Frequently Asked Questions
103 answers about finding free & cheap things to do in the UK — searching near you, free events, adding your own event, the newsletter, giveaways and more.
Getting started 8
Funcheap UK is a free, daily-updated guide to free and cheap things to do across the United Kingdom — events, gigs, markets, museums, comedy, festivals and family days out in cities like London, Manchester, Birmingham, Bristol, Leeds, Glasgow and Edinburgh.
Funcheap UK is completely free to use. Browsing events, searching by postcode, saving events, subscribing to the newsletter and submitting your own event all cost nothing.
No. You can browse and search every event without an account. You only need a free account if you want to report an inaccurate listing. Saving events works on your device without signing in.
New events are added every day. Recurring events like weekly markets and parkruns are generated automatically, and community submissions are reviewed and published — usually within a day.
Funcheap UK is a UK-focused guide inspired by the original San Francisco Funcheap concept of surfacing free and cheap local events. It covers UK cities, prices in pounds, and UK-specific listings.
The quickest way is to enter your postcode on the homepage or tap “Use my location”, then browse events near you. You can also pick your city, or jump straight to Today, This Weekend or Free events.
The site works on any modern phone, tablet or computer. It is fully responsive, so the layout, map view and search all adapt to your screen.
Funcheap UK is a fast, mobile-friendly website, so there is nothing to download. You can add it to your home screen for one-tap access, and saved events stay on your device.
Free things to do 10
Use the “Free” filter or visit the Free Events page, then enter your postcode or use your location to see only free events near you, sorted by distance. Every free listing is clearly marked “FREE”.
Many are completely free. Others are low-cost, and we always show the price up front. You can filter to free-only events, or set a budget of under £5 or under £10.
Popular free options include national museums and galleries, outdoor and street-food markets, park events, free festivals, community days, free museum late openings, and parkruns. Browse the Free Events page for what is on near you.
Most national museums in the UK — including many in London, and major museums in cities like Manchester, Liverpool, Edinburgh and Glasgow — offer free general admission. Special exhibitions may charge, so check the listing.
Visit the This Weekend page and apply the Free filter, or enter your postcode to see free events near you on Saturday and Sunday — markets, gigs, family activities and more.
Yes. Filter by the Kids & Family category and the Free filter to find free family days out — craft workshops, park events, story times, museums and outdoor activities.
Absolutely. The Outdoors and Festivals categories list free park events, open-air performances, guided walks, botanical open days and community gatherings.
A plain “FREE” means no charge. Where a listing shows conditions (such as needing to book a free ticket in advance, or a suggested donation), those details appear in the event description.
Yes. On any listing page you can choose Any price, Free, Under £5 or Under £10, so you can match events to your budget in one tap.
Some free events are drop-in, while others need a free ticket or RSVP because of limited capacity. The event page tells you what is required and links to the organiser where relevant.
Finding events near you 10
Enter any UK postcode and choose a distance from 1 to 50 miles. We find events within that radius and sort them nearest-first, showing the distance in miles on each one.
You can search within 1, 2, 3, 5, 10, 25 or 50 miles of your postcode or location, so you can keep it very local or widen the net for a bigger day out.
Yes. Tap “Use my location” and, with your permission, your browser shares your position so we can show events near you without typing a postcode.
Location access is only used to find events near you when you tap “Use my location”. It is never stored or shared, and you can always type a postcode instead.
Yes. On any listing you can switch from List to Map view to see event pins on an interactive map and click any pin for details.
When you search by location you can sort by Nearest first or Soonest first, so you can prioritise what is closest or what is happening soonest.
Try widening your search radius using the distance buttons, or remove other filters. In more rural areas a 25 or 50 mile radius will usually surface plenty of options.
The distance is a straight-line (as-the-crow-flies) measurement in miles from your postcode to the event, so actual travel time may vary depending on transport.
Yes. Enter the postcode of anywhere in the UK — a holiday destination, a friend’s town, or a station — to see what free and cheap events are on near there.
Yes. You can enter a full postcode for precise results, or just the outward code (for example “M1” or “SW1A”) to search around that district.
