Want to know where the best places are for a stag do/hen party? Planning a night out in a different city but not sure where? Do not fear, we’ve got you.
At Blu we’ve analysed data from the Government Office of National Statistics (ONS) to see which areas of the UK have the highest number of alcohol licenses per square mile. Our data is filtered by three sections which include: 350 licensing authorities, 57 counties and 33 London boroughs. The data includes licenses for pubs and clubs, but also applies to cafes and restaurants that sell alcohol - so if the late-night scene isn’t for you, we’re sure you’ll still find plenty of places to socialise.
If it’s a specific city you’re looking to visit, the licensing authorities (excluding London boroughs) that came out on top for the highest number of licenses per square mile were:
UK LOCAL AUTHORITIES WITH THE Most alcohol licenses per square mile
UK LOCAL AUTHORITIES WITH THE LEAST alcohol licenses per square mile
Bridgend had over 100 more licenses per square mile than the second top city, proving it to be a great spot to visit if bar hopping is your thing. The bottom five locations all have under one alcohol license per square mile, so if you’re looking for something a little more sedate, these five are for you:
The Full UK Licensing Authorities Index
| Licensing authority | Total Premises licences | License / Square Mile |
|---|---|---|
| City of London | 903 | 806 |
| Westminster | 3,364 | 395 |
| Islington | 1,294 | 226 |
| Kensington & Chelsea | 1,044 | 218 |
| Camden | 1,809 | 215 |
| Bridgend | 493 | 196 |
| Hackney | 1,366 | 186 |
| Lambeth | 1,457 | 138 |
| Tower Hamlets | 1,104 | 133 |
| Hammersmith & Fulham | 866 | 131 |
| Southwark | 1,411 | 122 |
| Wrexham | 432 | 95 |
| Wandsworth | 1,155 | 85 |
| Blackpool | 1,379 | 83 |
| Haringey | 892 | 78 |
| Lewisham | 782 | 57 |
| Newham | 834 | 56 |
| Waltham Forest | 836 | 56 |
| Brent | 895 | 54 |
| Manchester | 2,219 | 50 |
| Oxford | 815 | 46 |
| Ealing | 990 | 46 |
| Leicester | 1,288 | 45 |
| Liverpool | 2,301 | 45 |
| Nottingham | 1,279 | 44 |
| Bournemouth | 802 | 44 |
| Greenwich | 783 | 40 |
| Kingston upon Thames | 566 | 39 |
| Reading | 603 | 39 |
| Cambridge | 599 | 38 |
| Southampton | 828 | 38 |
| Watford | 314 | 38 |
| Brighton & Hove | 1,250 | 38 |
| Croydon | 1,194 | 36 |
| Hounslow | 766 | 35 |
| Wolverhampton | 924 | 34 |
| Merton | 494 | 34 |
| Richmond upon Thames | 746 | 33 |
| Portsmouth | 759 | 33 |
| Luton | 545 | 33 |
| Hastings | 386 | 32 |
| Worcester | 414 | 32 |
| Redbridge | 694 | 32 |
| Ipswich | 486 | 31 |
| Birmingham | 3,174 | 31 |
| Norwich | 473 | 30 |
| Worthing | 377 | 29 |
| Hull | 909 | 29 |
| Derby | 866 | 29 |
| Lincoln | 389 | 28 |
| Sandwell | 922 | 28 |
| Harrow | 541 | 28 |
| Cardiff | 1,492 | 28 |
| Newcastle upon Tyne | 1,214 | 27 |
| Dudley | 1,032 | 27 |
| Barking & Dagenham | 390 | 27 |
| Barnet | 887 | 26 |
| Cheltenham | 458 | 25 |
| Coventry | 953 | 25 |
| Eastbourne | 439 | 25 |
