Des Moines Children's Museum
Museums for All Admission: $2.00 (present your EBT or WIC card for reduced admission) Consider signing up for Museums for All discount card, so as we raise funds we can create a Museums for All membership.
Free museum days 2027Des Moines · Iowa’s capital
Free museum and zoo days in Des Moines, 2027.
Free and nearly free ways into Des Moines museums and zoos in 2027, each one checked on the venue’s or program’s own page: one Bank of America Museums on Us partner and three Museums for All or EBT discounts. Every row says who gets in, so you know before you go.
Every week or month
Regular free days at Des Moines museums and zoos
No regular free day posted yet.
Email me when it’s postedWe haven’t found a Des Moines museum or zoo that posts a regular free day for everyone. The programs below still get many families in free or for a few dollars.
Bank of America cardholders
Museums on Us in Des Moines
Active Bank of America, Merrill and Private Bank credit or debit cardholders get one free general admission on the first full weekend of each month. Bring the card and a photo ID; it covers the cardholder only. Bank of America’s partner list ↗
PlaceDaysWhenLink
Bank of America posts each weekend on its partner page; the next ones are under Coming up below. We don’t list 2027 weekends until Bank of America posts them.
SNAP and EBT
Museums for All and EBT discounts in Des Moines
Museums for All gives families receiving SNAP benefits free or reduced admission with an EBT card and photo ID. Each venue sets its own price and group size, quoted from its page below. About Museums for All ↗
EBT discount
Science Center of Iowa
We offer a $5 individual admission fee to individuals and families utilizing SNAP, WIC, or Medicaid programs as part of our participation in Museums for All. This rate is offered for all individuals in the household per EBT card.
Greater Des Moines Botanical Garden
SNAP or WIC EBT card plus ID: free for up to 4.
Before 2027
Free days coming up this year
Dated free days still ahead in the next few weeks.
Nov7to Dec 6
Bank of America Museums on Us weekend
Science Center of Iowa · Des Moines
- Dates
- Nov 7, Nov 8, Dec 5, Dec 6
- Who gets in
- Free general admission for Bank of America, Merrill and Private Bank cardholders (one per card, with photo ID)
Good to know Only the cardholder gets in free, so bring the card and an ID.
Keep planning
More for little kids in Des Moines
Free things to do in Des MoinesFree days, free events and places that never charge
Indoor play in Des MoinesIndoor playgrounds, toddler times and museums, with prices
Library storytimes in Des MoinesBaby, toddler and preschool storytimes by day and branch
Thanksgiving weekend in Des MoinesParades, turkey trots and what’s open on Thursday
Noon Year’s Eve in Des MoinesKid-friendly countdowns, home by nap
This week in Des MoinesDated outings for ages 0–6, checked every ThursdayGood questions
Free museum days in Des Moines: the FAQ
We haven’t found a museum or zoo in Des Moines that posts a regular free day for everyone yet. Bank of America cardholders get in free on the first full weekend of each month at the places listed below. Families with SNAP (EBT) benefits get free or reduced admission at the places in the EBT section.
Science Center of Iowa is a Bank of America Museums on Us partner. Active Bank of America, Merrill and Private Bank credit or debit cardholders get one free general admission on the first full weekend of each month; bring the card and a photo ID. Bank of America posts each weekend on its partner page.
Yes. Des Moines Children's Museum, Science Center of Iowa, Greater Des Moines Botanical Garden offer free or reduced admission to families with SNAP (EBT) benefits, most through Museums for All. Bring your EBT card and a photo ID; each listing below has the venue’s own price and limits.
Each free day and discount comes from the museum’s, zoo’s or program’s own page and links to it. If a page doesn’t say who gets in, we leave it out. We only list a date, time or price when that page shows it, and anything we can’t confirm stays off. These were last checked Oct 20, 2026, and we recheck them every month. How we choose and check.
Littles Weekly
Free museum days in another city
All 35 cities
- Free museum days in Austin
- Free museum days in Boise
- Free museum days in Buffalo
- Free museum days in Charleston
- Free museum days in Charlotte
- Free museum days in Chattanooga
- Free museum days in Cincinnati
- Free museum days in Cleveland
- Free museum days in Columbia
- Free museum days in Columbus
- Free museum days in Detroit
- Free museum days in Grand Rapids
- Free museum days in Greenville
- Free museum days in Indianapolis
- Free museum days in Kansas City
- Free museum days in Knoxville
- Free museum days in Little Rock
- Free museum days in Memphis
- Free museum days in Milwaukee
- Free museum days in Minneapolis–St. Paul
- Free museum days in Nashville
- Free museum days in New Orleans
- Free museum days in Oklahoma City
- Free museum days in Orlando
- Free museum days in Pittsburgh
- Free museum days in Richmond
- Free museum days in Rochester
- Free museum days in Salt Lake City
- Free museum days in San Antonio
- Free museum days in Spokane
- Free museum days in Tampa
- Free museum days in Tucson
- Free museum days in Tulsa
- Free museum days in Wichita
- All cities on Littles Weekly
Free days, in your inbox.
One short email every Friday morning with the best things to do with little ones in Des Moines that weekend, free days included.
