The Economist Subscription Offers

Checked on economist.com on 29 Oct 2026 · How we find offers

The Economist is the weekly news and current affairs title, read online and in print. Subscriptions are sold direct on economist.com: new annual subscribers save 30% on the first year (£195.30 for digital Premium, then £279 a year), the monthly plan starts with a free month, and students and teachers get 75% off. No discount code is needed for these prices.

The Economist offers checked at source

Each offer was read on economist.com on the date shown.

Save 30% on a year of The Economist Premium (digital): £195.30 for the first year against the £279 renewal price, then £279 a year until you cancel; every article, the podcasts and the weekly digital edition.

No end date givenChecked 29 Oct on economist.com

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Who qualifies for a discount

Students: Students aged 16 and over get 75% off digital Premium: £69.75 a year against the standard £279, renewing at £69.75 a year while student status is confirmed. Status is checked instantly through a third-party checking service.Source: subscribenow.economist.com, read 29 Oct
NHS staff: The pages we read on economist.com mention no NHS discount.Source: economist.com, read 29 Oct
Blue Light Card holders: The pages we read on economist.com mention no Blue Light Card discount.Source: economist.com, read 29 Oct
Armed forces: The pages we read on economist.com mention no armed forces or Defence Discount Service discount.Source: economist.com, read 29 Oct
First order: New subscribers save 30% on the first year of an annual plan (Premium £195.30, Premium + Print £272.30), or try digital Premium free for the first month on the monthly plan. No code is needed, and the pages we read show no promo code box.Source: economist.com, read 29 Oct
Newsletter sign-up: The subscribe page names three free newsletters: The War Room and Money Talks (weekly) and The World in Brief (daily). It states no sign-up discount.Source: economist.com, read 29 Oct

The Economist at a glance

Buying direct: The Economist sells its subscriptions direct on economist.com: annual and monthly plans, 2- and 3-year plans, gift subscriptions, student and educator offers, and group and corporate plans (The Economist Pro).Source: economist.com, read 29 Oct
Delivery: Premium + Print includes the weekly print edition, delivered weekly, and the subscribe page shows no separate delivery charge. Premium is digital only, so nothing is posted.Source: economist.com, read 29 Oct
Gift cards: The pages we read on economist.com mention no gift cards; a subscription can be given as a gift instead.Source: subscribenow.economist.com, read 29 Oct
Issues: A new edition every week: the weekly digital edition comes with every Premium plan, and Premium + Print adds the weekly print edition.Source: economist.com, read 29 Oct
Renewal price: After the first year, annual plans renew at £279 a year (Premium) or £389 a year (Premium + Print). Monthly plans are £27.90 (Premium, after the free month) or £38.90 (Premium + Print) a month. Auto-renewal can be cancelled at any time.Source: economist.com, read 29 Oct
Digital edition: Premium is the digital subscription: unlimited access to all The Economist's journalism, its podcast collection and the weekly digital edition. Premium + Print adds the print edition.Source: economist.com, read 29 Oct
2- and 3-year plans: Digital Premium costs £709 for 3 years (£19.70 a month, which the site calls a 29% saving against monthly) or £499 for 2 years (£20.80 a month, a 25% saving), renewing every 3 or 2 years.Source: subscribenow.economist.com, read 29 Oct
Teachers and lecturers: Teachers and faculty members get 75% off: digital Premium for £69.75 a year (standard £279) or the Espresso daily briefing for £24.75 a year (standard £99), renewing at the same price while their status is confirmed.Source: subscribenow.economist.com, read 29 Oct
Gift subscriptions: A year of Premium as a gift is £279, or £389 with the weekly print edition; the gift page shows no discount on gifts and gives no last order date for Christmas.Source: subscribenow.economist.com, read 29 Oct
Payment: All major credit and debit cards, including Visa, Mastercard and American Express, plus PayPal and Apple Pay where available.Source: economist.com, read 29 Oct
Cancelling: Auto-renewal can be cancelled at any time in My Account under Manage subscription, or by phone or live chat with the customer service centre. Plans can be changed or upgraded there too.Source: economist.com, read 29 Oct

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How the calculator works: an example

Example: you're buying a year's digital Premium subscription at The Economist for £279.00, and you have a 10% off code. If a 40% sale is on and the code also works on sale items, the sale takes off £111.60 and the code a further £16.74, so the basket drops to £150.66: a saving of £128.34. Press “Fill in the example” to see it worked out, or put in your own basket, sale and code. Whether a code works on sale items depends on its terms.

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How to subscribe to The Economist

Open the subscribe page on economist.com and choose the Annual or Monthly tab. Two- and three-year plans, gift subscriptions and the student and educator offers are under "Explore other subscriptions".
Pick Premium (digital: every article, the podcasts and the weekly digital edition) or Premium + Print, which adds the weekly print edition. The price shown already includes the introductory saving; there is no promo code box to fill in.
Pay by credit or debit card (Visa, Mastercard and American Express are accepted), or by PayPal or Apple Pay where available. Students and teachers confirm their status through a third-party checking service, instantly for students.
The plan renews automatically at the price shown, such as £279 a year for annual Premium after the first year. To stop it, cancel auto-renewal at any time in My Account under Manage subscription, or by phone or live chat with the customer service centre.

The Economist shopping FAQs

How much is an Economist subscription?

On 29 Oct 2026 annual digital Premium is £195.30 for the first year (30% off), then £279 a year, and Premium + Print is £272.30, then £389 a year. Monthly, Premium is free for the first month and then £27.90 a month, and Premium + Print is £38.90 a month.

Source: economist.com, read 29 Oct

Is there an Economist discount code?

The pages we read on 29 Oct 2026 show no public discount code and no promo code box, and none is needed: the 30% first-year saving on annual plans is already in the price on the subscribe page. Students and teachers get 75% off by confirming their status instead.

Source: economist.com, read 29 Oct

Does The Economist have a student discount?

Yes. Students aged 16 and over get 75% off digital Premium, paying £69.75 a year instead of £279, and it renews at £69.75 a year while their student status is confirmed. The check is instant, through a third-party checking service.

Source: subscribenow.economist.com, read 29 Oct

Is there a free trial of The Economist?

Yes, on the monthly plan: digital Premium costs £0 for the first month, then renews at £27.90 a month when the trial ends. Auto-renewal can be cancelled at any time.

Source: economist.com, read 29 Oct

What is the cheapest way to subscribe to The Economist?

Students and teachers pay least, at £69.75 a year for digital Premium. For everyone else, the annual plan's first year is £195.30 (£16.28 a month) before it renews at £279; over longer terms, 3 years of Premium for £709 works out at £19.70 a month against £27.90 on the monthly plan.

Source: subscribenow.economist.com, read 29 Oct

Does an Economist subscription include the print edition?

Only Premium + Print does: it adds the weekly print edition, delivered weekly, to full digital access, for £272.30 for the first year (then £389) or £38.90 a month. Premium on its own is digital: every article, the podcasts and the weekly digital edition.

Source: economist.com, read 29 Oct

How do I cancel my Economist subscription?

Cancel auto-renewal at any time in My Account under Manage subscription, or by phone or live chat with the customer service centre. The same page lets you change or upgrade your plan.

Source: economist.com, read 29 Oct

Can I give The Economist as a gift?

Yes: a year of Premium as a gift costs £279, or £389 with the weekly print edition. The gift page we read on 29 Oct 2026 shows no discount on gifts and gives no last order date for Christmas.

Source: subscribenow.economist.com, read 29 Oct