The best private members clubs in London, by type

01/ Why “best for”, not a ranking

Best depends on what you join for.

We group clubs by type rather than rank them, because a club that suits a diplomat suits a filmmaker badly, and no published measure compares them fairly.

Every fact below comes from the club’s own website, read on 29 October 2026. Fees change, so each one carries that date; check the club before you apply.

We have no commercial relationship with any club named here. None is a client, and inclusion is not an endorsement.

If you want the basics first, start with what is a private members club.

02/ Which type suits you

Six questions to find your type.

Answer for yourself; the result names a type, not a club.

03/ Historic clubs · Pall Mall

Historic clubs: election by proposal.

The St James’s clubs were founded in the early nineteenth century and still elect members on proposal by existing members.

Expect a candidates’ book, a committee and a wait. The Oxford and Cambridge Club says its committee decides after not less than 20 clear days, usually a month (Oxford and Cambridge Club, read 29 October 2026).

04/ Creative clubs · Soho, Mayfair, Chelsea

Creative clubs: membership follows the work.

Creative clubs ask what you do. The Chelsea Arts Club decides your category from your primary occupation and asks candidates for details of their work (Chelsea Arts Club, read 29 October 2026).

It publishes the wait: about 12 to 18 months for Ordinary candidates and three to five years for Associates, with about 150 members elected a year (same source).

05/ Modern social houses

Modern social clubs: apply online, committee decides.

Soho House’s first club, 40 Greek Street, opened in 1995; it says applications are reviewed quarterly by committee, with membership from £183.33 a month, or £116.67 under 27 (Soho House, read 29 October 2026).

Home House, on Portman Square, publishes its full price list: £2,250 a year plus a £499 joining fee, with an under-35 rate of £1,560 and a social rate of £1,440 for evenings and weekends (Home House, read 29 October 2026).

Published prices let you compare like with like; most clubs in this group show a monthly and an annual figure. For how fees are built, see private members club membership fees.

06/ Work and purpose clubs

Work clubs: desks by day, a club by night.

Ned’s Club at The Ned, 27 Poultry in the City, describes itself as a place for diverse professionals to meet, work and have a good time, with a co-working Long Bar by day (The Ned, read 29 October 2026). Its rules say a membership committee meets quarterly and renewals are reviewed each year (club rules).

Maslow’s, whose Mortimer House opened in Fitzrovia in 2017, sells workspace memberships from £300 a month, excluding VAT, on annual terms (Maslow’s, read 29 October 2026).

The Conduit, 6 Langley Street in Covent Garden, is a purpose-driven club for people working on social and environmental change; it offers private tours and open days before you join (The Conduit; visit, read 29 October 2026).

07/ Wellness clubs

Wellness clubs: health is the membership.

Lanserhof at The Arts Club, 18 Dover Street, is a medical and fitness club; its membership includes a medical assessment and a training plan (Lanserhof at The Arts Club, read 29 October 2026). The Arts Club notes it needs a separate membership (The Arts Club).

The Other House in South Kensington spans 11 townhouses with a vitality pool, wellness studio and gym, and says it does not limit membership by profession or status (The Other House 2026 brochure, read 29 October 2026).

08/ Women’s clubs

Women’s clubs: older than most people think.

The University Women’s Club began in 1883, when Gertrude Jackson of Girton College called a meeting; by 1886 it had opened in New Bond Street (University Women’s Club, read 29 October 2026).

It says it has never insisted on formal academic requirements, and today welcomes graduate, professional and business women of all ages (same source).

Several modern clubs are women-led or women-focused; we list only those whose own pages we could read and date.

09/ How joining works

Before you apply, check five things.

Most London clubs share a pattern: an application or proposal, a committee, then payment. The detail differs, and the club’s own page is the only reliable guide.

For the steps in general, see the private members club application process. For clubs abroad you can use as a member, see reciprocal clubs.

10/ If you run a club

Running a London club? Be easy to choose.

Readers of guides like this compare clubs on what the clubs publish: purpose, joining route, fees and dates. Clubs that publish clearly are easier to shortlist.

We help clubs with private members club marketing: positioning, the application journey and member acquisition, without inventing claims. For the size of the sector, see the UK private members clubs market.