
  18. Write a songFreeTakes minutes
  19. Learn to write with your nondominant handFreeTakes minutes
  20. Meditate for five minutesFreeTakes minutes
  21. Plan a vacation you've always wanted to takeFreeTakes minutes
  22. Think of a new business ideaFreeTakes minutes
  23. Make a couch fortFreeTakes minutes
  24. Fill out a basketball bracketFreeTakes minutes
  25. Go for a walkFreeTakes minutes
  26. Go stargazingFreeTakes minutes
  27. Learn how the internet worksFreeTakes minutes
  28. Learn how to french braid hairFreeTakes minutes
  29. Learn how to make an Alexa skillFreeTakes hours
  30. Learn how to write in shorthandFree

Things to do at home

No need to leave the house.

  1. ColorTakes minutes
  2. Create a meal plan for the coming weekFreeTakes minutes
  3. Create a cookbook with your favorite recipesFreeTakes hours
  4. Learn a new recipeFreeTakes minutes
  5. Take a caffeine napTakes hours
  6. Draw and color a MandalaTakes minutes
  7. Make a scrapbook with pictures of your favorite memoriesTakes hours
  8. Shop at support your local farmers marketTakes hours
  9. Start a book you've never gotten around to readingTakes minutes
  10. Take a bubble bathTakes minutes
  11. Take your cat on a walkTakes minutes
  12. Listen to a new podcastTakes minutes
  13. Create a compost pileFreeTakes hours
  14. Teach your dog a new trickTakes minutes
  15. Watch a movie you'd never usually watchTakes hours
  16. Listen to your favorite albumTakes minutes
  17. Make bread from scratchTakes hours
  18. Make homemade ice creamTakes minutes
  19. Make tie dye shirtsTakes hours
  20. Take your dog on a walkFreeTakes minutes
  21. Make a simple musical instrumentTakes minutes
  22. Bake pastries for you and your neighborTakes hours
  23. Bake something you've never tried beforeTakes hours
  24. Find a DIY to doTakes minutes
  25. Fix something that's broken in your houseTakes minutes

Fun things to do alone

For when it's just you.

  1. Try a food you don't likeTakes minutes
  2. Catch up on world newsTakes minutes
  3. Conquer one of your fearsTakes minutes
  4. Go to the gymTakes hours
  5. Make your own LEGO creationFreeTakes minutes
  6. Patronize a local independent restaurantTakes minutes
  7. Practice coding in your favorite lanaguageFreeTakes minutes
  8. Solve a Rubik's cubeFreeTakes hours
  9. Start a blog for something you're passionate aboutTakes hours
  10. Take a hike at a local parkFreeTakes hours
  11. Watch a classic movieTakes hours
  12. Write a short storyFreeTakes hours
  13. Create a personal websiteTakes hours
  14. Binge watch a trending seriesTakes hours
  15. Go to a local thrift shopTakes hours
  16. Learn how to play a new sportTakes minutes
  17. Paint the first thing you seeTakes minutes
  18. Learn how to iceskate or rollerskate
  19. Buy a new house decorationTakes minutes
  20. Learn how to use a french pressTakes minutes
  21. Plant a treeTakes hours
  22. Start a gardenTakes hours
  23. Repaint a room in your houseTakes hours
  24. Start a collectionFreeTakes hours
  25. Visit a nearby museumTakes hours

Learn something new

Bored is a good time to get a little smarter.

  1. Learn how to fold a paper craneTakes minutes
  2. Learn calligraphy
  3. Learn to sew on a buttonTakes minutes
  4. Read a formal research paper on an interesting subjectFreeTakes minutes
  5. Study a foreign languageFree
  6. Take a class at your local community center that interests youFreeTakes hours
  7. Learn about the Golden RatioTakes minutes
  8. Learn to greet someone in a new languageTakes minutes
  9. Learn Express.jsTakes hours
  10. Learn a new programming languageTakes hours
  11. Learn how to make a websiteTakes hours
  12. Learn origamiTakes minutes
  13. Learn the periodic tableFreeTakes hours
  14. Learn how to use an ArduinoTakes hours
  15. Learn GraphQLFreeTakes hours
  16. Learn KotlinFreeTakes hours
  17. Memorize a favorite quote or poemFreeTakes minutes
  18. Learn JavascriptFreeTakes hours
  19. Research a topic you're interested inFreeTakes hours
  20. Start a webinar on a topic of your choiceFreeTakes hours

Productive things to do when bored

Turn the boredom into a finished to-do list.

