7 free museums in London that you need to check out

When it comes to cultural highlights, there are few cities in the world that can compare to London. With nearly 200 museums and galleries for you to explore, you’ll always have a new exhibition to check out whether you’re into modern art or historical artifacts. The very best part is that many of London’s museums are completely free, so you can save those pounds for some souvenir shopping or a fancy meal instead.

While many London museums offer free entry to their permanent exhibitions, there may be charges for temporary or special exhibitions, as well as guided tours, workshops, and talks. Because of COVID-19 crowd control protocols, you may need to book a ticket in advance online to guarantee a free admissions slot, especially during peak periods like weekends or public holidays.

Many of these museums have free ‘Lates’ as well, which are late nights or extended opening hours that can include some special programming and even free entrance to some paid exhibitions. Days and timings vary (though often it’s a Friday), so check out the "What’s On" section on the website of the museum you’re intending to visit.

To get you started, here are some of our favorite free museums in London.

The British Museum is the most visited attraction in the U.K. and touts itself as the first national public museum of the world with one of the most comprehensive historical collections. It has over 8 million works spanning the entirety of recorded human history (that’s around 2 million years!).

Some of the popular permanent exhibitions include the Rosetta Stone that unlocked ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs and the Parthenon sculptures that once adorned the Athenian Acropolis in Greece. Outside the galleries, the Greek temple–inspired entrance and massive tessellating glass roof of the Great Court will wow any visitor to the museum.

Sir John Soane was a leading British architect of the Regency era who transformed three houses in Holborn into a museum that he personally (and rather singularly) curated with antiquities, treasures, and architectural models and drawings amassed from his travels. Before he died in 1837, he left one rule: to preserve his house and collection exactly as he left it and charge no fees so as to inspire and educate.

Whether you’re there for the Egyptian sarcophagus or the plaster models of the famous monuments from the ancient world, Sir John Soane’s Museum makes you feel like you’ve literally stepped back in time.

With over 2,300 artworks spanning the last 700 years from some of the greatest artists like Michaelangelo, Caravaggio, and Vermeer, it is no wonder that The National Gallery is one of the most visited art museums in the world. You’ll stumble upon recognizable sights like Van Gogh’s Sunflowers and Botticelli’s Venus and Mars amidst other masterpieces as you explore this palatial institution.

The National Gallery’s central location in the middle of Trafalgar Square makes it a convenient stop on any London itinerary.

If you prefer art that is a little more relevant to everyday life, the V&A’s design and creative collections span the last 5,000 years and cover all sorts of wonderfully designed objects like fashion, jewelry, furniture, crockery, metalwork, posters, and even wallpaper. You’ll definitely gain an appreciation for art in the simple objects around you.

V&A highlights include Cybele, a truncated sculpture by Rodin, and a quirky evening coat by French dress designer Schiaparelli and surrealist artist Cocteau.

Many will visit the Natural History Museum just to gawk at the majestic 83-foot-long blue whale skeleton hanging from the high vaulted ceiling of the Victorian-era Hintze Hall. We recommend taking the time to browse the rest of the Museum’s extensive natural history collection, with over 80 million objects that show you just the tip of the earth’s geology, flora and fauna.

Home to life-size dioramas of diverse landscapes, fossils of now-extinct creatures, and even an earthquake simulator, this family-friendly museum is a great option for children and a delightful change from your typical history museum.

If your interest in the natural world leans towards the minutiae and what you can see under a microscope, the Grant Museum of Zoology would be the perfect spot to visit with over 68,000 zoological specimens jam-packed into one room at the University College London. Admire a rare Quagga skeleton, extinct Dodo bird bones, and whole collections of brains and bisected heads. These specimens have been carefully maintained and have been serving as a teaching collection to UCL students since 1827.

While it’s often overlooked in favor of London’s more well-known national museums, the Museum of London specifically chronicles the story of London’s early days as a Roman settlement to its present—a great way to get acquainted with the broad development of this cultural capital. Highlights include the Roman room with the Bucklersbury mosaic dating back to 300 A.D., the Fire of London Experience multimedia show about the Great Fire in 1666, and the copper cauldron used in the 2012 London Olympics.

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