St Pauls Cathedral on a Budget: Prices and Savings
St Pauls Cathedral on a Budget
The verdict: GBP 27 for an adult ticket gets you the cathedral floor, the crypt, and all three dome galleries in one price, which is genuinely good value against comparable London sights charging GBP 30-plus for a single level. From 25 June to 1 September 2026, the UK government’s summer savings scheme drops that to GBP 24 adult and GBP 9.50 child, so a summer visit is the cheapest window all year. The one truly free option is attending a service rather than sightseeing, which gets you inside for nothing but not up the dome.
Key facts
| Price | GBP 27 adult / GBP 10.50 child standard; GBP 24 / GBP 9.50 during 25 Jun-1 Sep 2026 summer savings |
| Hours | Mon-Sat from 08:30 (Wed from 10:00), last entry 16:00. Free if attending a service |
| Time needed | 1.5-2 hours for the floor and crypt; add an hour for the full 528-step dome climb |
| Booking lead | Book online for a timed dome slot on busy summer mornings, especially weekends |
| Getting there | St Paul’s tube (Central line), one stop from Bank |
Is the dome climb included in the standard ticket, or is it extra?
Included. The single GBP 27 ticket (GBP 24 in summer) covers the Whispering Gallery at 257 steps, the outdoor Stone Gallery at 376, and the Golden Gallery at 528, plus the cathedral floor and crypt. There is no separate upsell for the climb itself, which is unusual among London’s paid dome and tower views.
What is the actual free way to see inside St Paul’s?
Attend a service. The cathedral holds daily worship, including a morning Eucharist around 08:00, and anyone attending is inside at no charge. You will not get dome access this way, and photography during services is restricted, but the nave and choir are the same ones sightseers pay for.
When is the ticket price at its lowest?
Between 25 June and 1 September 2026, when the Great British Summer Savings scheme cuts the adult ticket from GBP 27 to GBP 24. Combine that window with a weekday morning before 10:00, Tuesday or Thursday specifically, for the shortest queue and the cheapest ticket on the calendar at once.
The dome sits roughly 15 minutes on foot from the Tower of London and Tower Bridge along the river, so a single ticket and a walk covers two City landmarks and one paid sight in a morning.
Book the standard ticket directly through stpauls.co.uk to guarantee the summer savings rate applies, or compare a guided dome-and-crypt tour on GetYourGuide if you want the decipherment of Wren’s hidden dome engineering explained on the way up.
Concrete tip: check the summer savings dates against your travel window before you book. Tickets bought before 25 June lock in the higher standard price even for a visit that falls inside the discount period.