Cities & coverage 9
We cover cities and regions across England, Scotland and Wales, with dedicated pages for London, Manchester, Birmingham, Bristol, Leeds, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Liverpool, Newcastle, Cardiff, Sheffield and Brighton.
London is packed with free options: world-class museums and galleries, markets like Camden and Borough, South Bank events, park festivals and free museum lates. See the London city page for what is on now.
The Manchester city page lists free and cheap events across the city — gigs, museum lates, markets, comedy and family days out — updated every day and searchable by postcode.
Yes. We cover Edinburgh and Glasgow with dedicated city pages, featuring free festivals, museums, markets and events across central Scotland.
Yes. Cardiff has its own city page, and we surface free and cheap things to do across South Wales.
Even if your town does not have its own page yet, the postcode search finds events within your chosen radius, so nearby city and regional events will still appear.
Yes. Each city has category pages — for example free comedy in Manchester or markets in London — so you can drill straight into what interests you locally.
Use the Cities menu in the header, the city links in the footer, or simply search a different postcode to jump to another part of the country.
We are always expanding coverage. Subscribing to the newsletter and submitting local events helps us grow into more towns and cities across the UK.
Event types & categories 10
Categories include Live Music, Art & Museums, Comedy, Theatre, Food & Drink, Kids & Family, Markets, Festivals, Sport & Fitness, Film, Nightlife, Talks & Learning, Exhibitions, Outdoors, Wellbeing and Community.
Open the Live Music category to see gigs, open-mic nights, jazz sessions and concerts near you — many of them free or under £10.
The Comedy category lists stand-up showcases, new-act nights and open mics, often for just a few pounds. Combine it with a city page to find comedy near you.
Yes. The Food & Drink category covers street-food markets, food festivals, tastings and pop-ups across the UK.
The Markets category features street markets, vintage and vinyl fairs, farmers’ markets and craft fairs — most of them free to browse.
The Kids & Family category lists craft workshops, story times, museum trails, park events and other family-friendly days out, many of them free.
The Festivals category collects free and low-cost festivals — music, food, culture and community celebrations — happening across the country.
Yes. Sport & Fitness includes parkruns, community runs, outdoor yoga and free fitness sessions you can join near you.
The Talks & Learning category features history talks, lectures, skill-shares and workshops — a great way to learn something new for free.
Pick a category and enter your postcode, or use the city-category pages (like free comedy in London) to see a specific type of event in a specific place.
Today, this weekend & planning 8
The Today page shows everything happening today across the UK. Add your postcode to narrow it to events near you right now.
The This Weekend page lists Saturday and Sunday events. Filter by city, category or price, or search your postcode for weekend plans near you.
Yes. Each day has its own page, and you can move between days using the previous and next buttons to plan ahead.
You can browse events several weeks into the future, including recurring events that are generated automatically, so you can plan trips and weekends in advance.
Yes. The homepage includes a seven-day preview grouped by day, plus editor’s Top Picks, featured guides and the most popular upcoming events.
Top Picks are events our editors have hand-selected as especially good value or unmissable that week. Look for them on the homepage.
Recurring events are expanded into individual dated listings automatically, so a weekly market or parkrun appears on each date it runs.
Yes. Search your destination postcode, save several events to your device, and export them to your calendar to build a day out around free and cheap activities.
Saving events & calendar 6
Tap the heart icon on any event card or event page. Saved events are stored on your device and appear on your Saved page — no account needed.
Use the heart icon in the header or the Saved link in the menu to open your Saved page, which shows everything you have bookmarked.
Saved events are stored locally on the device you saved them on, so they stay private to that browser. Clearing your browser data will remove them.
On any event page, tap “Add to calendar” to download an .ics file that works with Google Calendar, Apple Calendar, Outlook and other calendar apps.
Yes. The .ics file includes the event title, date, time, venue and a link back to the full listing, so everything is in your calendar.
Tap the heart again to un-save an event, or use the Remove button on your Saved page.
For event organisers 10
Use the “Add Event” page to submit your event for free. Add the title, description, date, city, category, price and an optional image, and we will review it.
