Short answer
Free help in Fargo-Moorhead includes 911 for emergencies, 211 for referrals to food, heat, and housing, campus public safety offices, food pantries and meal sites, the public library, county human services, and neighbor favors on Help Me. Each has its own lane, and the right door depends on the problem.
The facts, in one place
- Free help exists at every level, and each door has its lane.
- 211 is the front door for food, heat, housing, and benefits.
- Help Me is for small favors, not shelter or crisis.
- In danger, call 911.
Where to start
If you are not sure which door, call 211. Trained staff know what is available and which side of the river you are on. If it is a small favor, like a charger or a jump, a neighbor on Help Me is the quickest door.
Help Me's place in this list
Help Me is a place to ask your block for the small stuff. It does not do food, housing, benefits, or crisis help. Helpers can apply to be reviewed by our team. Help Me does not run background checks. You can report or block any member at any time.
Help Me is not an emergency service. If someone is in immediate danger, call 911 or your local emergency number.
The list
- 1
Free in both states, and not optional when it is an emergency.
- 2
Free referral and a listening line. Call 211 or 701-235-7335, or visit myfirstlink.org.
- 3
NDSU, MSUM, and Concordia offer escorts and, on some campuses, jumps and unlocks. Official, not a favor.
- 4
The Great Plains Food Bank list, the Emergency Food Pantry, Dorothy Day, and Salvation Army meals. Hours are on their pages, and 211 helps if you cannot parse the week.
- 5
Cards, computers, and heat during open hours. Details on the city site.
- 6
Not always free. Student and youth pass rules are published. Still cheaper than a dead car.
- 7
Cass or Clay, depending on the river. Benefits are programs, not charity theater.
- 8
Free, and not a paid marketplace. Everyday asks, answered by neighbors. Never a shelter, a crisis line, or the police.
Questions people actually ask
No. It is not a paid marketplace. Helpers are neighbors who applied and were reviewed by our team.
For a jump start or directions, maybe. For food, heat, shelter, or benefits, call 211 first.
Hours differ. Check each source, or ask 211.
Keep going
- resourcesOfficial help, listed on purposePolice, 911, 211, campus safety, food, shelter, and county services in Fargo, Moorhead, and West Fargo. Help Me is not these pages.
- 211211 in North Dakota — FirstLinkDial 211 in North Dakota for food, shelter, heat, and referrals. FirstLink answers 211 at myfirstlink.org or 701-235-7335. Not Help Me.
- foodFood assistance — official pantries and benefits, not an app requestFood help in Fargo–Moorhead: 211, SNAP through your county, Great Plains Food Bank, pantries, and meal sites. Help Me is not a food program.
- Fargo-MoorheadWays neighbors actually help hereThe everyday help neighbors actually give in Fargo: jump starts, a walk to the car, directions, study tables, tech help, a heavy box. Not paid gigs, not 911.
- libraryFargo Public Library — official public indoor groundFargo Public Library: Main, Dr. James Carlson, and Northport. Cards, hours, and parking on fargond.gov. A public indoor place — and not a crisis service.
- Not 911Help Me is not an emergency serviceHelp Me is for small favors in Fargo-Moorhead. If someone is in immediate danger, call 911 or your local emergency number. Here is how to tell the difference.
Help Me is a community app for adults in Fargo–Moorhead. It is not a K–12 student program, not a youth chat, and not campus police.