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Top 50 Cocktail Bars In The UK 2026 Announced: 50% Are London-Based, Though Birmingham Bar Claims The Top Spot

Published . By Katie Kirwan.

Pictured (left to right): Satan's Whiskers, Below Stairs, and Swift.

What Are The Top 50 Cocktail Bars?

Recently released, 2026's list of the UK's Top 50 Cocktail Bars (put together by an expert panel) is a proud moment for London's cocktail bars. Sponsored by Franklin & Sons, it's a list put together by the industry itself, with over 200 experts, business owners, bartenders and influencers being trusted with the selection.

With exactly 50% of them residing in London, 25 out of the list of 50 can be found across Soho, Shoreditch and beyond. Meaning that when it comes down to your hunt for an espresso martini, or a signature mix? There's no place quite like our city. That being said, it was a Birmingham bar coming in top.

Top 50 Cocktail Bars 2026 List

  1. Couch, Stirchley, Birmingham
  2. Bar Glue, Liverpool
  3. Satan’s Whiskers, Bethnal Green, London
  4. The Brain Jar, Hull
  5. Waltz, London
  6. SCHOFIELD’S BAR, Manchester
  7. AMARO BAR, Kensington, London
  8. Bar Termini, Soho, London
  9. Panda and Sons, Edinburgh
  10. Tayēr + Elementary, Shoreditch, London
  11. Three Sheets, Soho, London
  12. Side Hustle, Covent Garden, London
  13. The Hideout, Bath
  14. Speak in Code, Manchester
  15. Swift Soho, Soho, London
  16. Passing Fancies, Digbeth, Birmingham
  17. Hey Palu, Edinburgh
  18. Archive & Myth, London
  19. Kwãnt, Mayfair, London
  20. Below Stairs, Leeds
  21. Murder Inc, Soho, London
  22. Daddy Marmalades, Glasgow
  23. BLINKER, Manchester
  24. Lab 22, Cardiff
  25. Lyaness, South Bank, London
  26. Equal Parts, Hackney, London
  27. Nauticus, Edinburgh
  28. Kiki Lounge, Douglas, Isle of Man
  29. Filthy XIII, Bristol
  30. Slowpour, Liverpool
  31. The Connaught Bar, Mayfair, London
  32. Three Sheets, Soho, London
  33. Viajante87, Notting Hill, London
  34. Sister Ray, Liverpool
  35. Scarfes Bar, Holborn, London
  36. 🔶🟥🔵, Hackney, London
  37. Bar Kinky, Fitzrovia, London
  38. Over & Above, Harrogate
  39. Dram, Soho, London
  40. The Pearl at Park Hill, Sheffield
  41. The Milk Thistle, Bristol
  42. The Morris, Manchester
  43. The Spy Bar, London
  44. Happiness Forgets, Hoxton, London
  45. Disrepute, Soho, London
  46. Opium, Chinatown, London
  47. Lowkey, Cardiff
  48. SOMA, Soho, London
  49. Tabula Rasa, Leeds
  50. The American Bar, Auchterarder, Kinross-shire

For more awards news, discover this year's new Michelin star and Bib Gourmand restaurants.

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