Retirement, an empty nest or a move can suddenly leave a lot of open hours in the week. A hobby fills them with something to look forward to, and the right one can give a sense of progress, a reason to get out, and people to share it with.
Here are 30 hobbies for seniors, grouped by what they offer, with notes on cost and effort, followed by tips for actually getting started.
Creative Hobbies
- Painting or drawing. Watercolor kits are inexpensive and forgiving. Many libraries and community centers run beginner classes.
- Knitting, crochet or sewing. Portable, sociable in a group, and you end up with gifts.
- Writing a life story. One memory a week adds up to a family treasure. Our list of reminiscence questions makes good prompts.
- Photography. A phone camera is enough. Try a "photo a day" theme.
- Pottery or clay. Satisfying for hands, and many studios have daytime classes.
- Scrapbooking or photo albums. A good way to sort old photos and label who's who.
- Singing in a choir. Community choirs welcome all voices and rarely audition beginners.
Learning Hobbies
- A new language. Short daily practice works better than long sessions. See learning a new language after 60.
- A musical instrument. The ukulele and keyboard are friendly places to start.
- Family history. Census records, old letters and conversations with relatives make a fascinating puzzle.
- Free online courses. Many universities and museums offer free courses on history, art and science.
- Local history. Join a historical society or volunteer at a museum.
- Puzzles and brain games. Crosswords, sudoku and word games are cheap and endlessly varied. Try our beginner's guides to easy sudoku and large print crosswords.
Outdoor and Active Hobbies
- Gardening. From a full plot to a few pots on a windowsill. Raised beds save bending.
- Walking groups. Regular, social and easy to join. Many are run by parks departments, health services or community groups.
- Birdwatching. Needs only a window or a park, a cheap pair of binoculars and a field guide.
- Swimming or water aerobics. Gentle on joints.
- Tai chi or gentle yoga. Often offered at senior centers with seated options. See exercise for brain health after 65.
- Dancing. Ballroom, line dancing or a weekly tea dance combines music, movement and company.
- Fishing or bowls. Slow-paced, outdoors, and often with a club attached.
Social Hobbies
- Card and board game clubs. Bridge, rummy, mahjong and chess clubs meet in libraries and community centers. See card games for seniors.
- Book clubs. Many libraries run them, some with large print copies.
- Volunteering. Reading with children, helping at a food bank, or guiding at a museum.
- Cooking with friends. Take turns hosting a monthly meal with a theme.
- Grandparent activities. Regular time with grandchildren, near or far. Games for grandparents and grandchildren has 20 ideas.
Low-Cost and Seated Hobbies
- Reading, including audiobooks and large print from the library.
- Indoor plants or herbs on a sunny windowsill.
- Letter writing or pen pals, including programs that connect older adults with students.
- Jigsaw puzzles, with piece counts that suit the eyes and the table.
- Short daily brain games on a tablet or computer, for a few calm minutes each day.
For more seated ideas, see activities for seniors with limited mobility.
How to Start (and Keep) a New Hobby
- Look back. What did you love at 10 or 20? Hobbies we enjoyed young often come back easily.
- Start with one or two. Trying too many at once can feel like a timetable. The National Institute on Aging suggests adding one or two activities at a time, and says they should feel fun, not stressful.
- Give it three or four weeks. The first sessions of anything new are the most awkward.
- Find a group. The library, community center, senior center, place of worship or local paper lists clubs and classes. A group also gives a reason to go on a cold Tuesday.
- Put it in the calendar. A fixed time makes a hobby a habit.
- Mix it up. One creative, one active and one social hobby give the week shape.
What the Research Says About Hobbies
A 2023 study in Nature Medicine pooled data from more than 93,000 people aged 65 and over in 16 countries. People with a hobby reported fewer symptoms of depression and higher happiness, self-rated health and life satisfaction, and the pattern was similar from country to country. Because the study observed people rather than assigning hobbies, it can't prove the hobby caused these differences: people who feel better may simply be more likely to take one up.
What we can say is that hobbies are a pleasant, low-risk way to fill the week, meet people and keep learning. They aren't a treatment and they don't prevent dementia. If someone has lost interest in things they used to love, that's worth mentioning to a doctor, since it can be a sign of low mood.
A Few Minutes of Brain Games as a Hobby
Some people like a small daily ritual alongside bigger hobbies: the crossword with morning coffee, or a short game before bed. SilverMind, our own app, is built for exactly that: three calm exercises a day, about six minutes in total, with large text and no ads. Eight exercises are free for good. It runs on iPhone and iPad, or in any web browser at silvermind.app/play with nothing to install.
For Adult Children
If you're trying to help a parent find a hobby, offer to go along to the first class or club meeting, or give a hobby as a gift: a set of paints, a class voucher or a gardening kit. Our guide to activities for seniors living alone has more ideas for parents who spend a lot of time on their own.
Research & References
- Hobby engagement and mental wellbeing among people aged 65 years and older in 16 countries - Mak et al., Nature Medicine, 2023
- Participating in Activities You Enjoy As You Age - National Institute on Aging