| Sutton | 422 | 25 |
| Exeter | 457 | 25 |
| Enfield | 774 | 24 |
| Stoke-on-Trent | 876 | 24 |
| Plymouth | 783 | 24 |
| Bexley | 585 | 24 |
| Southend-on-Sea | 601 | 23 |
| Northampton | 707 | 23 |
| Middlesbrough | 470 | 22 |
| Slough | 278 | 22 |
| Bristol | 1,967 | 22 |
| Weymouth & Portland | 354 | 21 |
| Gloucester | 327 | 21 |
| Salford | 774 | 21 |
| Walsall | 811 | 20 |
| Trafford | 825 | 20 |
| Stevenage | 195 | 19 |
| Gosport | 200 | 19 |
| Hillingdon | 838 | 19 |
| North Tyneside | 608 | 19 |
| Poole | 531 | 18 |
| Tameside | 722 | 18 |
| South Tyneside | 462 | 18 |
| Tamworth | 202 | 17 |
| Harlow | 196 | 17 |
| Sheffield | 2,358 | 17 |
| Sunderland | 886 | 16 |
| Torbay | 741 | 16 |
| Rushmoor | 238 | 16 |
| Chesterfield | 402 | 16 |
| Stockport | 765 | 16 |
| Bury | 599 | 16 |
| Crawley | 269 | 15 |
| Spelthorne | 305 | 15 |
| Oadby & Wigston | 140 | 15 |
| Epsom & Ewell | 191 | 15 |
| Bolton | 772 | 14 |
| Wigan | 1,025 | 14 |
| Thanet | 597 | 14 |
| Bromley | 778 | 13 |
| Oldham | 713 | 13 |
| Leeds | 2,703 | 13 |
| Havering | 541 | 12 |
| Broxbourne | 233 | 12 |
| Gateshead | 649 | 12 |
| Elmbridge | 428 | 12 |
| Sefton | 891 | 11 |
| Cannock Chase | 342 | 11 |
| Broxtowe | 347 | 11 |
| Nuneaton & Bedworth | 341 | 11 |
| Isles of Scilly | 70 | 11 |
| Mansfield | 322 | 11 |
| Bradford | 1,538 | 11 |
| Woking | 258 | 11 |
| Solihull | 713 | 10 |
| Halton | 360 | 10 |
| Havant | 314 | 10 |
| Dartford | 302 | 10 |
| Swindon | 902 | 10 |
| Redditch | 212 | 10 |
| Christchurch | 202 | 10 |
| Hyndburn | 283 | 10 |
| St Helens | 527 | 10 |
| Rochdale | 602 | 10 |
| Wirral | 968 | 10 |
| Warrington | 668 | 9 |
| Wakefield | 1,233 | 9 |
| York | 979 | 9 |
| Hartlepool | 343 | 9 |
| Castle Point | 220 | 9 |
| Adur | 150 | 9 |
| Kirklees | 1,395 | 9 |
| Ashfield | 366 | 9 |
| Preston | 475 | 9 |
| Blackburn with Darwen | 454 | 9 |
| Erewash | 357 | 8 |
| Basildon | 355 | 8 |
| Eastleigh | 273 | 8 |
| Burnley | 351 | 8 |
| Great Yarmouth | 577 | 8 |
| Windsor & Maidenhead | 618 | 8 |
| Runnymede | 237 | 8 |
| Medway | 809 | 8 |
| Gravesham | 312 | 8 |
| Hertsmere | 297 | 8 |
| Fareham | 222 | 7 |
| Knowsley | 238 | 7 |
| Reigate & Banstead | 353 | 7 |
| Stockton-on-Tees | 559 | 7 |
| Swansea | 1,006 | 7 |
| Rotherham | 748 | 7 |
| South Ribble | 298 | 7 |
| Barnsley | 841 | 7 |
| Newport | 484 | 7 |
| Blaenau Gwent | 275 | 7 |
| Bath & North East Somerset | 869 | 6 |
| St Albans | 396 | 6 |
| Corby | 197 | 6 |
| Calderdale | 888 | 6 |
| Surrey Heath | 230 | 6 |
| North East Lincolnshire | 483 | 6 |
| Canterbury | 743 | 6 |
| Thurrock | 422 | 6 |
| Three Rivers | 203 | 6 |
| Welwyn Hatfield | 293 | 6 |
| Milton Keynes | 682 | 6 |
| Gedling | 264 | 6 |
| Wokingham | 393 | 6 |
| Dacorum | 463 | 6 |
| Charnwood | 608 | 6 |
| Torfaen | 274 | 6 |
| Warwick | 610 | 6 |
| Arun | 482 | 6 |
| Bracknell Forest | 233 | 6 |
| Isle of Wight | 803 | 5 |
| Barrow-in-Furness | 267 | 5 |
| Amber Valley | 530 | 5 |
| Rhondda Cynon Taff | 846 | 5 |
