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The best clubs in Manchester

Get down and dirty on the dancefloor at one of these, the best night clubs in Manchester

Rob Martin
Written by
Rob Martin
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Of course, Manchester and music fit together like hand in glove. But in addition to its live music scene, if there's one thing Manchester does best, it's clubbing. And now that it's back, it's time to revel once more in the feeling that only a great club can bring you.

Not only do we have some of the finest resident DJs on the planet but we also have incredible guests dropping sets each and every week. But where do you spend your hard-earned and get your dancefloor thrills and spills? Check out our recommendations for the best clubs in Manchester below. And if they're not good enough? Try one of the city's best late night bars.

Manchester clubs

  • Music
  • Music venues

This incredible venue is one of the city's most adaptable, featuring live music from the likes of Beck, John Grant, even Manchester Camerata. But its club nights are the stuff of legend too. The cavernous space is perfect for a wander and, if you like your clubs filled with character, and characters, this is the place for you.

  • Music
  • Music venues
Band on the Wall represents a real musical success story for the city of Manchester. Funded by both the National Lottery Heritage Fund and the Arts Council, the £4 million venue opened in 2009 after years in disarray; like many previously abandoned tenancies in the city, it has a rich history intertwined with the textile industry, but has always been a fertile ground for live music. 
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Islington Mill
  • Things to do
  • Event spaces
Having recently received a well-deserved £1 million grant from the Arts Council, Islington Mill has nonetheless been ticking along nicely for the past decade or so. A unique hybrid of gallery, club and studio spaces outside of the city centre (technically in Salford, it’s a 20 minute or so walk from Deansgate), it’s also the beating heart of Salford’s future-facing Sounds From The Other City festival.
Soup Kitchen
  • Bars and pubs
Soup Kitchen strikes a unique balance between enduringly pleasant canteen in the day and anything-goes club by night, not to mention a favourite venue of travelling bands. It has one of the most jam-packed schedules of any venue in Manchester, and its passionate management are always making changes to improve the experience.
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Antwerp Mansion
  • Nightlife
  • Nightlife venues

Outside of the city centre, past the Universities, down the Curry Mile and on the verge of the student mecca known as Fallowfield, Antwerp Mansion provides a unique, rough-around-the-edges setting for some of the wildest legal parties in Manchester. It also has a unique and rare community ethos, finding itself in the process of being renovated from a deathtrap into a functioning haven for art, music, theatre, photography and more. 

Matt And Phreds
  • Music
  • Music venues
For aficionados of live jazz, this cosy Northern Quarter club has been at the heart of the Manchester music scene for years. Now, with up to six gig nights a week, the venue offers the best in jazz as well as folk, gypsy, electro, salsa, swing, world and ska music, too.
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The Deaf Institute Cafe Bar & Music Hall
  • Music
  • Music venues

Known mainly as a live music venue, regular club nights keep the crowds coming to The Deaf Institute. Now established as some of the most entertaining nights in town, club nights here work so well because the space allows you to move around, dancing when you feel like it, having a nice sit down when you need a break before heading back for more in one of the city's funnest venues.

Night & Day
  • Music
  • Music venues
Opened in 1991, Night and Day was a fish and chip shop that slowly morphed into a popular and pioneering live music venue in what was then one of the rougher parts of town. And although its pull isn’t quite as great as it once was, there’s still a steady stream of alternative bands and live acts filling the bill almost every night of the week, with a respectable focus on local talent.
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  • Music
  • Music venues

Manchester seems to be full of Grade II listed buildings, and The Ritz is one of the best. True, it doesn't look like much from the outside but once you're inside you can easily imagine it in its dance hall former glory. Its famous sprung wooden floor and viewing balcony have survived the many changes the building has endured over the years.

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