39 Most Interesting Things to Do When You're Bored in 2024

Searching for fun things to do when you're bored? Our helpful guide is filled with an exciting collection of activities to get you on the upswing in no time.

Boredom can sneak up on you when you're least expecting it, making it a daunting challenge to find things to do when you're bored. What happens when you've exhausted all your go-to activities and you can't seem to shake that blah feeling? What if your options no longer seem so great?

This is the moment when you need a new list of fun and interesting possibilities to choose from. Luckily, you have this guide of things to do when you're bored to help you get started! 

According to the International Society of Boredom Studies, boredom can lead to less than desirable outcomes such as impulsive behaviors and increased risk taking, though it can also lead to contemplation and creativity.

From starting your own seedlings to flying a kite, simple pleasures are sometimes all it takes to snap you out of your sluggish spell. Take a look and see what possibilities there are for things to do when you're bored this year.  

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• Creative Things to Do When You're Bored
• Foodie Things to Do When You're Bored
• Active Things to Do When You're Bored
• Online Things to Do When You're Bored at Home
• Unique Things to Do When You're Bored

Creative Things to Do When You're Bored

1. Get Colorful

You'll never run out of things to do when you're bored with local studios offering paint and sip near you! More like a painting party than a formal art class, these sessions are designed for beginning painters, with teachers who take the pressure off while putting the color on.

Invite your friends to join in these fun group activities for adults. City dwellers will find paint and sip in NYC, paint and sip in Tucson and paint and sip in Atlanta to tap into, as well as courses in smaller cities around the country.

2. Clay Around

There's something liberating about playing with clay that puts pottery for beginners near the top of the list of things to do when you're bored. Discover your talent for using a potter's wheel or get groovy with pinch pots and hand throwing.

Take a spin with pottery classes in Los Angeles, pottery classes in Boston and pottery classes in Chicago for a metropolitan art experience. Wherever you're located, there are pottery classes near you to break the boredom spell.

3. Set Your Inner Artist Free

Getting artful is always a readily available thing to do when you're bored. To maximize your boredom-breaking activities, schedule art classes near you to try everything from life drawing to ceramics.

With art classes in Los Angeles, art classes in Portland and art classes in Boston in the lineup, there are courses coast-to-coast perfect for coaxing out your creative side.

4. Start Rockin' in the Garden

A rock garden is something you can do when you're bored that helps beautify your yard. Gather a selection of rocks from a landscaping outlet or use stones already found on your property.

Then, arrange them in an artful display that lends a sculptural touch to your outdoor space. Add hearty plants to soften the edges and your rock garden is complete! Garden Design has detailed instructions that can help.

5. Get Good Things Growing

You can start seedlings for seasonal plants when your search for things to do when you're bored leads you outdoors. Pick up packets of vegetable or flower seeds that will grow in your climate from your local nursery.

For a fun experiment to do with younger gardeners, take cherry tomatoes, blueberries, and cucumber slices and plant them in small pots filled with potting soil. Add water and sunlight and watch food scraps create entirely new plants!

6. Create a Mosaic

When arts and crafts for adults equate to things to do when you're bored, creating your own mosaic is a great place to start. Head to the hardware store for a plywood plank or frame and tile adhesive.

Then, use pieces of broken ceramics, old plates and even marbles to make a fascinating feature filled with found objects. Be sure to handle sharp-edged pieces carefully.   

7. Try a Home Makeover

If your environment makes finding things to do when you're bored a bit of a challenge, why not start by changing your interiors? A fresh coat of paint is a sure way to freshen up your home space.

Once you have color on the walls, you can make strategic changes with new pillows or artwork or go full-on flip and replace your furniture with more modern pieces.

8. Build Your Own Furniture

You can checkmark both functional and creative things to do when you're bored off your list by taking a swing at building your own furniture pieces. The only limits are your imagination and your budget!

Foodie Things to Do When You're Bored

9. Cook Up a New Dish

Throw on an apron and fire up some cooking classes near you! Local chefs have prepped their stations to show you how to go gourmet in a delicious way.

You'll find cooking classes in Washington, D.C., cooking classes in Chicago, cooking classes in Nashville and locations around the U.S. ready to serve up delicious things to do when you're bored.

10. Heat Up the Internet

Why leave home looking for things to do when you're bored when there are online cooking classes available? Gourmet chefs jump online to share their special recipes in virtual lessons that let you cook in your own kitchen.

It's like watching a cooking show where the host is available to answer your questions in real time!

11. Sip Something Special

If you're looking for things to do when you're bored with a friend, try a virtual wine tasting and discover your next favorite selections.

