The Best Bars in Reykjavik: A Nightlife Guide (2026)

Reykjavik's nightlife is famous for three things: it starts absurdly late, it ends even later, and it is eye-wateringly expensive. All three are true, and none of them should put you off. The city's bar scene is concentrated into a compact area around Laugavegur and its side streets, which means you can walk between a dozen genuinely good bars in under fifteen minutes. The atmosphere on a Friday or Saturday night -- when the streets fill with Icelanders who have been pre-drinking at home since 22:00 and are finally ready to go out -- is unlike anything else in Northern Europe.

A few things to know before you go. Beer was illegal in Iceland until 1989 (yes, really), and the country has been making up for lost time ever since. The craft beer scene has exploded over the past decade, with Icelandic breweries producing genuinely world-class IPAs, stouts, and lagers. A pint in a Reykjavik bar will typically cost ISK 1,400-2,000 (EUR 9-13), which is painful but unavoidable. Happy hour is not a suggestion here -- it is a survival strategy. Most bars run happy hour deals between 15:00 and 19:00 or 20:00, and savvy locals plan their evenings around them.

Here is where to drink.

Craft Beer

MicroBar & Brew

MicroBar kicked off Reykjavik's craft beer revolution and remains one of the best places in the city to drink seriously. The tap list rotates constantly, featuring Icelandic microbreweries alongside carefully selected international beers. The staff know their product -- ask for a recommendation and you will get an informed, enthusiastic answer. The space is small, the crowd tends towards genuine beer enthusiasts, and the atmosphere is focused. If you care about craft beer, start here.

Best for: The deepest craft beer selection in Reykjavik Try: Ask the bartender for the best Icelandic beer on tap that day

Icelandic Craft Bar

Icelandic Craft Bar does exactly what the name promises. The tap list is exclusively Icelandic, making it the ideal place to survey the national brewing scene in one session. Twenty-plus taps cover everything from accessible lagers to barrel-aged stouts. Taster flights are available if you want to sample broadly without committing to full pints.

Best for: An exclusively Icelandic craft beer experience Try: A taster flight of four or five different brews

Kaldi Bar

Kaldi is the Reykjavik outpost of Kaldi Brewery, one of Iceland's most established craft breweries. The bar serves the full Kaldi range alongside guest beers, and the quality is consistently high. The blonde ale is one of the best session beers in Iceland -- clean, balanced, and dangerously drinkable. The space is warm and inviting, with exposed brick and low lighting, and it strikes a nice balance between bar and pub. Good for an early evening pint or a long, leisurely session.

Best for: Reliable, high-quality Icelandic beer in a welcoming setting Location: Laugavegur, Reykjavik

Bryggjan Brugghus Bistro & Brewery

Bryggjan Brugghus is a brewery, bar, and restaurant in an atmospheric building by the harbour. The beers are brewed on-site -- you can see the tanks from your table -- and the food menu is more substantial than most bars, making it ideal if you want to combine drinking with actual sustenance. The harbour location adds a dimension the city-centre bars lack.

Best for: Beer brewed on the premises with a harbour-side setting Try: The seasonal special and the fish and chips

Live Music and Late Night

Hurra

Hurra is Reykjavik's best live music venue that doubles as a very good bar. It hosts local and international acts several nights a week -- indie rock, electronic, experimental. On non-gig nights, it functions as a lively bar with DJs and a dancefloor that fills after midnight. The sound system is excellent, and the crowd genuinely cares about music. Cover charges typically run ISK 2,000-4,000 (EUR 13-26).

Best for: Live music and late-night dancing Check: Their social media for the weekly gig schedule

Gaukurinn

Gaukurinn is the alternative heart of Reykjavik's nightlife. It hosts live music (punk, metal, indie, spoken word, comedy), drag shows, and cultural events in a space that proudly refuses to be polished. The crowd is diverse, the vibe is inclusive, and the programme is more interesting than anywhere else in town. If Hurra is the venue you go to see bands, Gaukurinn is the venue where you discover them. Drinks are reasonably priced by Reykjavik standards, and the bar staff are among the friendliest in the city.

