How Much Does London Cost per Day
A full breakdown of London prices: daily budgets by tier, every itemised cost from the guide, and where the money actually goes.
The short answer
Budget travellers in London spend around GBP 70 a day. Mid-range travel runs closer to GBP 160, and a splurge day lands around GBP 350. Per person per day in GBP, roughly USD 90 / 205 / 450 at rates in the second half of 2026. London's accommodation costs drive most of the gap between budget and mid; food and museums are cheaper to control than a bed.
Daily cost breakdown
- Stay
- Food
- Transport
- Activities
| Tier | Stay | Food | Transport | Activities | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Budget | GBP 35 | GBP 20 | GBP 8 | GBP 7 | GBP 70 |
| Mid-range | GBP 90 | GBP 45 | GBP 9 | GBP 16 | GBP 160 |
| Splurge | GBP 220 | GBP 90 | GBP 15 | GBP 25 | GBP 350 |
A mid-range day: GBP 90 hotel room split two ways, GBP 8.90 for a capped day of Zone 1-2 Tube and bus travel (the current TfL daily Anytime/Off-peak pay-as-you-go cap, GBP 44.70 for the equivalent weekly cap, verified 2026-09-08 on tfl.gov.uk), GBP 12 market lunch at Borough Market, GBP 6 coffee and a pastry, GBP 35-45 sit-down dinner with a drink, plus one paid ticket like the London Eye. Comes to roughly GBP 160-170 per person, and less if you lean on the free museums instead of a paid attraction.
Every priced item in this guide
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| British Museum | free general admission (UK national museum policy); special/ticketed exhibitions charge separately |
| Tate Modern | free for the permanent collection; ticketed prices apply for major temporary exhibitions |
| National Gallery | free general admission (donations welcome); special exhibitions charge separately |
| Tower of London | GBP 37.00 adult (online booking price), GBP 18.50 child (5-15) and young person (16-17), GBP 29.50 student/senior; GBP 1 tickets available for named UK benefit recipients |
| Westminster Abbey | GBP 31 adult / GBP 31 family (1 adult + 1 child) in the current pricing window (2-30 Sep 2026); GBP 28 for 65+/students, GBP 14 children 6-17, under-6s free. Prices flex seasonally, GBP 27.13 adult in the cheaper 25 Jun-1 Sep window. Queen's Diamond Jubilee Galleries add-on is a further GBP 5. |
| Sky Garden | free |
| London Eye | GBP 29 adult online for the standard/Fast Track ticket (from), GBP 39 adult walk-up; a Flexi Fast Track ticket runs from GBP 49 online / GBP 54 walk-up |
| Borough Market | free to browse; food and drink priced individually |
| Royal Observatory Greenwich | GBP 18 adult, GBP 9 child; combined day pass with Cutty Sark GBP 38 adult |
| Sunday roast | GBP 16-24 |
| Curry | GBP 12-22 |
| Fish and chips | GBP 9-15 |
| Borough Market food stalls | GBP 6-15 per item |
| Full English breakfast | GBP 8-14 |
| Modern British tasting menus | GBP 90-200 per person |
| Afternoon tea | GBP 45-90 per person |
What I actually paid
- The free national museums are the single biggest thing people underestimate about London. You can build a genuinely world-class few days here without paying a single entry fee, which changes how I'd budget a trip here versus almost anywhere else in Europe.
How to spend less
- Lean on the free national museums (British Museum, National Gallery, Tate Modern, Tate Britain, Natural History Museum, Science Museum, V&A) for a full day of sightseeing at zero entry cost
- Contactless pay-as-you-go on the Tube and buses is automatically capped per day and per week, so you never need to plan around a pass
- Supermarket meal deals (Tesco, Sainsbury's, Boots) run roughly GBP 3.50-4.50 for a sandwich, snack and drink, consistently cheaper than a cafe lunch
- Sky Garden is a free alternative to the paid London Eye or Shard views, if you book the ticket window in advance
- Theatre day-seat and lottery schemes (via individual West End theatre websites) release same-day discounted tickets, worth checking if you want a show without full price