Bored, however on a finances? Here’s a listing of Chicago’s free museum days for summer time

Now that the canine days of summer time are ample, so are free Chicago museum days.

Whether you’re in search of an affordable exercise for the youngsters or craving a brand new expertise, town’s museum scene has bought one thing for everybody.

Some Chicago museums and cultural establishments are all the time free for police, academics, active-duty personnel and veterans of the U.S. navy or kids below the age of 12. Be certain to verify on-line for which museums require a reservation, too.

Here is a listing of free museum days in Chicago for summer time 2026.

• Adler Planetarium, 1300 S. DuSable Lake Shore Dr. Free for Illinois residents on July 8 and 15, Aug. 26 and Sept. 8-10 and 14-15; adlerplanetarium.org.
• Art Institute of Chicago, 111 S. Michigan Ave. Free for Illinois residents on Thursdays (July 9, 16, 23, 30 and Aug. 6, 13, 20, 27) from 5 to eight p.m.; artic.edu.
• Chicago History Musuem, 1601 N. Clark St. Free for Illinois residents on July 15, Aug. 13 and 27 and Sept. 7 and 24; chicagohistory.org.
• DuSable Black History Museum and Education Center, 740 E. 56th Pl. Free for Illinois residents each Wednesday (July 8, 15, 22, 29 and Aug. 5, 12, 19, 26); dusablemuseum.org.

• Field Museum, 1400 S. Lake Shore Dr. Free for Illinois residents each Wednesday (July 8, 15, 22, 29 and Aug. 5, 12, 19, 26); fieldmuseum.org.
• Griffin Museum of Science and Industry, 5700 S. DuSable Lake Shore Dr. Free for Illinois residents on Aug 24-27 and 31 and Sept. 1-2, 8-10, 15-16, 20-23, and 27-30; griffinmsi.org.
• Heritage Museum of Asian Art, 3500 S. Morgan St. Free admission on the third Friday of every month (July 10, 17, 24, 31 and Aug. 7, 14, 21, 28); heritageasianart.org.
• Museum of Contemporary Art, 220 E. Chicago Ave. Free for Illinois residents on Tuesdays (July 7, 14, 21, 28 and Aug. 4, 11, 18 and 25) from 5 to 9 p.m.; mcachicago.org. Every Tuesday by way of Aug. 25, the MCA places on a free contemporary jazz live performance.
• Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum, 2430 N. Cannon Dr. Free for Illinois residents on July 20-22, Aug. 24-26, and Sept. 8-11, 14-18, 21-25 and 28-30; naturemuseum.org.
• Shedd Aquarium, 1200 S. DuSable Lake Shore Dr. Free for Illinois residents from 5 to 9 p.m. on July 7, 14 and 28 and Aug. 4, 11, 18 and 26; sheddaquarium.org.
• Swedish American Museum, 5211 N Clark St. Free admission each second Tuesday of the month (July 14 and Aug. 11); swedishamericanmuseum.org.

Museums which are free year-round: