Updated: 2 November 2024

Wondering how to get free or cheap coffee? Find out which of your favourite coffee shops and cafes are offering free coffee in the UK here. After all, it’s great to reward your work from home efforts with a stroll into town and a barista-made brew, especially if you’d like a change from making great coffee at home and are craving a latte.

Welcome to Pumpkin Spice Latte season! 🎃☕️🍁

We ❤️ free coffee.

Did you know: 99% of the population can’t function without C8H10N4O2 (that’s caffeine to you and me).

OK, so my fact isn’t scientifically proven and I may have over-exaggerated slightly, but let’s face it, we all love a good cup of coffee or tea. We love it even more when it’s free.

Who’s giving away free coffee?

Many of your favourite high street cafés and stores offer their shoppers a free cup of coffee or tea, including:

Costa Coffee
Starbucks
Waitrose
IKEA
Caffè Nero
Marks & Spencer
Greggs
McDonald’s

Keep an eye out, as many of these locations will also offer you an extra free coffee to celebrate your birthday! 🎉

Free coffee in the UK - Full list

Benugo

If you’re London-based, here’s a deal for you. There are a number of Benugo cafes to be found on the high streets of London, and if you sign up to their newsletter, you’ll receive a free coffee as well as a birthday treat. Simple! Learn more.

IKEA

Sign up for a free IKEA family card and you can grab a free tea or filter coffee in their cafes any time from Monday-Friday. OK, so you won’t visit IKEA nearly as much as you would a supermarket but you’ll thank us for letting you know when you need reviving from a trek around the showrooms. Does this give a new meaning to on the house? Learn more.

Pret A Manger

Pret A Manger staff are known to give away free cups of coffee to members of the public as a random act of kindness, so who knows? You could be lucky on your next visit!

Waitrose

The popular free coffee at Waitrose offer is back! myWaitrose members who make a purchase in store, and bring in their own cup, can get a free cup of coffee, made from Caffè Nero beans, or tea. Learn more.

Wetherspoons

One for the heavier coffee drinkers, if you purchase a Lavazza filter coffee before 2pm (prices can vary per branch but usually £1.99) you can get free refills. Not completely free, but if you like your coffee in large doses, your cost-per-cup can be pretty impressive. Learn more.

Freebie websites

If you’re happy to hunt around, check out freebie websites. Sign up to their newsletter, you’ll be the first to know when your favourite establishments and brands are giving away free samples or even full drinks. In the past, they’ve shared free teabag samples from the likes of Redbush tea and Taylors, and loads of free coffees to try at home too.

Free coffee at IKEA as part of IKEA Family

Free coffee with loyalty cards

Chances are, your favourite coffee chain has a loyalty scheme where you can get a free hot drink after you purchase a certain number of beverages from them. Which schemes are available?

Blank Street Coffee

Blank Street Coffee has a number of coffee shops throughout London. Download the Blank Street Coffee app and collect points on every eligible purchase. 10 points will earn you a free coffee or pastry! Learn more.

Caffè Nero

You can join Caffe Nero’s loyalty scheme to earn free coffee. Get a free beverage after every 9 stamps, or use code "GIVEME5" when you download the Caffè Nero loyalty app to get 5 stamps straightaway. Learn more.

Coco di Mama

Join Club Coco at Coco di Mama and get a free drink after every 8th purchase. Sign up and download your digital card to get started! Learn more.

Costa Coffee

Join Costa’s Coffee Club and get a free drink after every 8th purchase. Plus, free cake on your birthday. Yum! Learn more. Even better, if you bring in a reusable cup, you'll get an extra "Bean" or point, meaning you could get a free drink after only 4 drinks! Learn more.

GAIL'S

Download the GAIL'S Bakery App to earn rewards, including free coffee and cake. Collect 9 stamps to get your 10th coffee free. And you can get a free sweet treat on your birthday month! Learn more.

Greggs

When you download Greggs’ free rewards app you can get a coffee on the house. You’re also entitled to a free birthday treat and, if you use the app every time you get a coffee at Greggs, you’ll also get your 8th coffee free! Learn more.

Plus - o2 users, check out your o2 Priority app as they regularly share free coffee codes at Greggs, with new codes released every Monday. Learn more.

Grind

Join Grind's Rewards Program and you'll earn points every time you buy coffee at Grind. You'll earn 1 point for every £1 spent, and 35 points will bag you a free coffee. Learn more.

Harris + Hoole

At Harris + Hoole, you’ll get a free drink when you join their loyalty scheme and be rewarded with a free drink with every 6 stamps collected. Learn more.

Jack’s Beans

If you’re near a Jack’s Beans outlet on your travels (you can find your nearest location here), then sign up to their app to get a free coffee straightaway. You can also collect loyalty stamps on the app that entitles you to your 10th coffee free! Learn more.

Joe & The Juice

Download the JOE App to collect points and earn prizes like free juices and free coffee! Learn more.

Krispy Kreme

Download the Krispy Kreme Rewards App and collect points ("Smiles") on every purchase. Once you've collected 150 points, you'll be able to get a free hot drink of your choice. And you get a FREE doughnut just for signing up. Learn more.

