The best bookshops in London in 2026 are Hatchards on Piccadilly, London's oldest bookshop; Daunt Books in Marylebone for travel books in an Edwardian gallery; Foyles on Charing Cross Road for sheer range; the London Review Bookshop in Bloomsbury for literary picks; and Word on the Water, a bookshop on a canal barge at King's Cross.
London is one of the world's great bookshop cities. Charing Cross Road and Cecil Court are the traditional book streets, Bloomsbury has the literary and academic shops around the British Museum, and independent shops thrive in every neighbourhood. Many host author events; check their websites for readings and signings.
London's oldest bookshop, on Piccadilly since 1797.
Hatchards has sold books next to Fortnum & Mason since the 18th century, across several floors of creaking wooden stairs and panelled rooms. It holds Royal Warrants and is known for its signed first editions.
It suits browsers who love a traditional bookshop and anyone looking for a special gift.
Good to know: Ask about signed copies of new releases.
187 Piccadilly, London W1J 9LE
A beautiful Edwardian bookshop that arranges travel books by country.
Daunt Books on Marylebone High Street is famous for its long oak gallery lit by a stained-glass window, where guidebooks, novels and history are shelved together by country.
It is a pleasure to browse, and the canvas tote bag has become a London souvenir.
Good to know: Head to the back gallery to plan your next trip.
83–84 Marylebone High Street, London W1U 4QW
A huge, much-loved bookshop on London's traditional book street.
Foyles' flagship on Charing Cross Road has several floors of books covering almost every subject, with strong art, music, languages and children's sections and a café.
It is the place to go when you want to find something specific or browse for hours.
Good to know: Check its events calendar for author talks.
107 Charing Cross Road, London WC2H 0DT
A literary bookshop by the British Museum, with a celebrated cake shop.
The London Review Bookshop, run by the London Review of Books, is a beautifully curated shop of fiction, poetry, history and ideas a minute from the British Museum. Its staff recommendations are excellent.
The attached cake shop is a lovely spot for tea and a slice.
Good to know: Its evening events with authors sell out; book early.
14 Bury Place, London WC1A 2JL
A second-hand bookshop on a 1920s Dutch barge on the Regent's Canal.
Word on the Water sells second-hand books from a barge moored on the Regent's Canal towpath by Granary Square, with a stove inside and often live music on the roof in summer.
It is one of London's most charming places to browse, and prices are low.
Good to know: Combine it with a walk along the canal to Camden.
Regent's Canal Towpath, Granary Square, London N1C 4AA
A vast bookshop in a 1930s Art Deco department store building.
Waterstones Piccadilly occupies the former Simpsons department store, an Art Deco building with several floors of books on every subject.
It is the easiest place in central London to find almost any new book.
Good to know: Ask staff for signed stock, which is often on display.
203–206 Piccadilly, London W1J 9HD
A tiny, crammed Chelsea bookshop with superb staff recommendations.
John Sandoe Books has traded from three small 18th-century houses off the King's Road since 1957, with books stacked to the ceiling and staff who know them all.
It is the place to ask for a recommendation and leave with something you would never have found alone.
Good to know: Tell the staff what you last loved and ask what to read next.
10–12 Blacklands Terrace, London SW3 2SR
The UK's oldest LGBT+ bookshop, a Bloomsbury landmark.
Gay's the Word on Marchmont Street is the UK's oldest LGBT+ bookshop, with fiction, history, memoir and theory, and a long history as a community meeting place.
It is a short walk from the British Museum and Russell Square.
Good to know: Look out for its regular reading groups and events.
66 Marchmont Street, London WC1N 1AB
A huge basement of second-hand books in the Brunswick Centre.
Skoob Books fills a large basement under the Brunswick Centre with tens of thousands of second-hand books, strong on academic subjects, philosophy, literature and history.
It is a treasure hunt for students and bargain hunters.
Good to know: Allow time: the stock is deep and the browsing addictive.
66 The Brunswick, off Marchmont Street, London WC1N 1AE
A mirror-lined Spitalfields bookshop that shelves books by theme, not genre.
Libreria, on Hanbury Street off Brick Lane, is a small, striking bookshop with mirrored ceilings and yellow shelves, arranged by themes such as wanderlust or enchantment rather than by genre.
It is a good stop on a Spitalfields and Brick Lane wander.
Good to know: It is close to Brick Lane's Sunday markets; combine the two.
65 Hanbury Street, London E1 5JP
Hatchards on Piccadilly, which has traded on the same street since 1797 and holds Royal Warrants.
Daunt Books in Marylebone, with its long oak gallery and stained-glass window, is the usual answer. Hatchards and John Sandoe Books are close contenders.
Skoob Books in Bloomsbury has a huge basement of second-hand titles, Word on the Water on the canal at King's Cross sells used books, and Cecil Court near Leicester Square has antiquarian dealers.
Waterstones Piccadilly, which bills itself as Europe's largest bookshop, and Foyles on Charing Cross Road are the two biggest.
Yes. The London Review Bookshop is a minute away on Bury Place, and Skoob Books and Gay's the Word are a short walk north. See our museums guide.