London’s an expensive city. It sometimes feels like just stepping out of the door costs money.
Luckily, when it comes to making the most of our city’s world-class museum collection, it doesn’t have to hurt your wallet.
London is home to 118 free museums. That includes global heavy-hitters like the British Museum and the National Gallery, as well as quirky, lesser-known gems across every borough.
On this page:
- My top picks if you want quick recommendations
- A filterable, interactive A–Z of 118 free museums (filter by theme and borough)
Best free museums in London – my top picks
Okay, so 118 is a lot of museums. I strongly encourage you to use the tool below to explore the full offering of museums available – but if you need a bit more guidance, these are my top picks of London’s best free museums.
Free ‘big hitter’ museums in London
Most of London’s ‘big-hitter’ museums are free:
- If you’ve got kids, go to the Natural History Museum (dinosaurs!) or the Science Museum (highly interactive). Both are free to enter, but you may need to book a slot if you’re visiting at a busy time (it’s free and easy to do this).
- If you’re after art, my personal favourite is the Tate Modern, London’s premier contemporary art gallery. If you’re after something a bit more traditional, the National Gallery is home to countless masterpieces, all totally free.
- The British Museum and the Victoria & Albert Museum are two of London’s biggest museums, home to priceless artefacts from all over the globe and throughout history.
My personal favourite free museums in London
Outside these world-famous institutions, some of London’s best museums are free. Some of my personal favourites include
- the Imperial War Museum, an important and moving collection of exhibitions about the history, harms and impacts of human conflict
- the Wellcome Collection, an excellent interactive museum about health and what it means to be human
- the British Library, with a free to visit exhibition showing treasures from its collection, including handwritten Beatles lyrics and important religious texts
Free hidden gems museums in London
Some of London’s hidden gem museums and most bizarre museums are free. For example:
- The Museum of Freemasonry, exploring centuries of history of the mysterious organisation.
- London Mithraeum – the archaeological remains of a Roman Temple, built for the mysterious cult of Mithras, and brought to life by a multimedia display.
- Museum of the Order of St. John
Free local museums
If you’re a London local, I’d also encourage you to explore my local museums page. London is home to some excellent local museums, telling the stories of the people that make up its many fascinating neighbourhoods. They vary in size and scope, but most are free and they’re usually excellent.
These are just a small selection of the best free museums in London. Explore all 118 free museums in London using the interactive tool below.
Interactive tool: explore all 118 free museums in London
How to use this guide: The cards below show an A-Z directory of all 118 free museums in London. Use the filters to the right to show only museums you’re interested in.
‘Primary focus’ splits museums by their broad area of focus. You can click ‘additional themes’ to see more specific categories, such as museums covering World War Two, or modern art galleries.
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Crystal Palace Museum
Read more: Crystal Palace MuseumA small museum telling the story of the original Crystal Palace, a huge iron and glass structure built for the Great Exhibition in 1851 in Hyde Park. The building was then moved to the area now known as Crystal Palace, but burnt down in 1936.
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