Yes. Listing your event is completely free. Optional paid promotion is available if you want extra visibility.
Submissions are reviewed by our team before going live, usually within a day, to keep listings accurate and spam-free.
Events may be declined if details are incomplete, the event is not open to the public, it duplicates an existing listing, or it does not fit a free-and-cheap audience. You can resubmit with more detail.
Yes — adding the venue postcode is strongly recommended, because it lets people find your event in “near me” and distance searches.
Yes. You can upload an image or poster when you submit. A good image makes your listing stand out on cards and the homepage.
Yes. Mention the recurrence in your submission (for example “every Saturday”) and our team can set it up so it appears on each date it runs.
If you need to change details after submitting, contact us with the update and we will amend the listing.
Add a clear title, a compelling description, an eye-catching image, accurate date and time, the venue postcode, and consider a featured promotion for extra reach.
Yes, as long as it offers genuine value. Show the price clearly. Budget-friendly and discounted events perform best with our audience.
Accounts, reporting & safety 8
Use the Create account link, enter your name, email and a password, and accept the terms. Accounts are free and let you report listings.
An account lets you report inaccurate or inappropriate listings. Browsing, searching and saving events do not require an account.
On any event page, click “Report this event”, choose a reason — such as wrong date, wrong price, cancelled, spam or duplicate — add optional details, and submit. You need to be logged in to report.
Your report goes to our moderation team, who review it and take action if needed. Reporting helps keep listings accurate for everyone.
You need a free account to report, which helps us prevent abuse and follow up if necessary. You will be prompted to log in or sign up when you click Report.
We handle personal data in line with UK GDPR, use double opt-in for the newsletter, and never sell your information. See our Privacy Policy for full details.
Open the account menu in the header (or the mobile menu) and choose Log out. On shared devices, always log out when you are done.
Contact us for help recovering your account. For security, never share your password with anyone.
Win tickets & giveaways 5
From time to time we run free competitions to win tickets to events, gigs and festivals. Enter your details on the giveaway page for a chance to win.
Yes. Entering any Funcheap UK giveaway is completely free. Just add your name and email before the closing date.
Winners are drawn at random after the closing date and notified by email. Each giveaway page shows the prize and when it closes.
Giveaways are generally open to UK residents aged 18 and over, unless a specific competition states otherwise. See the terms for details.
Winners are contacted by email using the address entered, so keep an eye on your inbox after the closing date.
Advertising & for business 5
Yes. We offer featured event promotion, newsletter placements and display advertising to reach an engaged audience actively looking for things to do. See the Advertise page.
We have options to suit different budgets, from featured events to newsletter and banner placements. Get in touch via the Advertise page for a media pack.
A featured event is promoted to the top of listings and highlighted on the homepage for extra visibility, ideal for organisers who want more reach.
We offer sponsorship and targeted placements by city or category. Contact us through the Advertise page to discuss options.
Our audience is budget-conscious people across the UK actively searching for events, days out and things to do — a great fit for venues, promoters and local businesses.
Budget & practical tips 8
Combine free events with a cheap bite from a street-food market, travel off-peak, and use the postcode search to cluster nearby activities into one trip.
Weekdays and off-peak times often have more free events and quieter venues. Many museums run free late openings midweek — check the Talks & Learning and Art & Museums categories.
Yes. Filter by Art & Museums, Film, Exhibitions or Talks & Learning for indoor options, many of them free, perfect for a rainy day.
Bank holidays are packed with free festivals, markets and family events. Check the This Weekend page and the Festivals category around the holiday.
Try a free gallery late, an open-air film, a street-food market or a comedy night for a few pounds. Save a few options and pick based on the weather.
Search a tight radius to keep events walkable or one short hop away, travel off-peak, and cluster several nearby activities into a single trip.
Around the festive season you will find free markets, light displays, carol events and community celebrations — browse the Festivals and Community categories.
Subscribe to the weekly newsletter, save events you like, and check Today or This Weekend regularly. That way the best free and cheap things to do come to you.
Still have a question?
Browse what’s on near you, add your own event, or join the newsletter for the best free & cheap things to do each week.