Edinburgh Festival Fringe Issues Over 2.6 Million Tickets Across 3,893 Shows

The 2025 Edinburgh Festival Fringe closed with organizers reporting more than 2.6 million tickets issued for 3,893 shows across 301 venues. While numbers remain below the pre-pandemic peak of three million tickets in 2019, they were broadly in line with last year’s festival.

Chief executive Tony Lankester said the Fringe remains “the single best platform in the world for artists to showcase their work,” but acknowledged the financial difficulties that performers, producers and venues face in staging work.

“We recognise the many challenges artists, producers and venues face in staging the event, and call on the City of Edinburgh Council, the Scottish Government and the UK Government to continue working with the Fringe community to explore ways to alleviate these challenges,” Lankester said.

This year’s festival welcomed representatives from 62 countries, with 17 international showcases presented, including work from Denmark, Australia, South Korea and Canada. According to the Fringe Society, 1,770 accredited producers, programmers, bookers and talent agencies from 68 countries attended, offering onward touring opportunities for artists.

The Society also reported record media engagement, with over 1,080 journalists from 36 countries accredited, alongside 600 artists participating in the “Meet the Media” event designed to help performers without professional PR.

More than 300 sensory resources were used by neurodiverse audiences, 60% of shows were hosted in level-access venues, and nearly 25,000 tickets were distributed through the Fringe’s access service. In addition, 37 schools, charities and community groups took part in the Fringe Days Out scheme.

Street events once again brought activity to the Mound and Royal Mile, with 320 performers participating.

Edinburgh’s other major summer festivals also reported growth. The Edinburgh International Festival said 88% of seats were sold, with more than half of its performances sold out. The Edinburgh International Book Festival saw ticket sales increase 11% from 2024, along with a 60% rise in footfall.

Lankester said that while costs remain a concern, conversations with partners will continue. “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..." he said.

The 2026 Edinburgh Festival Fringe will run from August 7th through 21st.