by sirg0508

Created on: September 18, 2011   Last Updated: September 23, 2011

A trip to the cinema in the UK can be quite an expensive day or evening out. Cinema tickets alone can reach £15 per adult before purchasing snacks but there are a number of ways to save money and even spend no money at all.

Kids films

For those with kids it’s worth checking your nearest cinema for special offers. VUE and Cineworld offer great savings with adults paying the same price as a child from £1/£1.25 per person on Saturday and Sunday mornings. Adults can get in free with each child at

Odeon cinemas. New films are added regularly and 3D screenings are occasionally included in these offers but tickets need to be booked online.

Special offers

Many of the large cinemas have special offers so it’s worth checking their websites to see what’s available. Cheap cinema tickets can usually be bought for films shown during the day rather than at peak times. There can be bigger savings made at smaller independent cinemas too as they could be showing popular films weeks after their release for up to half the price of larger chains.

Savings with your mobile phone and internet providers

Depending on which mobile phone provider you have (or in some cases broadband provider, you may be able to get discounts for the cinema. Orange offer 2 for 1 Wednesday’s for all screenings (excluding premiers and private screenings) at participating cinemas. O2 Priority currently offers 40% off Odeon cinema tickets.

Free cinema tickets

There are often quite a number of free cinema tickets available for advanced screenings. Sky offer free tickets to their Sky Movies customers or you can register at Show Film First or See Film First to be emailed codes for free advanced screenings. Additional codes may be published in newspapers but as all these tickets are first come first served they can go incredibly quickly for some cinemas.

Regular cinema goers

If visiting the cinema regularly it could be worth looking into loyalty card to save money. Cineworld have an Unlimited Card to see as many films as you want for a monthly fee and Odeon have a Premier Club Card to collect points on your purchases and redeem them for free cinema tickets and snacks.

Snacks

Buying snacks at the cinema is a definite no-no if you want to save money. With a small tub of popcorn priced around £3.75 and a small drink at £2.50 you can easily save £3 per person on popcorn and drinks alone by bringing your own. 

Learn more about this author, sirg0508.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.