National Gallery
National Gallery is part of National Galleries Scotland in Edinburgh. It is on the official list as a category A listed building. This is a site of National Galleries of Scotland.
Art gallery in Edinburgh
One of the best-known places to visit in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland
#34 of the 8,556 museums, castles, gardens and other attractions we list, by how widely it is covered (39 Wikipedias). About ↓
Inside Edinburgh
National Gallery is inside Edinburgh’s locality, with 112 more places to visit within 5 km. Towns near it ↓
Category A listed building
On the official list of protected heritage; Edinburgh has 4,435 listed buildings in all, on its History page. About ↓
Written from OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, NRS’s localities and Met Office 1991–2020 averages.
The year in Edinburgh
Afternoons in Edinburgh peak at 18–20°C, June to August.
National Gallery
In 2021, it drew 661K visitors. Readers can find it on Wikipedia in 39 languages. A short trip away is Edinburgh Castle, 400 m off, the first of 166 within 15 km.
- Type
- Art gallery
- Run by
- National Galleries of Scotland
- Listed
- Category A listed building
- Visitors
- 661K visitors a year (2021)
- Wikipedias
- Covered in 39 languages
- Town
- in Edinburgh
- Official site
- nationalgalleries.org
Before you set off
Getting your bearings
The map centres on National Gallery, in orange, with nearby places numbered.
© OpenStreetMap contributors · The dashed line is Edinburgh’s locality. · NRS locality 2022
Towns around National Gallery, by distance
The most populous of the 8 is Edinburgh, at 493,794. Every one of these towns counts it as a place to visit.
Edinburgh
Danderhall
Loanhead
Musselburgh
Compare the 8 towns
| Town | Where National Gallery is | People | Places to visit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Edinburgh | It’s in town | 493,794 | 150 |
| Danderhall | 6.8 km southeast of it | 3,389 | 21 |
| Loanhead | 8.4 km south of it | 7,007 | 16 |
| Musselburgh | 9.1 km east of it | 21,476 | 21 |
| Bonnyrigg | 10 km southeast of it | 18,088 | 16 |
| Dalkeith | 11 km southeast of it | 15,125 | 18 |
| Wallyford | 12 km east of it | 4,493 | 13 |
| Mayfield | 13 km southeast of it | 14,259 | 15 |
Combine it with these
166 more lie within 15 km, 2 museums, 2 art galleries and a castle among them.
Castle · Historic Environment ScotlandEdinburgh Castle400 m away2
Historic housePalace of Holyroodhouse1.5 km away3
MuseumNational Museum of Scotland600 m away4
CathedralSt Giles' Cathedral300 m away5
Art galleryScottish National Portrait Gallery500 m away · 313K visitors a year (2015)6
Abbey or prioryHolyrood Abbey1.5 km away7
Art galleryScottish National Gallery of Modern Art2 km away · 458K visitors a year (2015)8
MuseumThe Scotch Whisky Experience200 m away · 239K visitors a yearWithin 15 km, close and well known first. Numbers match the map.
Planning a visit to National Gallery
Where is National Gallery?
National Gallery is in Edinburgh, City of Edinburgh, inside the town’s locality.
What is National Gallery?
Part of National Galleries Scotland in Edinburgh.
Who runs National Gallery?
National Galleries of Scotland.
How many people visit National Gallery?
About 661K visitors a year, in 2021 (the latest count on Wikidata).
When is the best time to visit National Gallery?
June to August are the warmest months in Edinburgh, with afternoon highs of 18–20°C (Met Office 1991–2020 averages).
Is National Gallery a listed building?
Yes: category A listed building.
What else is there to see near National Gallery?
Within 15 km: Edinburgh Castle (400 m), Palace of Holyroodhouse (1.5 km), National Museum of Scotland (600 m) and St Giles' Cathedral (300 m).
Places: OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, Open Database Licence) and Wikidata (CC0), placed in the NRS 2022 locality (Open Government Licence v3.0). Visitor counts are the latest Wikidata gives, with their year.
Photos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
Photo credits (9)
- National Gallery: 瑞丽江的河水, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Edinburgh Castle: Stephencdickson, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Palace of Holyroodhouse: 瑞丽江的河水, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- National Museum of Scotland: Maccoinnich~commonswiki, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- St Giles' Cathedral: 瑞丽江的河水, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Scottish National Portrait Gallery: Original uploader was Maccoinnich at en.wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Holyrood Abbey: Enric, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art: Grousebeater2, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- The Scotch Whisky Experience: Derek Harper, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026 (ONS boundaries). Northern Ireland: Source: NISRA; contains Land & Property Services data and Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland information, © Crown copyright, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Scotland: contains National Records of Scotland data, Registers of Scotland data and SEPA data, © Crown copyright / © SEPA 2025, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.