Milwaukee County Zoo Free Days

Milwaukee County Zoo is free published dates. The Zoo publishes six Family Free Days for 2026 — January 3, February 7, March 7, October 3, November 7, and December 5 — when admission is free for everyone. It also runs Frosty Free Week, December 26–30, 2026, with free daytime admission. Parking and regular attraction fees still apply on all free days. None required; online tickets save $3 vs. gate on regular days Verified on Milwaukee County Zoo's own page, last checked 2026-09-14.

At a glance

Upcoming free days

• Saturday, Oct 3, 2026 — published by the institution
• Saturday, Nov 7, 2026 — published by the institution
• Saturday, Dec 5, 2026 — published by the institution
• Saturday, Dec 26, 2026 — published by the institution
• Sunday, Dec 27, 2026 — published by the institution
• Monday, Dec 28, 2026 — published by the institution

Dates as published by the institution. Confirm on the official page before you go.

Know before you go

• Who qualifies: everyone — no residency requirement on this one.
• Reservations: None required; online tickets save $3 vs. gate on regular days.
• What's covered: Zoo admission.
• Schedule detail: Family Free Days + Frosty Free Week (Dec 26-30).
• Worth knowing: Free days cluster in the off-season — the first Saturday of Jan-Mar and Oct-Dec — plus a full free week between Christmas and New Year's (Frosty Free Week, Dec 26-30).

Other ways in, no calendar required

• Households with a SNAP EBT card can use Museums for All: free-to-$5 admission for up to four, valid during regular hours at 1,700+ institutions across the country — look up Milwaukee County Zoo on the official participant list.
• Zoo and aquarium memberships travel: the AZA reciprocal program gets members of other accredited zoos free or half-price admission at participating institutions — run your card through our reciprocity lookup before paying the gate rate.

Dates don't line up?

Regular tickets are on milwaukeezoo.org — skip third-party sellers, the official price is the floor. A membership card from another city's museum or zoo might work here too — the reciprocity lookup answers it in one search.

Also free in Milwaukee

Milwaukee Art Museum (thursdays 4pm–8pm (pwyw)) · Milwaukee Public Museum (1st thursday monthly) — or see the full free museum days in Milwaukee guide.

↥ Check another museum →   Browse all free museum & zoo days →

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