London's top 10 busiest pubs this Christmas predicted

A tech company has revealed what it believes are the 10 busiest pubs this December.

So whether you want to max out that busy Christmas spirit or avoid the worst of the bar queues, you may want to listen to what Life360 has to say.

Life360 is the company behind the Tile tracker, which was basically the Fitbit of trackers until Apple went and made the AirTag, grabbing everyone's attention.

It has used its tracker data to work out the areas that saw the most people hanging around for at least an hour in the capital, from December 2024. Because even big data tech can’t really look into the future yet.

In at number one is The Globe, a Nicholsons pub near Moorgate station. It’s not massive and isn’t right in the middle of one of London’s most touristy zones, so it wouldn’t have been our first guess. But it does have an upstairs bar too, so there’s more space than you may think, while crowded outside and freezing with a pint in hand.

Number two is a legit London classic, the Nell Gwynne Tavern by Charing Cross. A pub has been around in the spot since 1667, and it sits right on the Strand.

The Nell Gwynne Tavern has been a Young’s pub since 2024, as it was part of the City Pub Group, which the giant took over last year. If you manage to get in the door, bar snacks include sausage rolls for a fiver, with veggie and vegan options too.

And what about 'spoons? There are, unsurprisingly, several Wetherspoons pubs on the list.

Barnet’s The Railway Bell is at number four, The Willow Walk just outside Victoria station is number five, Leicester Square’s always-busy The Moon Under Water sits at number six, and The William Webb Ellis in Twickenham rounds off the list at number 10. Spoons-tastic.

Here’s the full list of London’s busiest pubs, from the POV of a tracker device:

1. The Globe - Moorgate, EC2M 6SA
2. Nell Gwynne Tavern - Charing Cross, WC2R 0NP
3. Duke of York - Victoria, SW1E 5LA
4. The Railway Bell - Barnet, EN4 8RR
5. The Willow Walk - Victoria, SW1V 1LW
6. The Moon Under Water - Leicester Square, WC2H 7LE
7. The Ganton Arms - Soho, W1F 7BU
8. The Observatory - Greenwich, SE10 0DY
9. The Signal Box - Euston, NW1 2DU
10. The William Webb Ellis - Twickenham, TW1 3RR

Want to know more about how the tech works? Life360 makes trackers that attach to your keys, come in credit card-like shapes, and attach to devices — or even your dog.

They connect to your phone over Bluetooth but also talk to each other through an “anonymous” Tile Network, should you not be within range of your actual tracker.

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