The Best Clubs in London

For intimate all-night spots, daytime warehouse raves, and Berlin-style club experiences, London caters to every niche across the world of clubbing. We'll help find your flavour:

By Charlie Walker | Updated Jul 19 2024

A crowded nightclub with vibrant blue and purple lighting illuminates people dancing. Bright beams of light and lasers cut through the smoky air, while a disco ball hangs from the ceiling, reflecting the colorful lights onto the crowd below. — Image via Barista Rules

To start our list, it only feels right to start mega.

fabric (stylised with lower-case) was London’s answer to the Berlin megaclub; multiple floors, experimental chill-out zones, and an innovative approach to venue design. Not only boasting sound and sight, the whole club experience of feeling immersed in a sprawling complex of halls and staircases (it doesn’t feel so sprawling when stone-cold sober, mind) is what you’re here for.

Farringdon’s hotspot also has an outrageous pull, bringing in some of the biggest names in dance and electronic music. Almost every big DJ you know has played there. Have a look at its past events to see how comprehensive their listings are.

A large, empty industrial warehouse with a high ceiling and exposed metal beams. The floor is smooth concrete, and various pipes and ducts are visible on the ceiling. The space is well-lit from overhead skylights, creating a clean and open atmosphere. — Image via Rolling Stone

The newest club in the capital may also just be one of its very best.

Opening on the old site of Edmonton’s closed-down IKEA, brought to you by the same team behind the recently closed-down Printworks (Broadwick Live), still using the very same lighting rigs and speakers from their former joint, DRUMSHEDS is probably the UK’s biggest capacity nightclub.

Here’s some perspective: the o2 arena holds 20,000, while DRUMSHEDS holds 15,000, and like the o2, it sells out faster than a humanities graduate. That’s 10x more than what fabric can hold in its walls, and 20x more than Village Underground.

A dimly lit bar interior with exposed ceiling pipes and a geometric honeycomb-like wall design. The seating areas feature black upholstered booths, and small tables with red candle-lit lanterns are placed throughout the space. — Image via DesignMyNight

Speaking of listings, Phonox probably has the biggest muscles to flex in that department.

Not a week goes by where Phonox isn’t hosting an outrageously popular artist in their surprisingly intimate venue. I’ve seen Mercury-prize winner James Blake play to a few hundred people, on surprise visit no less. The best really just want to play there.

Why? If I had to guess, maybe its Soundsystem. Their behemothic rigs, often provided by the acclaimed Sinai Soundsystem, will have your inner ear whistling for the rest of your life. Please do rave with care, earplugs do come strongly recommended. Even with ear plugs you’ll hear every grain.

A lively nightclub scene with a large crowd dancing and enjoying a music performance. The venue is adorned with red and purple lights, creating a vibrant atmosphere. The stage is illuminated, and a DJ or band is performing, engaging the energetic audience.

In 2023 especially, KOKO surprisingly found itself on many a ravers radar. Once more known as a venue for gigs and other such non-clubby outings, it has now – quite recently - become regarded with the same honour as its nightclub bigger brothers.

Don’t be fooled by the theatre-like interior, there is very little formal about the nights that KOKO throws. Their KOKOElectronic branch has been a major hit, attracting big players like Ben UFO, Goldie, Acid Arab, Groove Armada, Harrison BPD, and Hot Chip.

Silhouettes of people standing and facing a vibrant stage with multicolored lights, including pink, blue, and orange hues, creating a lively atmosphere. The figures appear to be watching a performance in a darkened venue. — Image via Refinery29

A newcomer, one that has polarised the unsouthern, yet has now become one of the city’s most talked-about clubs.

FOLD, atop an old printing factory between Canning Town and Star Lane, opened a few years before Covid hit, and bounced back strong after the levees were lowered, showing that in the short time it was opened, it already fostered some sort of community.

Seriously, peak to any man with piercings, a mullet and a tank-top, and he will tell you that his favourite club in London is FOLD, specifically their UNFOLD nights. Unannounced line-ups, tickets only sold at the door, no guaranteed entry even if you’ve been standing in line like patience on a monument, Berlin-style admissions where doorstaff can bounce who they like for whatever reason.