Free Museum Days in Chicago 20 places

DuSable Black History Museum and Education Center

Museums · Washington Park · Garfield (Green)

The nation's oldest independent museum dedicated to African American history, art, and culture, set in a Washington Park building. Rotating and permanent exhibits cover the Great Migration, civil rights, and Black art. Time your visit for a free Wednesday or Sunday.

Clarke House Museum

Museums · Near South Side · Cermak-McCormick Place (Green)

Chicago's oldest surviving house, an 1836 Greek Revival home restored as a museum of the city's earliest days in the Prairie Avenue district. Docent-led tours walk you through period rooms and pioneer life. Free on Wednesdays, otherwise only $10.

McCormick Bridgehouse & Chicago River Museum

Museums · Loop · State/Lake (Brown, Green, Orange, Pink, Purple)

A five-story museum inside the historic bridgehouse of the DuSable (Michigan Avenue) Bridge, where you can watch the gears that raise the bridge and learn how the Chicago River was reversed. Perched right on the Riverwalk, it pairs great river views with pay-what-you-can access.

American Writers Museum

Museums · Loop · State/Lake (Brown, Green, Orange, Pink, Purple)

The American Writers Museum is an interactive museum celebrating American writers and their influence on the nation's culture and history. Engaging digital and hands-on exhibits invite visitors to explore literature across genres and eras.

Swedish American Museum

Cultural centers · Edgewater · Berwyn (Red)

In the historic Andersonville neighborhood, the Swedish American Museum preserves and celebrates Swedish immigrant heritage and culture. It features rotating exhibits, a permanent immigration exhibit, and a children's museum on the top floor.

Richard H. Driehaus Museum

Museums · Near North Side · Chicago (Red)

Housed in the opulently restored 1883 Nickerson Mansion, the Driehaus Museum showcases Gilded Age decorative arts, architecture, and interiors. Ornate rooms filled with period furnishings and stained glass evoke late-19th-century Chicago high society.

Art Institute of Chicago

Museums · Loop · Adams/Wabash (Brown, Green, Orange, Pink, Purple)

One of the world's great art museums, the Art Institute of Chicago holds an encyclopedic collection spanning ancient artifacts to modern masterpieces, including iconic Impressionist and American works. Highlights include Grant Wood's American Gothic and Seurat's A Sunday on La Grande Jatte.

Field Museum of Natural History

Museums · Near South Side · Roosevelt (Red, Green, Orange)

The Field Museum is a premier natural history museum on Chicago's Museum Campus, home to SUE the T. rex, the world's most complete Tyrannosaurus skeleton. Its vast collections span dinosaurs, ancient Egypt, gems, and global cultures.

Shedd Aquarium

Museums · Near South Side · Roosevelt (Red, Green, Orange)

The Shedd Aquarium on Chicago's Museum Campus houses thousands of aquatic animals across habitats from the Caribbean reef to the Amazon and the Pacific Northwest. Exhibits include beluga whales, sea otters, sharks, and an Oceanarium overlooking Lake Michigan.

Griffin Museum of Science and Industry

Museums · Hyde Park · Cottage Grove (Green)

Housed in a grand 1893 Beaux-Arts building in Hyde Park, the Griffin Museum of Science and Industry is the largest science museum in the Western Hemisphere. Signature exhibits include a captured German U-505 submarine, a full-size coal mine, and interactive science displays.

Chicago History Museum

Museums · Lincoln Park · Sedgwick (Brown, Purple)

The Chicago History Museum explores the city's past through immersive exhibits on the Great Chicago Fire, immigration, industry, and civil rights. Collections include costumes, a full-size locomotive, and interactive galleries near Lincoln Park.

Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago

Museums · Near North Side · Chicago (Red)

The Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago is one of the largest contemporary art institutions in the country, presenting bold rotating exhibitions of painting, sculpture, performance, and new media. Just off Michigan Avenue, it champions living and emerging artists.

Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum

Museums · Lincoln Park · Sedgwick (Brown, Purple)

The Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum in Lincoln Park connects visitors with the nature of the Midwest through hands-on exhibits and its popular Judy Istock Butterfly Haven. Outdoor prairie and river gardens complement indoor galleries on ecology and the environment.

Glessner House

Museums · Near South Side · Cermak-McCormick Place (Green)

Designed by architect H.H. Richardson and completed in 1887, Glessner House is a landmark of American residential architecture in the historic Prairie Avenue District. Guided tours reveal its Arts and Crafts interiors and influence on later Chicago architects.

Obama Presidential Center Museum

Museums · Woodlawn · Cottage Grove (Green)

Opened in 2026 in Jackson Park, the Obama Presidential Center is a 19-acre campus centered on a museum tracing the Obama presidency and its legacy of civic engagement. Its public grounds include gardens, a library branch, plazas, and recreational spaces.

International Museum of Surgical Science

Museums · Near North Side · Clark/Division (Red)

Housed in a 1917 Gold Coast mansion modeled on a French chateau, this delightfully macabre museum traces the history of surgery through antique instruments, an apothecary, and paintings of medical milestones. Its oddball charm and lakefront setting make it a memorable solo visit. Time it to a free Tuesday to see it for nothing.

Leather Archives & Museum

Museums · Rogers Park · Loyola (Red)

A one-of-a-kind archive and museum in Rogers Park documenting the history and culture of leather, kink, and LGBTQ+ subcultures through art, artifacts, and ephemera. Serious, scholarly, and unlike anything else in the city, it's aimed squarely at adults. Visit on a Thursday and admission is free.

HERITAGE Museum of Asian Art

Museums · Bridgeport · Sox-35th (Red)

In Chicago's Bridgeport Art District, the HERITAGE Museum of Asian Art showcases archaic and modern jades, imperial porcelains, Chinese snuff bottles, and other works spanning thousands of years. Its Third Friday free nights include a guided gallery tour.

Alliance Française de Chicago

Cultural centers · Near North Side · Chicago (Red)

French cultural center and language school in the Gold Coast, hosting free art exhibitions, a French-language library, and film and cultural events. Some programs require membership or tickets.

Intuit Art Museum

Museums · West Town · Chicago (Blue)

River West museum devoted to intuitive, outsider, and self-taught art, reopened in 2025 after a major expansion. Free for everyone 24 and under and on designated free days.