Kids Eat Free at IHOP — Here's How It Works

“Kids eat free” restaurants aren’t as widespread as they used to be, but you definitely have options — and IHOP has one of the most accessible. Every day at IHOP, kids can eat free with the purchase of an adult entree. We’ll tell you what you have to order, what the best deals are, and how it all works.

The IHOP Kids Eat Free menu is one of the many IHOP deals that will get you discounted pancakes, including the IHOPPY Hour menu, joining the IHOP Rewards program and the IHOP receipt survey.

Here’s how you can get your free kids’ meal from IHOP:

NOTE: Because IHOP locations are franchised, meaning individually owned, some restaurants won’t offer a kid’s-eat-free meal or have slight variations of the deal.

Purchase an adult entree, get a free kids’ meal at IHOP daily from 4 PM – 10 PM

In order to be eligible for the IHOP Kids Eat Free meal, you’ll need to order at least one adult entree from 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. (The cheapest adult entree that you can get to qualify for the free Kids Eat Free meal is the Belgian Waffle for $9.79.). You’ll only be eligible for one free kids meal for every adult entree that you purchase.

Make sure to contact your local IHOP to see if they are participating in this deal.

Note: None of the IHOPPY Hour menu items qualify for the Kids Eat Free meal, nor can any discounts from the IHOP Rewards program can be used.

Kids 12 and under can pick between seven different menu items.

Once the adult qualifies, kids 12 and younger can pick between a set list of seven menu items. Here they are, along with their regular menu prices:

• Silver Five (reg. $5.99): five mini pancakes, one scrambled egg, and one bacon strip.

• Jr. Chicken & Waffles (reg. $5.99): two chicken strips and half a Belgian waffle.

• Jr. Cheeseburger (reg. $6.29): a small burger served with applesauce.

• Jr. Cupcake Pancake Combo (reg. $6.29): pancake with rainbow sprinkles, one scrambled egg, one bacon, and one sausage link.

• Jr. Chicken Strips Combo (reg. $6.69): two chicken strips served with applesauce or french fries.

• Funny Face Pancake Combo (reg. $6.29): chocolate pancake with chocolate chips topped with whipped cream and cherries. Served with a side of one scrambled egg, one bacon strip, and one sausage link.

• Macaroni & Cheese (reg. $6.29): macaroni and cheese served with applesauce.

For best value, order the Belgian Waffle and the Jr. Chicken Strips combo.

The Belgian Waffle is the cheapest qualifying adult entree on the menu at $9.79, and the highest value free kids meal is the Jr. Chicken Strips Combo at $6.69.

This is your most optimized pairing for IHOP Kids Eat Free, since you’ll be spending $9.79 for $16.48 worth of food — a 40.6% discount!

And the worst you could do is a 26% discount. The most expensive item that you can get on the adult entree menu is the Sirloin Salisbury Steak for $16.99. And with the lowest value free kids’ meal (the Silver Five or the Jr. Chicken & Waffles for $5.99), you’d be spending a total of $16.99 for $22.98 worth of food — still 26% off!

Cut down on the price of your adult entree with a discounted IHOP gift card.

The IHOP Kids Eat Free deal offers big discounts, so it’s probably not a surprise that they won’t take any other discounts or coupons to cut down on your price. But that doesn’t apply to gift cards; you can always use a discounted gift card to reduce your total out-of-pocket spend.

We’ve seen discounts of up to 17.6% on IHOP gift cards at Raise.com, which means you’ll pay $8.24 for a gift card with $10 on it. That’s how you reduce the price of your IHOP adult entree.

If there aren’t any gift cards on Raise.com, you can always use your Target RedCard to get a 5% discount on all your gift card purchases, including IHOP gift cards. It’s one of the many benefits of having a Target RedCard.

Tip: With a discounted gift card, your $9.79 minimum spend (see previous tip) would only cost you $8.24 for the $10 gift card — and you’d still have some change left for your next visit. Getting $16.48 worth of food for only $8.24 now becomes a 50% total discount on your IHOP bill.

The IHOP Kids Eat Free deal is not available for online orders.

Unfortunately, the IHOP Kids Eat Free deal is not available when you purchase an adult entree online. You won’t be able to make a carryout order or delivery order with this deal.

If you’re looking for more ways to save on delivery, we know everything that you need to know about the cheapest delivery apps.