You'll have masterful guidance from a top-shelf sommelier as you sample a host of vintages and varietals. These sessions are a relaxed at-home way to dip into exceptional wines that are sure to spark your interest.

12. Get Your Mix On

By checking into online mixology classes when looking for things to do when you're bored, you can discover a world of spirits and specialty drinks to make at your own home bar.

Whether you're looking for new sips to savor or searching for classic concoctions, these lessons add a twist of fun to break up your dull patch!

13. Warm Up to Bread Baking

If you've never tried making your own rolls and loaves, adding baking to your collection of things to do when you're bored is sure to break you out of your funk!

This thoughtful culinary practice is simpler than it might seem and makes a fantastic addition to your cold weather winter activities.

14. Play Dinner Roulette

Searching for solo date ideas? Keep a collection of intriguing local restaurants written on index cards and grab one at random. Then, head out on a culinary adventure of flavorful discovery!

Some of the best things to do when you're bored lead to a whole new appreciation of the fabulous food waiting in your community.

15. Invent New Recipes

When foodies ask, "What can I do when I'm bored at home?" inventing new recipes is always the right answer. Try something seasonal that doesn't ordinarily make your menu, like soups and chowders for winter or cool fruit and veggie salads for summer.

If you're a skilled home chef, flavor up your options for things to do when you're bored by adding your own flair to familiar main dishes and sides.

16. Explore Savory Spices

If you're looking for things in the kitchen when you're bored, crack open the spice cabinet and experiment with new flavor combinations.

Simple blends like garlic powder, onion powder and paprika make a fantastic base for adding oregano to make an Italian seasoning or cumin for a more Mexican flavoring mix. Let your intuition guide you or do an internet search for cultural combinations to add a dash of zing to your usual thing.

Active Things to Do When You're Bored

17. Dance Your Feet Off

If dance classes near you don't add a new groove to your list of things to do when you're bored, what will? Each session is conducted by a dance pro who knows how to get your tailfeathers shaking!

With dance classes in Denver, dance classes in Orlando, dance classes in Seattle and other cities around the country, you'll have plenty of opportunities to shake off the doldrums wherever you're located.

18. Have an At-Home Dance Party

Crank up the music and log in from home for online dance classes to shake off the boredom! These expert-led virtual lessons turn your house into a dance studio, amping up the energy while getting you up to speed on the latest moves.

You can also find lessons in classic steps, TikTok trends and favorites like salsa and hip-hop provide things to do when you're bored that are sure to get your pulse racing.

19. Take a Yoga Class

If you come up with 1000 things to do when you're bored, let yoga be at the top of the list! This ancient physical art form is an age-old practice that centers your mind, body and soul through a variety of poses, called asanas.

The gradual progression to more challenging moves will keep you on your toes while driving away the blahs.

20. Try Qigong

For a gentler version of martial arts, qigong can add tranquility to your array of things to do when you're bored. Quigong is the controlled, rhythmic movement of your torso and limbs that gets your energy flowing with zero impact.

Breath, posture and motion combine in fluid poses that clear the cobwebs and bring your well-being back into focus.

21. Hike It Out

When you run out of fun things to do at home, hit the trails and get hiking! Incorporate visits to local parks as part of your staycation ideas and you'll discover a side of nature that reignites your passion for nature without sacrificing serenity.

Go at a slower pace on a gentle path or challenge yourself to scale new heights with a doozy of a trek through the wilderness. With outdoorsy things like this to do when you’re bored, you won't be bored for long!

22. Ride Your Bike

When stagnation sets in, nothing gets you in gear quite like a bike ride! Take the ol' two-wheeler out for a spin in the neighborhood and beyond. If you don't own a bike, research bike shops in your area that rent them and start pedaling.

Choosing things to do when you're bored like bike riding will get you out of your comfort zone and into a whole realm of interesting experiences.

23. Go Fly a Kite

Underestimate the fun of flying a kite at your own risk! Anyone looking for playful things to do when you're bored can head to the nearest discount store, grab a kite and recapture the excitement of childhood in one fell swoop.

Better yet, invite a friend, throw together a picnic and jump into the kite-flying groove for a day of fun in the sun with your special someone.

24. Jump on It

Simple calisthenics and at-home exercises are easy activities to include on your list of things to do when you're bored.

In addition to helping you reach your daily movement goals, these quick and easy workouts stimulate your blood flow and activate your brain, moving you into a better headspace for finding your next boredom-breaking ideas.

Online Things to Do When You're Bored at Home

25. Try Floral Arts

One of the most interesting things to do on the computer when you're bored is take virtual flower arranging classes. Courses cover design principles like structure and balance while demonstrating how to create one-of-a-kind home décor pieces.

You'll learn from expert designers who love showing others how to capture the magic of flower arranging in their own home space.

