There are nearly 250 museums in London – more than just about any other city in the world. Through London’s Museum Guide I want to encourage others to share my love of London’s incredible museum scene, and help you to discover gems you might not have heard of.
Below you’ll find a full, filterable list of everything the city has to offer. Head to the London Museum Guide homepage to explore bespoke guides.
A complete A-Z of London’s museums by theme & location
How to use this guide: The cards below show an A-Z directory of all 250+ 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. If you prefer to look at a map, visit my London Museum Map here.
Finally, have fun, and if you have any tips, want to leave a review for a museum, or notice an error, don’t hesitate to comment or contact me!
A sewage station might not be your average day out – but the Crossness is a masterpiece of Victorian engineering, credited with playing a crucial role in saving London from the Great Stink in 1858 and subsequent cholera epidemics. Architecturally it’s massive in scale and stunning, giving it the nickname ‘the Cathedral of Sewage’. Only…
1760s Georgian mansion in Danson Park with rich interiors. The gardens are free to visit, while the house is only available to visit as part of a guided tour. It is also Bexley’s Registery Office.
Hackney’s local museum, exploring over 1,000 years of history. This includes exhibitions on Saxon Hackney all the way through to its modern, diverse identity and rich history of migration. It’s all presented in an engaging, family-friendly way and is know for being an inclusive community resource with plenty of interactive elements for children.
A stunning Tudor country house with exhibitions about its former residents, local history and free to visit gardens. It also has an owls experience, butterfly garden and hosts farmers markets.
A historic airport, home to the world’s first purpose built airport terminal. Between the wars it was the UK’s only international airport, and for a time it was the biggest and most advanced airport in the world.
A small museum, only available by booking ahead and only open on certain days, with exhibitions about the history of the Met Police, its offices, and crimes in the city.
The world’s only museum of the home, exploring home life and how homes have evolved and changed over the past 500 years. Includes ‘Rooms through time’, which features period rooms showing how lives in London have changed – from 1630 to 2049, across different cultures – and ‘Gardens through time’. A unique and thought-provoking museum.…
A Grade II* listed Tudor hunting lodge, originally built under the reign of Henry VIII and later renovated by Elizabeth I. As well as being an excellent example of Tudor architecture and one of the few surviving timber-framed Tudor buildings in London, it hosts a small museum about the period and how the building was…
The former home of William Morris, stunningly decorated with original furnishings, Pre-Raphaelite art and gardens. Visit to the house is by pre-book only.
A grade II listed, restored 1854 tower windmill offering Sunday tours. Most of the original machinery is still in place, give an insight into milling history.
The oldest house in Hackney and one of the only remaining Tudor houses in London. Originally built for Sir Ralph Sadler, who you may know from Wolf Hall. Features authentic oak-paneled rooms and a peaceful garden in the heart of East London.
One of London’s strangest museums, describing itself as a ‘Museum of Curiosities & UnNatural History’. A delightfully bizarre cabinet of curiosities featuring everything from two-headed animals, to an exhibition on ‘Fairies Mermaids, Unicorns and Giants’, to magic and the occult, and even an exhibition on Human Hair. An utterly unique museum, also home to a…
Housed in a Grade II listed Victorian sewage pumping station, this volunteer-run museum celebrates Walthamstow’s transport and industrial heritage. Its extensive firefighting collection was built up by former firefighter Frank Mycock and includes everything from a Victorian horse-drawn fire engine to modern equipment. The museum is also home to a pair of working Marshall steam…
A museum dedicated to William Morris, the iconic arts & crafts designer, in what was once his family home. It displays the largest collection of Morris’ work in the world, including textiles, furniture, and art. Galleries cover every aspect of his life, including his politics, his influences, how craftsmean created his designs, and a mock-up…
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