Best for: Alternative music, drag shows, and an inclusive atmosphere

Bastard Brew & Food

Bastard combines craft beer with excellent burgers, and both halves of the equation are strong. The tap list is curated and rotating, the burgers are thick and well-made, and the atmosphere has the kind of buzzy energy that good burger-and-beer joints generate naturally. It is a solid choice for the early part of an evening -- eat well, drink well, then move on to the late-night spots.

Best for: Craft beer and burgers in a lively atmosphere Try: The house burger with whatever IPA is on tap

Cocktails, Pubs, and Character

Lebowski Bar

Lebowski Bar leans into its Big Lebowski theme with commitment -- White Russians are the signature drink, bowling alley decor lines the walls, and the staff wear robes on special occasions. It could easily be gimmicky, but the cocktails are genuinely well-made and it has become a legitimate Reykjavik institution. The burger menu is also strong.

Best for: Cocktails and kitsch in equal measure Try: The White Russian, obviously

Frederiksen Ale House

Frederiksen is a Danish-style ale house that brings a touch of Copenhagen to Reykjavik. The beer selection is excellent, the interior is handsome and pubby, and the food (Danish smushi, snacks, and bar bites) is a cut above standard bar fare. It is a good choice for anyone who wants a slightly more refined bar experience without straying into cocktail lounge territory.

Best for: Danish-style pub atmosphere and a strong beer list

Den Danske Kro

Den Danske Kro is the other Danish pub in town, and it has a loyal following. The atmosphere is cosy and pubby, the beer is cold, and the vibe is unpretentious. It fills a comfortable niche between the craft beer bars and the late-night clubs -- the kind of place where you settle in for a few hours and lose track of time.

Best for: A relaxed, no-frills pub night

Kiki Queer Bar

Kiki is Reykjavik's beloved LGBTQ+ bar, and it is one of the most joyful spaces in the city. The dancefloor is legendary (especially on Saturday nights), the crowd is welcoming regardless of who you are, and the energy is consistently the best in the nightlife district. Kiki is the kind of bar that makes you glad you went out. Everyone is welcome, everyone dances, and nobody cares what you look like while doing it.

Best for: Dancing and an inclusive, high-energy night out

Bravo

Bravo is worth knowing about primarily for its happy hour, which is one of the longest and most generous in the city. The bar itself is a no-frills downtown spot that gets lively at weekends, but the real draw is the early-evening pricing that makes a few drinks in Reykjavik actually affordable. It serves its purpose well as the first stop of an evening.

Best for: Happy hour prices Tip: Time your visit for the happy hour window

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Happy Hour Strategy

Happy hour in Reykjavik is not optional -- it is essential. Most bars reduce beer prices to ISK 900-1,200 (EUR 6-8) during happy hours, which typically run from 15:00 or 16:00 until 19:00 or 20:00. The app "Appy Hour" (available for iOS and Android) shows real-time happy hour deals across the city, and it is worth downloading before you arrive.

A sensible evening plan: start at a bar with a good happy hour around 17:00, eat around 20:00, then head out properly after 23:00. This is genuinely how locals do it. Nobody in Reykjavik arrives at a bar before midnight on a Saturday and expects it to be busy.

If you would rather have someone navigate the nightlife for you, a Reykjavik nightlife tour takes care of the planning and often includes skip-the-queue access at popular spots. Tours typically run ISK 8,000-15,000 (EUR 53-100) and cover 3-4 bars.

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How We Chose

We looked for bars with genuine character, quality drinks, and the kind of atmosphere that makes you want to stay for another round. Reykjavik is full of bars, but a surprising number of them are interchangeable -- same beers, same decor, same playlist. The bars on this list stand out because they have a point of view. We also weighted inclusivity and welcome: a great bar should feel good to walk into, regardless of who you are or where you come from. We visited every bar on this list on multiple occasions, including at least one Friday or Saturday night, and we paid for all of our drinks.

Last updated: February 2026.