The best charity shops in London

Could this be London’s chic-est charity shop? With its industrial interior by Hemingway Design, art student fanbase and staff fingers firmly on the fashion pulse, Shelter’s flagship boutique can more than hold its own alongside its trendy neighbours. You’ll find quality vintage, premium labels and ‘how did I miss that the first time round?’ high-street gems, all handpicked with care but priced reasonably. Coal Drops Yard might have earned the nickname ‘Cash Drops Hard’, but all your wallet will find here is some serious bargs. 

Best for Statement shoes and understated swagger.

There are branches of All Aboard across London's outer suburbs, but this is the mothership. Forget colour-coded rails and curated window displays: it’s an old-fashioned junk shop of the kind you hardly find anymore. Raising money for a selection of local charities, the stock is bold, bright and sometimes beautifully brash, with a particularly good line in ugly-cool homewares and statement vintage accessories. Give yourself enough time to ensure you don't miss any of the treasures lurking here. Our top tip? Comb through every rack. Twice.   

Best for (Well) buried treasure at blinkworthy prices.

Fashion magpies know that bougie neighbourhoods are best for secondhand steals, and Balham is a strong case in point. The whole High Road is worthy of a charity shop crawl, but if you can only choose one, make a beeline for the bright lights of the British Heart Foundation. Go for the barely worn Cos, Jigsaw and Whistles, stay for the vinyl, quirky homeware and that thing you’re sure you’ll upcycle next time you have a free weekend. 

Best for Serious bargains, minus the musty smells.

The first rule of vintage shopping: go where the rich old people are. Rumour has it this Red Cross shop regularly takes delivery from local house clearances, which makes it the closest most of us will ever get to haute couture. Prices might be steep by secondhand standards (staff know their Prada from their Primani), but they’re still way under what you would be expected to part with in the rest of Chelsea. Besides, it’s for charidee, dahling. 

Best for Heritage tweed and old-world labels for your next country house party.

In most charity shops a Lanvin dress or a pair of Manolos would be stop-the-press news. Not so on Marylebone High Street, where the glitterati’s cast-offs come as standard. Every W1 chaz is worth a rummage, but the fragrant and colourful Cancer Research is one of the finest, full of fashion samples and end-of-line pieces with the tags still on. Kate Moss and Sienna Miller have both been known to donate here, and thankfully so have plenty of their non-supermodel neighbours with more average proportions. 

Best for Cashmere, cocktail frocks and latent Carrie Bradshaw fantasies.

When babies can grow out of clothes in less time than it takes to wrestle both legs in, buying secondhand just makes sense. Chiswick’s Fara Kids is one of 14 London Fara shops selling nearly-new clothes just for tiny people, with proceeds going to help vulnerable children in Romania. You’ll find racks of fancy little outfits, all without a trace of dribble and many for as little as 50p. Tired of cooing ‘I wish this was in MY size’? Head up the road to one of Fara’s excellent adult branches to treat yourself, too. 

Best for Christening gifts and babysitting emergencies.

Positive vibes abound at the much-loved East End thrift store Lama's Pyjamas, which raises funds for the London Buddhist Centre. The staff and volunteers are cheery, the locals are loyal and the stock is as groovy and wide-ranging as you’d expect. Prices are always low, but keep an eye out for the bi-annual sale, where you can get your hands on stock for even cheaper and put your mindful shopping skills to the test.

Best for Kitsch crockery your gran would love, and party frocks to match.

Breathing new life into the world of secondhand shopping, Mary Portas virtually invented the modern breed of upmarket charity boutique with her Living & Giving shops. Diehard bargain-hunters might not thank her for the price hikes, but Save the Children does. All the shops are carefully curated, but the Primrose Hill branch is one of the best for niche brands and fashion kudos. Enjoy a Narnia-style wardrobe changing room, and cross your fingers that your visit coincides with Victoria Beckham dropping by with a bulging bin bag (yes, she donates).  

Best for Designer jeans, lesser-seen labels and rubbernecking at celebrities.

Sometimes size does matter, and this Oxfam emporium is so big that the odds of finding treasure here are stacked in your favour. As you’d expect from its hipster postcode, the stock is more fancy-dress than fancy dresses, but you're guaranteed to find something unique. Go with an open mind, open arms and enough time for a fitting-room fashion show.  

Best for Halloween, Pride, Glastonbury and every other event on your Instagram calendar.

Retromania is a charity shop disguised as a high-end vintage store, and its Pimlico destination is brimming with Hermes scarves, YSL tailoring, psychedelic blouses and '50s silk ball gowns. Everything is fairly priced, if not exactly cheap as chips – but with all proceeds going to help vulnerable children in Romania, where better to splurge on a piece of fashion history?  

Best for Swellegant occasionwear, for all your ‘High Society’ meets ‘Abigail’s Party’ urges.

A charity shop so comprehensive you can virtually rock up with a shopping list, Traid’s whole focus is on ditching trends for conscious, sustainable secondhand clothing (the name stands for ‘Textile Reuse and International Development’). But sustainability doesn’t have to be boring – the shop boasts stock from across the decades, plus regular seasonal restocks and big end-of-season sales. Enthusiastic staff are always on hand to validate your outfit choice.   

Best for ’90s denim, ’80s dresses, ’70s jackets and millennial attitude.

It’s rich pickings for charity hunters in SW16 these days, and the Royal Trinity Hospice shop is the crème de la crème. Since a refurb in 2018, this stylish store is consistently packed with pristine high street cast-offs, unusual pieces from premium brands and more than a few unworn donations. With soft lighting and helpful staff, the vibe is more laidback than some more hardcore stores – like rummaging through a friend’s wardrobe rather than doing battle for the thriftiest finds. Make yourself at home.   

Best for Forgetting you’re even in a charity shop.

In the days before Archway’s shiny pedestrian makeover, this temple of bric-à-brac was worth navigating your way across the road to reach. Behind the lavish window displays, vintage and high street clothes nestle up against crockery, sheet music, records, books, old magazines, collectables, curios and whosits and whatsits galore. While some stores raise funds for just one cause, Second Chance – run by Archway Methodist Church – splits its profits between an equally eclectic list of charities.

Best for You want thingimabobs? They’ve got ’em!

So much more than just a charity shop, the vast space of Shop From Crisis is also a coffee shop and community arts hub. But the clothes are enough of a draw on their own. Luxe labels hang alongside quality high street and vintage bargains, with a bountiful shoe section and equally trendy menswear. Regulars stop by the shop daily, so don’t waste time if you spot something you like. Don’t leave without checking out the cabinet of designer accessories, the furniture and the superlative vegan brownie in the café.  

Best for Last season’s H&M and last century’s ceramics.

Don’t be fooled by the high-fashion-concept window displays that make the outside of this Traid store look a real treat, because it is genuinely very cheap, and it has everything. While the charity shops of Hampstead might sell you a Stella McCartney sweater for £50, here you can get loads of incredible things for as little as a quid: vinyl heads can dig for musical treasure in the bargain bins; the haberdashery section is brilliant for DIY designers; and they always have an amazing array of saris and African clothing. 

Best for Fabric. So much fabric.

A lovely curated chazza shop that feels more like a boutique than a secondhand store. This Fara store is always well-stocked with a range of designers, unique pieces and high-street names (the good ones). The vibes are always great inside and the fitting rooms are excellent – they’ve even got flattering lighting which is practically unheard-of in the charity shop world. 

Best for Labels, darling.