Free parties and club nights in New York City
Attention, thrifty night owls! Discover lively free parties and club nights in NYC that won’t break the bank.
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Free things to do today
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Free dance
Free things to do in NYC: Your guide to gratis entertainment
Hitting a club in this town need not cost a pretty penny. Or even a penny, for that matter. Check out these free parties and soirees, which specialize in everything from house to non-dance-music genres like punk and keep kicking well into the night.
RECOMMENDED: Full list of free things to do in NYC
Nouveau York
- Critics choice
- Free
Nouveau York hosts Neil Aline and Jérôme Viger-Kohler keep the fun coming up in the Standard Hotel's penthouse boîte, with Aline and top guests (the likes of DJ Harvey, DJ Kaos and Jimmy Edgar have played in the past) hitting the decks for a session of house, disco and more.
Mobile Mondays! 45s
- Price band: 2/4
- Critics choice
- Free
Start out your week with a wide-ranging regimen of funk, soul, rock, punk, new wave, pop, salsa, calypso, reggae, rhythm & blues, disco and anything else that's danceable, spun (on 45-rpm vinyl) by Just Blaze, DJ Misbehaviour, $$$ Mike, Operator EMZ, Joey C, Natasha Diggs and guests. Miss Rebecca and Snkr Joe are the evening's hosts.
- The Bowery Electric 327 Bowery, between 2nd and 3rd Sts
- Mon May 20
Toca Tuesdays
- Critics choice
- Free
Mixtape maestro Tony Touch is on the wheels of steel at the intimate Sutra every Tuesday, spinning hip-hop, funk, reggae, house and more. Major-league guests regularly roll through to wreck the decks.
Dark Water
- Critics choice
- Free
This weekly soiree pays homage to all things dark including goth, ’80s new wave, punk, industrial and EBM, spun by resident DJs Spaz and Cage; Father Vincent is the evening's host.
- Otto’s Shrunken Head 538 E 14th St, between Aves A and B, 10009
- Tue May 21
Spunknik
- Critics choice
- Free
The Antitwink brings you this debauched weekly affair with rotating drag hosts. Cheap booze ensures the best kind of sloppiness occurs.
- Eastern Bloc 505 E 6th St, between Aves A and B
- Tue May 21
Buddies
- Critics choice
- Free
DJ Damian reigns at this casual weeknight get-together, spinning an eclectic set of underground dance, funk, punk, ’80s and rock for the fuzzy, beer-loving guys who pack in every week.
Boybox
- Critics choice
- Free
Bianca Del Rio is your host and Cazwell is your DJ at this male burlesque escapade. Come stocked with plenty of singles.
The Will Clark Show
- Critics choice
- Free
Clark hosts this weekly fund-raiser, consisting of bingo, booze and porn-star worship. Ever-changing guests keep things interesting. For more information, go to willclarkworld.com.
- Uncle Charlie's Piano Bar and Lounge 139 E 45th St, between Third and Lexington Aves, 10017
- Wed May 22 - Thu May 23
Happy Hour with Pat Pervert
- Free
This after-work unwind for the alternative set has Pat Pervert spinning punk, psychobilly, goth, new wave and industrial at the never-ordinary Otto's.
- Otto’s Shrunken Head 538 E 14th St, between Aves A and B, 10009
- Thu May 23 - Fri May 24
Move Your Mule
- Critics choice
- Free
This party, named for a song by the Jamaican music pioneer Dandy Livingstone (he sang the original version of “A Message to You, Rudy”), features selectors DJ Agent Jay and Johnny Metro spinning new and vintage ska, reggae, dub and rocksteady, with the occasional live act making Otto’s feel kind of like a Kingston bashment affair.
- Otto’s Shrunken Head 538 E 14th St, between Aves A and B, 10009
- Thu May 23

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