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Buy Nothing groups help readers give — and take — for free
Thousands of Boston residents are changing the economy and environment in Buy Nothing and Everything Free online communities.
Like many Bostonians at the end of August, Brighton resident Cecelia found herself with an impending September 1 move and a large bedframe she didn’t need in her new home.
The bedframe couldn’t come with her, but it was still in perfectly good condition, so she didn’t want it to end up in the trash, either. She tried to sell it online but for days she dealt with scammers or buyers who seemed initially interested but ghosted after messaging back and forth. Eventually, she turned to the Everything Free Allston/Brighton Facebook group.
“Within 24 hours it was in the car of a very grateful single mom,” she told Boston.com. “Because of the time crunch of moving out Aug 31st, I was worried I’d end up having to throw a perfectly good bedframe in a dumpster, so I was relieved that I could give it away.”
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In recent years, Everything Free and Buy Nothing groups have grown popular here in Boston and nationwide. Like the names suggest, everything offered in these online communities is entirely free. Members declutter their homes and offer up household items, non-perishable foods, books, and more in the hopes that their used treasures will find another life with a neighbor in need.
We asked Boston.com readers if they were active in their local Buy Nothing groups and the answer was an enthusiastic yes from readers in South Boston, Allston-Brighton, Mission Hill, Tyngsborough, Stoughton, and more.
“I love Buy Nothing. I post things I would have thrown out in the past or share whatever I may have an abundance of. Times are hard for too many. People post food, clothes, and household things that can make all the difference in a family’s life. When in need, all you have to do is ask. It is how I wish the whole world would be,” shared Colleen S. from Leominster.
A grassroots community movement
The official Buy Nothing Project began in 2013 as a Facebook group for neighbors in Bainbridge Island, Washington. The idea was to encourage members to recycle household items rather than throw them away and buy new ones. Similar groups quickly formed across the country and the globe. In Massachusetts alone, there are over 200 local groups, including more than a dozen in Boston.
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The vast majority of these groups are grassroots efforts started by community members trying to fill a need. One of those people is David Baker, who became an administrator for a group in Halifax after learning about the Buy Nothing Project from his wife. She had previously been a member of a Stoughton group where she’d given away her children’s clothing as they grew out of it. When they moved to Halifax, Baker found a similar group with only 30 members and started to spread the word among friends and neighbors.
The group quickly grew to more than 1,000 members giving away kitchenware, electronics, baby items, and more. One of the group’s greatest benefits was creating stronger bonds within the town, according to Baker.
“It’s a good way to get to know your neighbors,” he said. “If you live on a busy road, you can put stuff out with a free sign and someone’s gonna stop and grab it but you’re not gonna know that person, you’re gonna get to say hi. This was a way to make connections within the community and maybe not feel so isolated.”
Baker is no longer an administrator of the Halifax Facebook group but is now a volunteer community builder for the Buy Nothing Project’s official app. On the app, people can give and take from a broader network of people who may not be on Facebook, Baker said.
Lending a hand to neighbors in need
If you make a Buy Nothing or Everything Free group in your neighborhood, the people will come.
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The groups became especially popular on Facebook during pandemic lockdowns as people turned to neighbors for essential items like cleaning supplies, toilet paper, and masks. Then lockdowns lifted, inflation rose, and the groups continued to crowdsource items for people in need. Many members would say Buy Nothing has gone beyond the official organization and become a real homegrown movement.
Pierrney Jadah Bloom, the creator and administrator of Buy Nothing Boston, said she wasn’t even aware there was an app behind the online communities when she created her Facebook group at the start of the pandemic. Close to 21,000 people have joined the group in the last three years.
As a first-generation Haitian immigrant, Bloom and her family relied heavily on secondhand items from community members when she was growing up. Now that she’s in a position to give back, she’s found Buy Nothing Boston to be a great space to lend a hand. She rarely sees an item, no matter how small or seemingly random, go unclaimed.
“There’s a lot of us out here that is struggling and we don’t really want to talk about it,” she said. “Instead of throwing things away, there’s always someone out there that’s in need of it. Before you throw it away, just post it. You’ll be surprised who can use your stuff.”
Reduce, reuse, recycle
A big draw of these online communities is their environmental impact. Not only are readers saving money by getting items for free, they’re also reducing the amount of trash in their communities.
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Ellen M. from South Boston said she’s used her Buy Nothing group to “part with items I no longer use or need, and have benefitted from getting items that we can use.”
“It’s a great way to keep things out of the landfill that are still useable,” she said. “If more people became involved with these groups, it would significantly reduce the amount of curbside discards we see on the streets of Boston each week, especially at the beginning and end of each month when people are moving. It fits right into the philosophy that we should all be following…reduce, REUSE, recycle!”
Local leaders are pushing Massachusetts towns to be more environmentally conscious, and in the past, Boston.com readers have shared their own concerns about the fate of their communities because of climate change. Shashank from Andover said Buy Nothing groups can play a small part in getting individuals involved in reducing waste.
“These groups promote community living by reducing the industrial churn and carbon footprint, recycling usable things in the community, making their shelf life longer,” she said. “Community benefits from the availability of so many good things without the need to buy them new or even go to a thrift store.”
Putting people first
Monica from Somerville has gotten some great finds from her group — including a keyboard and mouse, a Kindle, and a Nespresso machine — but she said she stays in the group because she enjoys “the community aspect and how it makes me feel closer to my neighborhood.”
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For most Buy Nothing and Everything Free groups, the rules of participation can be boiled down to two concepts: Give freely and respect your neighbors. Eva R. from Allston is more than happy to comply. She is one of several readers who said she’s in Buy Nothing groups more to give than to receive.
“People are so eager and often so appreciative for receiving the items,” she told Boston.com. “I enjoy knowing that my stuff is going to people who could give it a nice re-home instead of throwing out old items.”
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