Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

People Explain Which Items In Life Should Always Be Free

People Explain Which Items In Life Should Always Be Free
Photo by Levi Ventura on Unsplash

Short of having a shopping addiction, no one actually likes spending money on stuff.

Why would you ever willingly give it away? It's your money!

Which might be why it feels so bad when you have to spend money of something that should be free from the beginning. People/ corporations are going to chase that cheddar, though, so there's little you can do besides complain, which frankly might be the best thing the internet is for.


Reddit user, woodside37, wanted to know what we should never have to pay for again when they asked:

"What should be free?"

Let's get these out of the way first...No, let's get this first one out of the way first.

Hidden fees are the worst.

Hidden. F***ing. Fees.

"Transaction/processing fees when you order a digital product online. Such as a concert ticket, where you pay 6 euro extra while you pay online, and have to print the ticket yourself."

rickmitchel

"Or processing fees to pay bills that you need. Duke energy charges a $7 processing fee for you to pay your energy bill. Like wtf."

CrispyCrunchyPoptart

Pay To Pee

"Public bathrooms! The amount of human piles of poop around because the homeless have no where to relieve themselves!"

AuntyMarcy

"Live in a very tourist-y part of the U.K., all public toilets charge and most cafes/pubs/libraries won’t let people use their toilets. As someone who lives here year round it’s really frustrating and doesn’t seem to make sense."

JonesNewport83

Want A Better Society? Educate Them.

"College. Or at the very least, college APPLICATIONS. If you're gonna require it for most careers, atleast make it accessible for people. And I just think it's stupid that people have to pay to get rejected."

callmeventibcimavent

"Oh god I hate that so much. Same with applying to apartments it’s such a waste of money if you don’t get approved. It racks up quickly too."

Kydra96

It does feel grimy when "official documentation" that is "mandatory" has to be bought and paid for not by the people requiring it, but by the people needing it.

Forcing Us To Pay For Something We're Forced To Have

"ID cards issued by the government. Especially since you need them for almost every aspect of daily living."

waqasnaseem07

"I. Exist."

"Birth certificates"

alexchico3

"I'm not the biggest fan of free stuf but having to pay for a piece of paper that says "I exist" is ridiculous."

Spaghetti-Evan1991

It'll never not feel bad having to pay for something we expect to be free, but it feels ten times worse when it's something you need to get by in life. As in, need to live.

Let's All Agree To Take Care Of Each Other

"All base needs up to a level. I mean stuff we need to survive, eg. power, water,... and things we are required to use to be relevant in daily life internet,..."

"Seeing how now power companies are fuel companies are having THE biggest profit in years while more and more families are pushed into bigger and bigger deths just to get by."

"Same goes for internet tbh, poor kids are just not getting by in school becasue they lack the basic stuff every other kid has to get further in life. I am not saying they need the fastest possible internet with unlimited dl, but give them so they can work for school so the vicious cycle can be broken."

Amelsander

We Need It More Than Anyone

"All mental health services. If you don’t have benefits or a VERY good paying job, they are unaffordable for how often most people really need them. At $120-160/ session even once a week is not affordable for most people these days"

pennylayne77

A Fine Line Between Need And Want

"Water"

selfishnerd77

"Drinking water, sure. But water is an expendable resource and it should honestly be more restricted when we think about cases like people watering their lawns."

I_Am_Become_Dream

Paying To Live

"Insulin. People are dying because of greedy pharmaceutical companies."

Astronimus123

"But We're 'Pro-Life'" - Jerks

"Birth control of all kinds."

"For anyone who b*tches about spending taxpayer money, I'd ask whether it costs more to provide condoms or to house prisoners."

AlexReynard

"Giving birth (In the us)"

z0k0n

"As a female US citizen the more I learn about the whole giving birth sh*t the less I want kids. My friend just had a baby, there were some complications. She is now paying off a 14k hospital bill! The lowest I have hears is 8k. 8k just to have a f-cking kid! For a country that is gung-ho about forcing women to have kids they have missed the mark completely."

Main-Yogurtcloset-82

Everyone is looking for their payout, and unfortunately sometimes we're the ones who have to give it to them, whether it makes sense or not.

Want to "know" more?

Sign up for the Knowable newsletter here.

Never miss another big, odd, funny, or heartbreaking moment again.

More from Trending/best-of-reddit

Winnie Harlow; Whitney Houston
PG/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images; Peter Jordan/PA Images via Getty Images

Model Winnie Harlow Responds To Backlash Over Her Whitney Houston Halloween Look

Model Winnie Harlow is under fire for a controversial Halloween costume depicting one of Whitney Houston's lowest moments—or highest, depending on who you ask.

Harlow is firmly in the latter camp. But many Houston fans online are furious, even after Harlow explained that her intent was to honor the music legend, not mock her.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshot of Donald Trump; Zohran Mamdani
60 Minutes; Andres Kudacki/Getty Images

Trump Dragged After Making Outrageous Comparison To Zohran Mamdani In Viral Clip

President Donald Trump was widely mocked after he asserted during a 60 Minutes interview with Norah O'Donnell that he's "much better-looking" than New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani—a claim that not a soul is taking seriously.

Trump isn't exactly known to be a looker but he has nonetheless declared himself a "perfect physical specimen" and boasted about his physical prowess, once noting that his own White House physician had declared him "healthier than Obama"—despite Trump's distaste for exercise and fondness for fast food.

Keep ReadingShow less
Gavin Newsom; Karoline Leavit
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images; Andrew Harnik/Getty Images

Gavin Newsom Rips Karoline Leavitt After She Says White House Toilet 'Horrified' Her Before Renovation

California Governor Gavin Newsom criticized White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt and the GOP at large after she claimed to have been "horrified" by the toilet in the Lincoln bathroom before President Donald Trump's marble renovation.

Trump shared an update about ongoing renovations aboard Air Force One while en route to Florida for the weekend, even as the federal government remains shut down and his administration continues to refuse to release all of the emergency funds to sustain SNAP food assistance benefits through November.

Keep ReadingShow less
people seated at bar
Hai Nguyen on Unsplash

People Describe The Most Memorable Moments They Had With A Stranger Who They Never Saw Again

Chance encounters can be meaningful, even if you never see the person again.

Maybe they impart some wisdom or restore your faith in humanity or just entertain you for a little while.

Keep ReadingShow less
Jack Schlossberg (left); Julia Fox (right)
Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images; Tiffany Rose/Getty Images for HIM Training Camp

Jackie Kennedy's Grandson Slams Julia Fox's 'Disgusting' JFK Assassination Halloween Costume

Of all the 2025 Halloween costumes in the world—from Labubus to K-pop Warriors to Glindas and Elphabas—Julia Fox went with the one soaked in presidential tragedy.

The Uncut Gems actress arrived at a New York City Halloween party in a replica of the pink Chanel suit worn by First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy on November 22, 1963—the day President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas.

Keep ReadingShow less