M&S

Marks & Spencer have relaunched their Sparks coffee rewards programme, which gives members a free coffee after every 6 hot drinks purchased at an M&S Café. Simply download the M&S App and be sure to collect stamps every time you buy a barista-made drink in an M&S Café. Learn more.

McDonald's

Not only do they boast some of the cheapest prices for coffee on the high street, their loyalty scheme allows you to get your 6th cup on Ronald McDonald too. Simply collect your McCafé loyalty stamps on the My McDonald’s app. The app has completely replaced their sticker scheme. Learn more.

Muffin Break

Register for Muffin Break’s loyalty club and you’ll receive every 6th coffee free, as well as a free coffee as a thank you for signing up. You’ll also be gifted with a free muffin for your birthday. Learn more.

Patisserie Valerie

It couldn't be easier to grab a hot drink on the house at Patisserie Valerie. Simply join their Cake Club and enjoy a free coffee after sign up. Collect points as you spend at Patisserie Valerie to reward yourself with another free coffee in the future! Learn more.

PAUL

Download the PAUL UK Loyalty App to earn rewards, including free coffee. Collect stamps on every hot drink to get your 10th coffee free. Learn more.

Starbucks

With Starbucks Rewards, you collect 3 points (called ‘stars’) per £1 you spend. 150 stars = a free drink. Earn 450 stars to achieve Gold status, where you’ll be entitled for a free birthday drink too! Learn more.

But what if you're not a Starbucks Rewards member? According to their T&Cs, you are entitled to a FREE Tall refill if you've purchased a Filter Coffee: "Any customer who purchases a Filter Coffee to stay in one of our participating stores in the UK or Ireland, can enjoy a free Tall refill on us. Customers must retain their mug and provide this to the barista when redeeming their refill." Learn more.

Subway

Register for Subway Rewards and you can get a free hot drink with every 100 points collected. You receive 10 points for every £1.00 spent, and you can get double points within your first 28 days of registering. Learn more.

Watch House

Download Watch House's app and you'll be rewarded with a free coffee right away. You'll also get every seventh Watch House coffee on the house! Learn more.

Don’t forget to check your favourite independent coffee shop as many have their own loyalty schemes too!

Custom Pin Badges

If you are one of the collectors of coffee stamps, you can also choose custom Pin Badges, which is the most cost-effective way to customize pin badges to meet your various design needs. You can place them in a display cabinet in your bedroom or even pin them to your clothes, making them your most fashionable must-have.

Coffee subscription services

So they may not be completely free, but there are a few popular chains that offer a monthly coffee subscription service. If you really love your caffeine fix and live near a one of these cafés, then a coffee subscription might be just the service you’re after for a low-cost, high quality barista coffee every day. It’s like Netflix, but for coffee…

LEON

Within the LEON Club App, you can sign up and enjoy LEON's Roast Rewards for £25 a month. Your subscription will bag you up to 5 barista brews a day (each coffee could be as cheap as £0.15!) and 20% off their food menu. Learn more.

Pret A Manger

Club Pret subscribers can get 50% off up to five Barista made drinks a day for a reduced monthly fee of £10. (If you're an existing Club Pret member, it will cost just £5 for existing and new subscribers until 31 March 2025.) If you're not a Club Pret subscriber, you can still enjoy cheap Pret coffee. The cost of their Filter Coffee has been reduced to just 99p, making it one of the cheaper coffees on the high street. Learn more about the changes.

Pure

Pure's subscription service - Pure+more - works a little differently. For £4.99 a month, you'll get 20% off all food and drink via click and collect. Right now, the first month is free, so you'll get 20% off your order. Plus, they send members regular offers and discounts. Learn more.

Cheap coffee deals

It’s agreed - free coffee is the best kind. But, when you’re not able to grab a free cuppa out and about, there are some impressive coffee deals to be had. Here is our pick of the best cheap coffee offers:

Caffè Nero

Offer: £1 coffee with Three+. If you’re on the Three mobile network, you can get a hot or cold barista brew made for just £1 once a week. Download the Three+ app to get started. New codes are available every Monday - there are only 60,000 available a week, so be quick! Learn more.

Offer: Free/50% off weekly drinks with Vitality. Buy a qualifying Vitality insurance plan and claim active points each week and you could claim a free weekly drink at Caffè Nero or 50% off your drink, as well as 25% off the Caffè Nero food menu, 25% off the Coffee at Home Range, and 50% off the Vitality Healthy Food menu. Learn more about this offer and qualifying plans.

Greggs

Offer: £1 coffee. The classic O2 Priority offer of a free Greggs hot drink every week will change as of 12 September 2024. Instead, O2 Priority customers can claim a £1 coffee once a month. Learn more.

Home Coffee Co.

Home Coffee Co., offer exceptional cost-effective and eco-friendly coffee products for the home. Including coffee bags that are made sustainably and in bulk purchases. Learn more.

Use your own cup

Don’t forget - many coffee shops will encourage you to bring in your own reusable cup in exchange for a discounted hot drink or stamps/points towards their loyalty schemes. Here’s what the major chains offer: