About
Spend a Penny is a free finder for public toilets across the UK. Find a nearby loo, check it’s open and suitable, and get directions. No account, no fuss.
Why we built it
This started close to home. My wife and I walk our dog every day, and like a lot of people she sometimes needs to find a toilet quickly when we’re out. Knowing where the nearest usable one is, and whether it’s actually open, turns a stressful moment into a non-event.
The information already existed, but it was scattered across hundreds of council websites, buried in map apps with no opening hours, and often years out of date. So we pulled it together into one place, made it honest about what it does and doesn’t know, and built it for the moment you actually need it: outdoors, on a phone, often in a hurry.
What we built
Spend a Penny brings together more than 20,000 facilities from trusted open data sources into a single map and list. Each toilet shows its status, opening hours, cost and accessibility, with a clear note when something hasn’t been confirmed recently, so you’re never given confidence the data doesn’t have.
Accessibility is a first-class part of the data, not a footnote. Where we have it, you can see wheelchair access, baby changing and Changing Places facilities, and filter for exactly what you need. For some people that information is the whole point, so we treat it that way.
Kept fresh by people like you
Open data tells us where a toilet is. It can’t tell us whether it’s open today. That part comes from people on the ground. If you’ve just been somewhere, a single tap confirms it’s still there, and you can report a problem or suggest a correction in seconds. Every contribution helps the next person who’s caught short.
How we look after your data
No data is sold. No ads are shown. We don’t track you around the web. You don’t even need an account to use the site. You can read more in our privacy policy.
Where our data comes from
Toilet locations come from the Great British Public Toilet Map (used under CC BY 4.0) and OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), with location matching from Ordnance Survey open data (Crown copyright). Status and freshness come from the community.
Please check before you rely on it
We work hard to keep the data accurate, but toilets close, hours change and details go out of date. Spend a Penny is a helpful guide, not a guarantee. Please check a toilet’s status before depending on it, especially if you have specific accessibility needs.