Are public toilets free in London?

Many are. Toilets in national museums, mainline rail stations, department stores and the Royal Parks are free. Some street and automatic toilets charge between 20p and £1, increasingly by contactless.

Do London Underground stations have toilets?

Only a minority, mostly larger interchanges, and often beyond the ticket gates. If you need one on the Tube, head for a National Rail terminus such as King's Cross, Victoria or Waterloo instead.

What is the Community Toilet Scheme?

A council scheme in which local cafés, pubs and shops are paid to let anyone use their toilets during opening hours, with no purchase required. Look for the sticker in the window or check the borough's website.

Can I use a pub toilet without buying anything?

Usually yes if you ask at the bar, and it is common practice. If you plan to stay a while, buying a drink is the polite convention.

A standard key that opens most locked accessible toilets across the UK. You can buy one online in advance, for example from Disability Rights UK, for a few pounds.

Public Toilets in London: Where They Are and What They Cost

London has closed a large share of its street toilets over the past two decades, and the ones that remain are unevenly spread: plentiful along the South Bank and in the big parks, almost absent in parts of the City at the weekend. The good news is that the practical network is much wider than the official one, because stations, museums, department stores and thousands of Community Toilet Scheme partners fill the gap. This guide explains where to look first, what is free, and which apps and habits save you a stressful ten minutes.

Stations are the reliable default

Major National Rail terminals — King's Cross, St Pancras, Paddington, Waterloo, Victoria, Liverpool Street, Euston — all have toilets, and the big operators removed the old turnstile charges at most of them, so entry is normally free now. They are open whenever the station is, cleaned frequently and signposted, which makes them the safest bet in an unfamiliar area. Tube stations are the opposite: only a minority have toilets, usually the larger interchanges, and they are often behind the gate line. If you are on the Underground and need one, aim for a National Rail terminus rather than the next Tube stop.

Museums, galleries and department stores

Every large museum in London has free toilets and no obligation to buy or book: the British Museum, the National Gallery, Tate Modern, the Southbank Centre, the Natural History and Science Museums and the V&A are all free to enter and all have facilities, usually on more than one floor. Department stores are the other classic: John Lewis, Selfridges, Fortnum & Mason and Liberty all have customer toilets, generally on upper floors. Large supermarkets and the bigger branches of chains such as Waterstones often have them too. None of these require a purchase, though buying a coffee in a small independent café before using theirs is simple courtesy.

The Community Toilet Scheme and paid street toilets

Many London boroughs run a Community Toilet Scheme: the council pays local cafés, pubs and shops to let anyone use their toilets during opening hours, without buying anything. Participating premises display a sticker in the window, and the borough publishes a list on its website — Richmond, Camden, Hackney, Southwark and several others take part. Separately, some street toilets and automatic cubicles charge, typically between 20p and £1, and increasingly they take contactless rather than coins. Attended facilities in the busiest tourist spots, such as some in the West End, also charge a small fee and are usually the cleanest option in the immediate area.

All free

Keep it handy while in London

Add it to your home screen: works offline too
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Turn on Congestion Charge & ULEZ alerts (free)

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Parks, pubs and opening hours

The Royal Parks — Hyde Park, St James's Park, Green Park, Regent's Park, Greenwich Park — all have toilet blocks near the main gates and cafés, and they are free, though they close at or before dusk with the park. Pubs are a legitimate option: British pubs are used to it, but the polite convention is to buy a drink if you are staying, or to ask at the bar if you are not. The pattern to remember is that London's supply drops sharply after 18:00 and on Sundays in business districts, and rises around stations and along the river. Planning around that is the difference between finding one in two minutes and searching for fifteen.

How to find one fast

Use our toilets map: it lists verified public toilets in London with the exact location, distance from you and a Google Maps route, and it works offline once the page has loaded. Add to that two habits. First, when you pass a known free toilet in a museum or station, use it, even if you do not urgently need to — spacing rather than urgency is the trick in a city this size. Second, if you are travelling with children or have a medical need, a RADAR key opens most accessible toilets across the UK and can be bought online in advance from Disability Rights UK for a few pounds. Baby changing is standard in museums, department stores and mainline stations.