Fringe ticket sales steady despite Edinburgh concerts

Almost 4,000 shows took place in Edinburgh across the month of August

The Edinburgh Festival Fringe sold more than 2.6 million tickets for shows during the 2025 event.

The festival survived a weather-battered opening week and competition from a number of concerts at Murrayfield and the Royal Highland Centre to keep sales at about the same level as last year.

The festival featured 3,893 shows across 301 venues during August ahead of its final day on Monday.

Its chief executive said it remained "the most important cultural event in the world".

The event kicked off on 1 August, with huge crowds and performers from more than 60 countries descending on the city.

Figures released by the Fringe do not include ticket sales for the Edinburgh International Festival, the Book Festival, Film Festival or Royal Military Tattoo, which take place at the same time.

An estimated total of 2,604,404 tickets were distributed between the festival opening and 10:00 on 25 August – the final day of performances.

That came despite a number of performances being cancelled after venues including the Pleasance Courtyard and the Underbelly temporarily closed down due to an amber weather warning for wind during Storm Floris on 4 August.

Ticket sales were also threatened by Oasis' three reunion concerts at Murrayfield on 8,9 and 12 August, and performances by AC/DC and Sam Fender later in the month.

Tony Lankester, chief executive of the Fringe Society, said it had been a "joyful and exciting" month for the event.

He said: "What is clear is that the Fringe remains the most important cultural event in the world.

"Artists remain at the heart of this joyous festival, and we're consistently in awe of their creative work which often tackles topical issues and examines them through a creative lens.

"There are no easy answers to the challenging cost of participating in the Fringe, but we know that the will is there to explore some innovative, high impact solutions, and we look forward to advancing the many conversations we've begun with stakeholders and partners."