26. Get in the Game

Tapping into virtual game nights will give you fun activities for friends and family to join in on from wherever they are. These hosted sessions bring laughter with familiar games reimagined for online play.

Fans of odd information can even join online trivia games to test their knowledge of strange facts and fascinating tidbits.

27. Go Hunting Online

Put your search skills to the test with virtual scavenger hunts. Players work their way through a series of clues that lead them around the Information Superhighway searching for landmarks and special sites. It's a boredom-banishing adventure you can take from the comfort of your own home!

28. Make a Great Escape

Bring the excitement of puzzle solving and code decrypting home with virtual escape rooms on your boredom to-do list. You'll dive headlong into a digital escape adventure where the clock is ticking and the tension is building.

Invite a cohort along to make online things to do when you're bored with a friend an even better experience.

29. Plan a Fantasy Vacation

If your summer bucket list ideas include 100 things to do when you're bored, planning a fantasy vacation would be a prime candidate. Check into accommodations, fun excursions and places of interest in a locale that would make the perfect getaway.

Then, map it all out on a spreadsheet and see how possible it might be. You may find out that this kind of fantasy can turn into a reality!

30. Create a Family Tree

Discovering your roots by researching your family's heritage is a rewarding way to turn things to do when you're bored on the computer into meaningful engagement.

Sites like Ancestry let you search for relatives and retrieve census information, birth certificates and other fascinating documents. Once you locate your ancestors, map them on a family tree to share with your clan.

31. Tap into TED Talks

Exploring the back catalog of TED Talks can lead you in exciting new directions that get you out of your boredom and into a new state of mind.

The site contains a listing of quick videos from experts in fields like technology, education and ecology, all sharing their meaningful experiences and key life moments. Spending an hour or two tapping into the internet brain trust of these fascinating humans is a sure cure for ho-hum doldrums.

32. Learn a New Language

With Duolingo, learning a new language is as easy as downloading the free app. Game-like lessons make it fun and easy to pick up vocabulary and usage.

With badges and rewards available for hitting daily goals, you have inspiration a-plenty to keep your streak running throughout the weeks and months to come.

Unique Things to Do When You're Bored

33. Volunteer Your Time

Giving your time to others can make a difference in their lives and yours. Seek out a local organization like a food bank or a community center that could use a little help.

Start with as little as an hour or two a week to see if your chosen cause is a fit. Once you know what you're in for, up your time spent and see how much of an impact you can have.

34. Take up a New Sport

If your body needs a break from your regular routine, look into a different type of physical activity for a recharge. For organized sports players, this may mean breaking off and doing something solo like jogging or biking instead.

Active folk who are used to engaging alone may find new excitement in joining a team for pickleball or volleyball. This sort of shake-up among your things to do when you're bored can alter your tedious tendencies for the better!

35. Make an Idea Jar

Grab an empty jar, wrap it with a label that reads "Ideas" and fill it with 100 things to do when you're bored at home. You can start with the items on this list!

Add in any creative hobbies you'd love to take up, fun things to do at home, trips you might want to take and household tasks that need doing. Even basic chores become exciting when they're chosen lottery-style.  

36. Minimize Your Stuff

Being bored is a perfect state of mind for losing yourself in a cleansing clean-out of your curious collections. Separate your overflow into piles for keeping, donating to charity and throwing away to minimize all you've accumulated.

You'll be putting your energy to good use, and you'll have a cleared-out space to enjoy when you're finished.

37. Center Yourself

Meditation may seem like taking a nap, but it's actually a prime practice that makes mental space for stillness and serenity. Try closing your eyes while sitting up straight on a couch or comfortable chair while letting your thoughts drift by without responding to them.

Beginners can start with a five-minute session and work their way up to 20 minutes or more in short order.

38. Create a Book Club

If you're looking for fun girls night ideas, creating a book club is a sure-fire activity for breaking out of the boredom cycle. Choose an exciting title, invite your besties and plan a night for discussion with wine and snacks. Be sure to give yourself plenty of time to finish the book beforehand.

39. Explore Your City

As an exercise to learn photography for beginners, head into town and search for interesting subjects for photographs. You can practice using your camera's settings for depth, focus, color and contrast to turn ordinary items into artistic images while developing your photographer's eye.

Few moments in life are more frustrating than trying to come up with exciting things to do when you're bored. But there are also 1000 things to do when you're bored that you likely haven't tried yet. Having a ready selection of activities can help you keep the boredom from sneaking up on you.

In the event that you find yourself at a complete loss for your next move, keep this list handy and give a few of these suggestions a try. You'll have the pep back in your step in no time!

For even more fun activities, check out other experiences happening on Classpop!