| North Somerset | 772 | 5 |
| Wyre Forest | 381 | 5 |
| Blaby | 254 | 5 |
| Doncaster | 1,100 | 5 |
| Darlington | 373 | 5 |
| Caerphilly | 521 | 5 |
| Fylde | 340 | 5 |
| Redcar & Cleveland | 470 | 5 |
| Guildford | 495 | 5 |
| Chorley | 366 | 5 |
| Telford & Wrekin | 520 | 5 |
| Brentwood | 273 | 5 |
| Newcastle-under-Lyme | 375 | 5 |
| Pendle | 299 | 5 |
| Colchester | 601 | 4 |
| Wycombe | 548 | 4 |
| Peterborough | 557 | 4 |
| Rossendale | 223 | 4 |
| Wellingborough | 257 | 4 |
| Kettering | 367 | 4 |
| South Bucks | 221 | 4 |
| Chiltern | 301 | 4 |
| Chelmsford | 522 | 4 |
| Bromsgrove | 328 | 4 |
| Tonbridge & Malling | 358 | 4 |
| Tendring | 531 | 4 |
| Forest of Dean | 813 | 4 |
| Dover | 464 | 4 |
| Cheshire West & Chester | 1,329 | 4 |
| Vale of Glamorgan | 466 | 4 |
| Bolsover | 222 | 4 |
| Maidstone | 538 | 4 |
| North West Leicestershire | 369 | 3 |
| Mid Sussex | 441 | 3 |
| South Gloucestershire | 695 | 3 |
| Tunbridge Wells | 427 | 3 |
| North Hertfordshire | 481 | 3 |
| Hinckley & Bosworth | 376 | 3 |
| Hart | 269 | 3 |
| Cheshire East | 1,452 | 3 |
| Waveney | 459 | 3 |
| East Staffordshire | 470 | 3 |
| Bedford | 570 | 3 |
| Epping Forest | 389 | 3 |
| Flintshire | 502 | 3 |
| Lichfield | 376 | 3 |
| Waverley | 391 | 3 |
| Wyre | 370 | 3 |
| Swale | 471 | 3 |
| North East Derbyshire | 307 | 3 |
| Neath Port Talbot | 492 | 3 |
| Mole Valley | 286 | 3 |
| Central Bedfordshire | 786 | 3 |
| Tandridge | 272 | 3 |
| Sevenoaks | 398 | 3 |
| Shepway | 390 | 3 |
| Lewes | 304 | 3 |
| Scarborough | 846 | 3 |
| Taunton Deane | 473 | 3 |
| Rugby | 356 | 3 |
| Stroud | 441 | 2 |
| Cherwell | 543 | 2 |
| North Warwickshire | 258 | 2 |
| Stratford-on-Avon | 875 | 2 |
| Rushcliffe | 361 | 2 |
| Sedgemoor | 534 | 2 |
| South Staffordshire | 359 | 2 |
| South Derbyshire | 293 | 2 |
| Lancaster | 566 | 2 |
| Durham | 1,902 | 2 |
| Cornwall | 3,011 | 2 |
| South Oxfordshire | 564 | 2 |
| Rochford | 215 | 2 |
| Horsham | 432 | 2 |
| North Lincolnshire | 712 | 2 |
| New Forest | 631 | 2 |
| High Peak | 437 | 2 |
| West Lancashire | 304 | 2 |
| Winchester | 523 | 2 |
| Teignbridge | 537 | 2 |
| Rother | 403 | 2 |
| East Devon | 636 | 2 |
| Staffordshire Moorlands | 441 | 2 |
| East Hertfordshire | 362 | 2 |
| East Hampshire | 388 | 2 |
| Harborough | 442 | 2 |
| Braintree | 456 | 2 |
| West Berkshire | 523 | 2 |
| Wychavon | 492 | 2 |
| Basingstoke & Deane | 467 | 2 |
| Ashford | 423 | 2 |
| Boston | 289 | 2 |
| Stafford | 433 | 2 |
| Vale of White Horse | 409 | 2 |
| South Somerset | 677 | 2 |
| Wealden | 586 | 2 |
| Chichester | 566 | 2 |
| Bassetlaw | 444 | 2 |
| East Dorset | 245 | 2 |
| City of London | 2 | 2 |
| City of London | 2 | 2 |
| West Oxfordshire | 490 | 2 |
| Newark & Sherwood | 446 | 2 |
| Tewkesbury | 283 | 2 |
| Purbeck | 291 | 2 |
| Derbyshire Dales | 539 | 2 |
| Mendip | 489 | 2 |
| East Northamptonshire | 331 | 2 |
| Huntingdonshire | 592 | 2 |
| Aylesbury Vale | 585 | 2 |
| Test Valley | 406 | 2 |
| Broadland | 346 | 2 |
