Limited-time free items on BOOTH: reading the deadline so you don't miss out
Written by VRC Free Watch · Last updated
Time-limited freebies are the easiest BOOTH items to miss. How creators mark the deadline, how to convert Japan time, which variation is actually free, and what to do once you have it.
Why items are free for a limited time
Many BOOTH creators set an item to ¥0 for a while when they launch something new, when a base avatar gets an update, on a shop anniversary or during an event. It gets the item into more hands and collects likes. When the window closes the price goes back up, so the same item can be free today and cost a few hundred or a few thousand yen tomorrow.
In our daily re-checks these windows are usually short: anything from 24 hours to about a week. "I'll like it now and download it later" often means coming back to a paid page.
How creators write the deadline
BOOTH has no dedicated field for a free period, so the deadline is whatever the creator writes in the title or description. Typical phrasing: 「期間限定無料」 (free for a limited time), 「○月○日まで無料」 (free until a date), 「24時間限定無料」 (free for 24 hours), 「〜23:59まで」 (until 23:59) or 「リリース記念で無料」 (free to celebrate the release). Some only say 期間限定 with no date; treat those as ending at any moment.
Also watch for a line added later such as 「無料配布は終了しました」 (the free distribution has ended): the page is still there, but the item is no longer free.
Deadlines are in Japan time
Times on BOOTH are almost always Japan Standard Time (JST, UTC+9). 23:59 JST on 10 November is 14:59 UTC, 15:59 in Central Europe, and 06:59 the same morning on the US west coast. On VRC Free Watch a deadline we recognize is shown in your browser's time zone, but it is read from the page text, so an unusual wording or a later edit by the creator can make it wrong. The product page is authoritative.
Check which variation is ¥0
One BOOTH page can list several variations (バリエーション) at different prices. Often the full version is paid and only a trial (お試し版) or a single piece (単品) is free; sometimes a paid bundle gains a ¥0 variation for an event. Before downloading, check what the free variation actually contains.
Some pages also offer a support-price variation (支援版) with the same files as the free one; the extra money goes to the creator. If you love the work, that is the most direct way to give back.
Three things to do right after
First, download it and keep a local backup. A ¥0 item you claim through checkout while logged in normally stays in your BOOTH library so you can download it again, but creators can update or remove files, so your own copy is the safe one.
Second, keep the terms of use and readme next to the files. Terms can change after the free period; the version you got is the one you will want if a question comes up later.
Third, don't pass the files to a friend who missed it. Getting something for free is not permission to redistribute it, and almost every VRChat asset's terms forbid it. Send them the product page instead, or wait for the creator's next event.
Tracking it with VRC Free Watch
If you don't want to scroll BOOTH every day: Daily New lists free items that appeared in the last 24 hours, items with a recognized deadline show "Free until" on their card, and items you favorite are re-checked first, with a notice on the Favorites tab when their price or status changes. We only find and record; download and check the terms on BOOTH.
General information, not legal advice; follow the creator's instructions and VRChat's official documentation. Not affiliated with BOOTH, pixiv Inc. or VRChat Inc.