London’s Free Museums - Definitive List

Thanks for this, Cyn!
The Tate Britain and other free art galleries are listed on this page: "where to find free art in London" linked at the bottom of the article you've generously shared.

https://londonist.com/london/art-and-photography/free-art-london

The V&A Warehouse in Stratford, which opened last year, is also missing. As is the V&A East, but that’s understandable as it only opened yesterday.

That is a monster list. Many I've never heard of.

My local museum is closed for refurbishment but will re-open at some point next year. They've got an interesting eclectic little collection. Hackney's been around in one form or another for a long time.

Hackney Museum - https://hackney-museum.hackney.gov.uk/

edited to add: Oh I applaud your valiant attempt to use British vernacular, but "bob" doesn't quite work in that context I'm afraid. Penny? I dunno.

This is great. Thanks so much for sharing. I have to bookmark this fabulous article.

Thanks for the list, Cyn! I will definitely keep this handy.

The free entry is a great perk in a city that can get costly, but since many of us on here could well afford entry, don't forget to drop something in the donation box (well, now it's a QR code you scan). Helps keep these great places great

Thank you Cyn for posting.

During my 2024 trip throughly enjoyed visiting and exploring the Hunterian Museum. Years back also appreciated seeing the Alexander Fleming Museum.

Nice to have a list to chose from during my next sojourn

This is a very nice list. I've visited most of these- for the smaller ones I recommend checking the opening times carefully. Some are only open for limited hours or may even be closed when they are meant to be open. I love how many royal societies have their own little museums.

One I didn't see mentioned that I've enjoyed previously is the Royal Kennel Club Art Gallery, for anyone who loves dogs: https://www.royalkennelclub.com/memberships/our-club-and-venues/gallery/
It says you need to book in advance but I went a few years ago and was able to just walk in during normal office hours, so not sure if that has changed.

There's also the British Dental Museum altho that is temporarily closed: https://www.bda.org/learning/museum/

John, both those V&A's are in the list, you just need to keep scrolling- it's organised by central, north, south, east, and west London.

Apologies - I just assumed that it was a straight alphabetical list, rather than regionally based..

You can also do a search for free London attractions on the VisitLondon website:

https://www.visitlondon.com/search?category=%2fthings-to-do%2fsightseeing%2flondon-attraction&from=19-4-2026&to=&from.date=19%2f04%2f2026&to.date=&free=true&keywords=&page=1

I’m glad that this list is useful for all of you good folks. Kate, thank you for finding that the art museums are in that separate link! I saw there were other links at the bottom of the “main” list, but hadn’t clicked on it. It was the middle of the night and I needed to get back to sleep, so posted my message and didn’t do any additional clicking.

Has anyone noticed that some of the museums have put “prices” on their floor plan handouts? The British Museum and Tate Modern have £2 printed on the free maps they hand out.

At the Imperial War Museum two years ago, two young ladies behind a table at the entrance pleaded with everyone entering the museum to purchase an orientation booklet about it for £5. We didn’t have room in either of our at-capacity carry-on suitcases, so we thanked her and said, “Here’s 5 Pounds - - Quid for GerryM :-) but we can’t take the book.”

It’s tougher to turn down a direct, in-person request than to walk past a plexiglass donation box with some assorted currencies collecting at the bottom.

Yes, charging for maps now is becoming quite common. Similar to how once we started charging for plastic carrier bags at the supermarket the quality of the bags went up (thicker plastic so you can reuse them multiple times), the maps now tend to be much sturdier than the free ones were, e.g. printed on something closer to card stock. That means they can hold up over multiple visits which I appreciate. Also means people only get them if they actually plan to use them, so there is less waste.

I seem to recall if you visit the Bath cathedral there's a "voluntary" contribution but it's pretty tough to not pay it. Which is fine actually, cathedrals and museums aren't going to maintain themselves.

Speaking of museums, if you're looking for some mild clickbait, Jessica has created her own ranking and it's unlikely anyone will agree with all her choices. She also seems to have skipped over the Tates, the Nat Gal and the Courthaud.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-8TJTOwZYkE