Getting help
Search AA, NA and other UK recovery meetings by postcode, town, or fellowship, in person or online. No sign-up. No tracking of who you are. Just the door, the time, and how to get there.
If you are looking for help with drinking, drugs, gambling or another addiction, and money is part of the worry, start here: some of the most effective help in this country costs nothing at all. Not reduced, not means-tested, not free-for-six-weeks. Free.
Nobody planning to charge you is behind any of it either. The meetings are run by people in recovery themselves, the helplines are answered by volunteers who have been where you are, and the NHS services are yours already. This page lays out what each one is and how to reach it today.
Last updated: 25 July 2026.
The largest network of addiction support in the UK costs nothing: AA, NA, Cocaine Anonymous, Gamblers Anonymous, SMART Recovery and more than a dozen other fellowships run thousands of meetings every week, in person and online. There are no fees, no membership, no referral and no waiting list. You could search now and be sitting in one tonight.
The catch people expect never arrives. Some groups pass a basket for voluntary contributions toward the room hire, and putting nothing in is normal and fine. Nobody checks who you are, nobody signs you up to anything, and you can listen without saying a word. If you want to know what a first meeting is actually like before you go, we have a page that walks you through it.
If you are not even sure yet whether what is happening counts as a problem, that is a common place to start from. Our short self-checks for drinking, drugs and gambling are private, free, and use the same questions health professionals use.
Every major fellowship runs a free helpline, and the person picking up is usually in recovery themselves, so you will not have to explain what a bad night feels like. Samaritans answer 116 123 at any hour, about anything, and it costs nothing from any phone. The full list of recovery helplines, with their hours, is on our support page.
Every part of the UK has a local drug and alcohol service, free to use, and in most areas you can refer yourself without going anywhere near a GP first. They offer one-to-one support with a keyworker, group programmes, and medical help with stopping safely.
That last part matters more than people realise. If you are drinking heavily every day, stopping suddenly on your own can be dangerous, and a GP or local service can help you come off safely. Asking for that is not a queue-jump or a fuss; it is exactly what the service is for.
Mostly no. Residential rehab is usually paid for privately. Funded places do exist through your local council, and you apply through your local drug and alcohol service rather than to a rehab directly. Everything else on this page costs nothing: meetings, helplines and NHS drug and alcohol support, with no funding application and no waiting list.
You can find your nearest free local drug and alcohol service by postcode on FRANK, which covers England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. This site does not list or recommend rehabs.
Most people who get well never go to rehab. The rooms are full of people who recovered through free meetings, a local service and time, and who never spent a penny on treatment. Not being able to afford rehab does not put recovery out of reach, and it does not put you at the back of any queue. You could be in a meeting tonight.
Residential rehab is a different kind of help: you live in, usually for some weeks, with structured treatment. It is one route into recovery, and the right one for some people, but it is not the entry ticket. Meetings are not a substitute for medical care, and if you need help stopping safely that comes first, but many people have built an entire recovery on free support alone.
Through their local drug and alcohol service. They assess you, and if residential treatment looks like the right fit they can apply to the council for funding. It is rarely quick and places are limited, so most services will expect you to be working with them in the community first. That support is free and starts sooner.
Your GP is another door into the same conversation. Neither route costs anything to ask about.
Yes, a lot of it. Recovery meetings (AA, NA, GA, SMART and many others) are always free, fellowship helplines are free, and NHS drug and alcohol services are free, usually with self-referral. You can be in a meeting tonight without spending anything or asking anyone's permission.
Really free, and there is no catch. The fellowships are self-supporting through voluntary contributions, so a basket may be passed for room hire, and giving nothing is completely normal. No fees, no membership, no records.
Yes. Meetings need no referral at all, helplines answer to anyone, and most local drug and alcohol services let you refer yourself. Your GP is a good door, but not the only one.
Yes. Gamblers Anonymous meetings are free and run across the UK, in person and online, and Gam-Anon supports partners and family. If you are wondering whether your gambling has become a problem, our free self-check uses the same questions professionals use.
Then take the medical route first, and let meetings run alongside. Stopping heavy daily drinking suddenly can be dangerous, so speak to your GP or self-refer to your free local drug and alcohol service about coming off safely.
No. Nobody at a meeting, on a helpline, or at a local service asks for proof. Being worried is reason enough, and plenty of people turn up just to listen and work out what they think.
Residential rehab is usually paid for privately, though councils do fund some places. You apply through your local drug and alcohol service rather than to a rehab directly, and places are limited. Recovery meetings, fellowship helplines and NHS drug and alcohol services are free to everyone, with no funding application at all.
Start with what is free and available today. Most people who get well never go to rehab: meetings cost nothing and need no referral, your local NHS drug and alcohol service is free and usually takes self-referrals, and fellowship helplines answer now. Not being able to afford rehab does not put recovery out of reach.
NHS-funded residential rehab exists but is limited, and it is arranged through your local drug and alcohol service after an assessment rather than booked directly. NHS community treatment, which is free and usually takes self-referrals, is much easier to reach and is where most people start.