Enjoy more of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe — and support the charity and participants that sustain it.
By becoming a Fringe Friend, you receive access to exclusive ticket offers enabling you to see more shows during the festival. Your membership also supports the Fringe Society, a charity that works on behalf of the wider Fringe to ensure the festival remains open and accessible to all, and directly benefits Fringe artists and venues.
Thank you to everyone who is already part of Fringe Friends — your support makes a real difference.
What you get as a Fringe Friend
Fringe Friends memberships offer a range of benefits, which vary by tier and are outlined in the table below. These include:
- Access to 2-for-1 ticket offers on a wide range of Fringe shows
- The opportunity to see more of the festival while spending less
- Invites to behind-the-scenes events.
You can make the cost of your membership back after just a few bookings, depending on ticket prices.
Our Friends memberships take you right to the heart of the Fringe. They’re a great way to allow yourself to take risks on new shows and discover up-and-coming artists.
We have several membership tiers available to suit different budgets, with a variety of benefits available at each tier. This way you can choose the annual membership that feels best for you.
Fringe Friends memberships are active for one festival period and can be bought with a recurring Direct Debit payment for UK Friends or one-off payments for all Friends.
Local residents discount (EH postcode)
People living in Edinburgh and the surrounding area play a vital role in celebrating the Fringe in their city and welcoming the festival each summer.
To recognise this, members with an EH postcode receive a £5 local discount on their Fringe Friends membership. Just select the EH option for your chosen tier and sign up with an EH postcode.
Fringe Friends membership tiers and benefits
Support the Fringe and unlock great benefits by becoming a Friend.
| Friend | Good Friend | Close Friend | Best Friend | |
| Standard cost | £52 or £42 DD |
£72 or £62 DD |
£102 or £92 DD |
£192 or £172 DD |
| Local residents discount (EH postcode) | £47 or £37 DD | £67 or £57 DD | £97 or £87 DD | £187 or £167 DD |
| Exclusive bulletins | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Priority booking line | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Membership card and lanyard | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Merchandise discount (10%) | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Programme delivery discount (50%) | ✔️ | ✔️ | ||
| Programme delivered free (until 24 July, by request thereafter) | ✔️ | ✔️ | ||
| Year-round offers from local organisations | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| 2for1 tickets on participating shows (see FAQs for restrictions) | 10 | 20 | 30 | 50 |
| Friend reception invites | ✔️ | ✔️ | ||
| Priority access to programme launch event tickets | ✔️ | ✔️ | ||
| Exclusive discounts at local businesses during the Fringe | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ |
Want to upgrade your support?
If you’re able to give additional support, you may wish to become a Patron. With all the benefits of a Best Friends, Patrons get access to additional events and offers, and help sustain the Fringe Society’s charitable work year-round, strengthening the wider Fringe and supporting artists and audiences beyond the festival period.
Paying by Direct Debit
You can save time and money by setting up an annual Direct Debit for your Fringe Friends membership. As a Direct Debit customer, you’ll save on the cost of any Friends membership.
Direct Debit is a simple, convenient and secure way to pay for your Fringe Friend membership; your subscription comes out of your bank automatically and there’s no need to contact us to pay. You can cancel your Direct Debit at any time.
Direct Debits are only open to Friends in the UK. Supporters from the US and overseas can become Friends using the standard card payment option above.
Gift memberships
Do you know a Fringe Fanatic? Arts Addict? Dance Devotee? Are you looking for a unique gift idea for the Fringe fan in your life? Why not gift a summer of inspirational theatre, comedy, dance and much, much more with a Fringe Friends membership. From 2for1 ticket offers to invitations to exclusive members’ events, our Friends membership is the perfect ticket to a great Fringe experience.
Gift memberships are delivered as a voucher that can be redeemed either online, in person or on the telephone. Visit the Fringe Shop for more information and to buy.
Fringe Network Friends
Want to support us as a business? Join our Fringe Network Friends, contribute to the ongoing success of the Fringe and enjoy the benefits.
Our Fringe Network Friends are a collective of passionate performing arts enthusiasts who want to share the extraordinary world of the Fringe with their clients and colleagues.
Frequently asked questions
The benefits of being a Fringe Friend include ticket offers, a priority booking line and discounts in the Fringe Shop.
Membership fees from Friends support the charitable work of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe Society, which works year round to support participants and audiences coming to the Fringe.
Fringe shows have the option to take part in the Friends 2for1 ticket offer at the point of registration – you'll be able to see which shows have signed up by looking out for the purple Friends icon on their edfringe.com listing (you can also filter your search results to see all the shows that are part of the offer).
Once you've chosen a participating show, select two full-price tickets – a discount to the cost of one full-price ticket will be applied at the checkout stage.
Please note: The purple Friends of the Fringe logo will not be visible on our website or app this year, but it will still appear in the printed programme. We are investing in the future of our digital systems to improve access and services for audiences and artists, and 2025 is a transition year. Thank you for bearing with us.
- The Friends 2for1 ticket offer cannot be used in conjunction with other 2for1 ticket offers or concessions.
- The Friends 2for1 ticket offer applies only to those shows which have chosen to take part, not every show in the programme.
- Friends, Good Friends and Close Friends can use the 2for1 ticket offer once per show run, ie they are entitled to one free ticket when purchased alongside a full-price ticket.
- Best Friends and Patrons can use the 2for1 ticket twice per show run, ie they are entitled to two free tickets when purchased alongside two full-price tickets.
Close Friends, Best Friends, and Patrons will receive a copy of the programme as part of their membership by 12 June, so long as they have signed up by 12 May. Friends and Good Friends can use the discount code in their welcome letter to receive 50% off delivery costs and order a programme for 12 June when we launch orders.
The membership card and lanyard is available on a collection-only basis from the Fringe Box Office in 180 High Street from July. Friends can pick up one membership card per membership.
In addition to being a Fringe Friend, you're also welcome to sign up as a member of the Fringe Society. Our members are responsible for electing the Board of Directors, adopting the accounts and appointing the auditors each year. Membership costs £5 a year to cover administration costs.
Get in touch
Terms and conditions
We have a full list of terms and conditions on our website, but there are a few key points to bear in mind:
- Purchasing via Direct Debit is the cheapest way to buy a Friends membership.
- We will aim to send all Close Friends, Best Friends and Patrons a copy of the official Fringe programme by launch date, dependent on date of sign-up. Friends and Good Friends can use their discount code to order a programme to be delivered to their door for launch.
- Some Friend tiers are eligible to receive invitations to special events during the Fringe – these events may be subject to capacity limits and / or safety restrictions.
- Friend memberships are non-refundable.
Check our complete terms and conditions for more info, or call +44 (0)131 226 0036 to speak to the Friends team.