How affordable are Edinburgh's festivals?

Edinburgh, a city renowned for its transformation into a vibrant festival hub each summer, hosts some of the world's largest cultural gatherings. August sees the Scottish capital come alive with the Fringe, the International Festival, and the Military Tattoo, alongside film, art, and book festivals. While complaints about escalating city prices are not new, recent years have brought heightened concerns regarding the expense of attending these summer events.

To assess the affordability for both performers and audiences, BBC Scotland has examined key costs for festival-goers to determine if expenses have indeed increased.

Kaitlyn Smith, who has attended the Fringe annually since moving to Edinburgh from Orkney a decade ago, believes a day at the festivals has become more costly. The 25-year-old often hands out flyers to help offset the expense of seeing multiple performances in a single day. She identifies cost as the "biggest barrier" preventing local residents from fully experiencing the festival.

"A full day out at the Fringe, you can spend £100 or £200 in a day," Smith stated. "If you are coming on holiday, you know you are coming to the Fringe. You know that you are saving up money to see it, but we're here the whole month and obviously we would like to try and do the Fringe as well. But you are paying £7 or £8 for a pint, £10 or £12 for food - that's one meal. And that's not even starting on your tickets for shows."

She added, "I think the shows are worth it, but if you want to see a big volume, you just can't."

Darren Neale, venue director at Greenside Venue in Edinburgh, informed BBC Scotland that nearly every operational cost for a Fringe venue has seen a significant increase over the years. He cited rising expenses for utilities, insurance, technical equipment, transport, and other operational outlays, with housing experiencing the most dramatic change.

"The cost of staying in Edinburgh during August has risen exponentially over the last decade, creating challenges not only for performers but also for the staff and freelancers who make the festival possible," Neale explained. "We have seen our accommodation cost rise on average by 300% in the last decade."

He further commented, "The festival's affordability is one of the reasons it has become the world's largest arts festival, and there is a real balance to be struck between paying people fairly, covering rising costs and keeping live theatre within reach of audiences."

The cost of accommodation during August has long been a challenge for Edinburgh and its festivals. A dip in Fringe sales in 2022 was attributed to escalating accommodation costs, though sales rebounded in subsequent years, reaching over 2.6 million last year. Earlier this year, Edinburgh lost the TV festival to Manchester, with organizers citing issues of "accessibility, affordability and sustainability."

Data from commercial real estate group Costar, shared with BBC Scotland, indicates a year-on-year increase in average hotel prices since 2019. The average daily room rate in August 2025 was just over £260, a 9% increase from the previous August and 64% higher than pre-Covid levels. In contrast, the rate was £110 in Glasgow and £81 in Manchester.

Self-catering accommodation offers little relief, with Visit Britain figures showing that renting an entire property for one or two people in Edinburgh cost visitors £204.68 per day in August 2025. The corresponding rates were £161.67 in Glasgow and £106.92 in Manchester. However, short-term let prices can vary significantly based on the type of accommodation (e.g., private room, shared room, or entire home) and the number of occupants.

Visitors to Edinburgh this year will also incur the city's new tourist tax, an additional 5% on top of the original booking cost for the first five nights. Due to a lack of publicly available data, an analysis of festival accommodation costs at university-run establishments was not possible.

Last year, 1.5 million Edinburgh residents attended the summer festivals, an increase from 1.4 million in 2024. However, high housing costs for city residents are not limited to August. Data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) suggests that the capital has some of the highest average rents in the country.

Regarding show costs, an analysis of the average price of the cheapest ticket at the six August festivals – encompassing nearly 600,000 shows between 2016 and 2026 – revealed changes over the last decade. The analysis found that average ticket prices (excluding booking fees) increased in cash terms from £10 to £12.80.

However, when adjusted for inflation, the price of this year's cheapest ticket has actually decreased over the past decade, being £1.37 less than 10 years ago, when the average cost was £14.17. In real terms, average prices for the cheapest ticket were slightly higher before the pandemic but have generally remained around £12.75 since 2021, despite rising overheads for performers, production companies, and venues.

Ticket prices present a varied picture across the festivals. Over the last decade, the average lowest ticket price at the Edinburgh International Festival increased in real terms from £19.83 to £20. Conversely, there has been a real-term decrease at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, from £14.17 to £12.80. Real-term prices have also fallen at the Edinburgh International Book Festival (from £17 to £15.50) and the Edinburgh International Film Festival (from £14.17 to £12).

Due to its nature, tickets for the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo are typically more expensive than other shows. The analysis found it experienced the largest increase, with average lowest ticket prices rising by 36% from £35.41 to £48.

Lori Anderson, director of Festivals Edinburgh, the umbrella organization for the city's major festivals, stated that the events are still perceived as "incredible value for money" by both residents and visitors.

"Costs across Edinburgh in August have risen significantly, particularly accommodation, and our festivals are actively grappling with those issues - albeit with no direct control over them," Anderson explained. "What we do control, however, are the events that happen every year. Our festivals work tirelessly to ensure tickets remain affordable for as many people as possible, putting in place ticket offers and concession prices for those who might otherwise feel excluded."

Festivals Edinburgh estimates that the events contribute £852 million to Scotland's economy annually. Anderson added, "We cannot be complacent - our festivals want to work with partners across the city to ensure that Edinburgh is a city where everyone can afford to live, visit and perform."

The analysis utilized official listings data from Festivals Edinburgh, examining the median lowest publicly advertised full-price ticket from 2016 to 2026. Prices were adjusted for inflation using Office for National Statistics data to enable consistent comparisons over time. This approach allowed for a consistent measurement of like-for-like prices for each event, minimizing the impact of varying pricing structures and models across the festivals, in the absence of ticket sales data. The analysis did not account for tickets sold at promotional prices or concession tickets. Pay-what-you-can, free shows, and cancelled events were excluded, as were booking fees. Only shows taking place in June, July, or August were included in the analysis.

Additional reporting was provided by Isobel Cottam and James Delaney.