| Babergh | 381 | 2 |
| Isle of Anglesey | 443 | 2 |
| Forest Heath | 234 | 2 |
| Malvern Hills | 353 | 2 |
| Maldon | 260 | 2 |
| Conwy | 686 | 2 |
| Fenland | 332 | 2 |
| Suffolk Coastal | 553 | 2 |
| South Hams | 542 | 2 |
| St Edmundsbury | 393 | 2 |
| North Devon | 646 | 2 |
| West Dorset | 626 | 1 |
| Denbighshire | 481 | 1 |
| Harrogate | 738 | 1 |
| Pembrokeshire | 889 | 1 |
| South Northamptonshire | 352 | 1 |
| Monmouthshire | 471 | 1 |
| South Kesteven | 521 | 1 |
| South Norfolk | 500 | 1 |
| North Norfolk | 541 | 1 |
| Wiltshire | 1,763 | 1 |
| Selby | 324 | 1 |
| Cotswold | 614 | 1 |
| South Cambridgeshire | 461 | 1 |
| Daventry | 333 | 1 |
| North Dorset | 302 | 1 |
| East Riding of Yorkshire | 1,233 | 1 |
| East Lindsey | 903 | 1 |
| Allerdale | 644 | 1 |
| Ribble Valley | 278 | 1 |
| South Lakeland | 824 | 1 |
| Uttlesford | 303 | 1 |
| Carlisle | 494 | 1 |
| Herefordshire | 985 | 1 |
| East Cambridgeshire | 286 | 1 |
| Merthyr Tydfil | 234 | 1 |
| Melton | 204 | 1 |
| Copeland | 309 | 1 |
| Gwynedd | 991 | 1 |
| Rutland | 153 | 1 |
| Mid Devon | 351 | 1 |
| King's Lynn & West Norfolk | 578 | 1 |
| Shropshire | 1,204 | 1 |
| South Holland | 304 | 1 |
| Mid Suffolk | 322 | 1 |
| West Somerset | 276 | 1 |
| Carmarthenshire | 869 | 1 |
| North Kesteven | 330 | 1 |
| Breckland | 461 | 1 |
| Hambleton | 445 | 1 |
| Torridge | 324 | 1 |
| Ceredigion | 569 | 1 |
| Northumberland | 1,559 | 1 |
| Craven | 357 | 1 |
| West Lindsey | 334 | 1 |
| Richmondshire | 346 | 1 |
| West Devon | 304 | 1 |
| Ryedale | 385 | 1 |
| Powys | 1,010 | 1 |
| Eden | 416 | 0 |
We also compared counties in the UK, to see what areas dominate in terms of premises licenses per square mile. Our findings for the top and bottom 10 counties can be seen in the visual below, and it’s clear that after Greater London, the North is the best option for those looking to hit the town:
UK COUNTIES WITH THE MOST ALCOHOL Licenses per SQUARE MILE
Greater London
52
West Midlands
24
Greater Manchester
18
Tyne & Wear
18
Merseyside
16
Isles of scilly
11
West Yorkshire
10
South Yorkshire
8
Cleveland
8
Avon
7
UK countries with the least alcohol licenses per square mile
Northumberland
1
Mid and West Wales
1
Cumbria
1
Shropshire
1
Lincolnshire
1
North Yorkshire
1
North Wales
2
Norfolk
2
Somerset
2
Suffolk
2
We visualised London boroughs separately as it is a very dense area for alcohol licenses, and we found that the City of London has nearly triple the number of licenses per square mile than the borough after it. Westminster, Islington, Camden and Kensington and Chelsea were all in the top five, so if you’re a Londoner, or looking to go away for a weekend, those boroughs are your best bet. Take a look at our heat map below to see how each borough differs and where the best places are to go for a drink:
Premises licenses per square mile in london boroughs
Most alcohol licenses per square mile
Least alcohol licenses per square mile
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