The cheapest pints in Manchester right now

Manchester's pint prices have crept up across the board, but there are still pockets of properly cheap drinks if you know where to look. We update this guide every week based on prices submitted by readers and verified by our own pub crawls - so if a price looks off, flag it on the pub's page and we'll re-check.

The cheapest cask pints in the city centre are almost always in Joseph Holt tied houses. Hare & Hounds on Shudehill and Lower Turks Head, just around the corner, both pour Holt's Bitter at around £3.50 - Grade II listed interiors thrown in for free. If you want something a bit more lively, Crown & Kettle on Oldham Road sits just under £4 for cask and runs a 10% discount on real ale Mon–Fri lunchtimes.

For mainstream lager, Wetherspoons remains unbeatable on price. The Paramount on Oxford Street is the reliable city-centre option at around £3.50 a pint, dropping further if you order Carling or Ruddles through the app. The Piccadilly, opposite the station, is the same pricing but with sport on the screens.

Outside the centre, head to Northern Quarter fringes or Ancoats early in the week: Marble Arch Inn does keenly priced cask on Mondays, and most Ancoats craft places run a 'locals' hour' between 4pm and 6pm with £1–£2 off a pint. Sandbar on Oxford Road is a student favourite for a reason - guest cask under £4 and bottled lager deals all week.

A few quick rules of thumb if you're trying to keep a night cheap: cask is almost always cheaper than keg lager, tied houses (Holt's, Hydes, Robinsons) undercut free houses on their own beer, and any pub advertising 'craft' on the front will be at least £6 a pint. Sticking to Northern Quarter side streets and Shudehill will keep you well under a fiver.