  1. Clean out your refrigeratorFreeTakes minutes
  2. Configure two-factor authentication on your accountsFreeTakes minutes
  3. Make a bucket listFreeTakes minutes
  4. Organize a bookshelfFreeTakes minutes
  5. Organize a cluttered drawerFreeTakes minutes
  6. Organize your movie collectionFreeTakes hours
  7. Organize your music collectionFreeTakes hours
  8. Organize your pantryFreeTakes minutes
  9. Resolve a problem you've been putting offFreeTakes minutes
  10. Shred old documents you don't need anymoreFreeTakes minutes
  11. Uninstall unused apps from your devicesFreeTakes minutes
  12. Make a to-do list for your weekFreeTakes minutes
  13. Clean out your carFreeTakes minutes
  14. Clean out your garageFreeTakes hours
  15. Create or update your resumeFreeTakes minutes
  16. Make a budgetFreeTakes minutes
  17. Rearrange and organize your roomFreeTakes minutes
  18. Wash your carTakes minutes
  19. Back up important computer filesTakes minutes
  20. Create and follow a savings planFreeTakes minutes
  21. Mow your lawnTakes minutes
  22. Draft your living willFreeTakes hours
  23. Prepare a 72-hour kitTakes minutes
  24. Improve your touch typingFreeTakes hours
  25. Organize your basementFreeTakes hours
  26. Look at your finances and find one way to save moneyFreeTakes minutes
  27. Match your storage containers with their lidsFreeTakes minutes
  28. Organize your dresserFreeTakes minutes

Ways to give back

Volunteering and small kindnesses.

  1. Contribute code or a monetary donation to an open-source software projectTakes minutes
  2. Pick up litter around your favorite parkFreeTakes minutes
  3. Clean out your closet and donate the clothes you've outgrownFreeTakes minutes
  4. Find a charity and donate to itTakes minutes
  5. Volunteer and help out at a senior centerFreeTakes hours
  6. Volunteer at your local food bankFreeTakes hours
  7. Volunteer at your local food pantryFreeTakes hours
  8. Mow your neighbor's lawnFreeTakes minutes
  9. Donate blood at a local blood centerFreeTakes minutes
  10. Volunteer at a local animal shelterTakes hours
  11. Donate to your local food bankTakes minutes

Things to do when bored in class

Quiet, allowed and not going to get you in trouble.

  1. Sketch the room from where you're sitting
  2. Write the first paragraph of a short story
  3. List three questions about today's topic to ask later
  4. Practice calligraphy or a new handwriting style
  5. Memorize a short poem
  6. Learn the sign language alphabet
  7. Reorganize your notes with headings and colors
  8. Set three goals for the rest of the week
  9. Write a thank-you note to a teacher
  10. Plan your weekend, hour by hour

Things to do on the computer

Better than another hour of scrolling.

  1. Take a free typing test and try to beat your speed
  2. Start a free online course in a skill you want
  3. Build a one-page website with plain HTML
  4. Call the Bored API from your browser console
  5. Take a virtual tour of a museum on Google Arts & Culture
  6. Play a geography guessing game
  7. Do a 15-minute lesson on a free language app
  8. Learn the keyboard shortcuts for the apps you use every day
  9. Sort your desktop and photo folders
  10. Watch a documentary on a topic you know nothing about

Questions people ask when they're bored

What are some things to do when bored?

Pick by situation: call or text a friend, cook something new, learn a skill for 15 minutes, tidy one small space, or go for a walk. If choosing is the hard part, use the button at the top of this page and do the first thing it suggests.

What can I do when I'm bored at home?

Try a recipe, start a book, learn a few chords, rearrange a room, plan a trip or do a short workout. The at-home section above has more ideas that don't need you to leave the house.

What can a 12 year old do when they're bored?

Build something (a paper airplane contest, a fort, a model), start a sketchbook, learn a magic trick, bake with a parent, or play a board game with family. Most ideas on this page are kid-friendly; skip the ones that need a car or money.

What should I do if I'm extremely bored?

Change something physical first: stand up, go outside, drink water, then do one small task. Boredom that lasts for weeks and comes with low mood or no interest in things you used to enjoy can be a sign of something more, so it's worth talking to someone you trust or a doctor.

For developers

Every idea on this page comes from the free Bored API. One request returns a random activity as JSON, with filters for type, number of people and price. No key needed. Read the API docs.