Saving for summer plans

This summer, there are a plethora of once-in-a-lifetime events happening where you could create unforgettable memories. From major festivals to stadium gigs, the ‘experience economy’ is booming, with Brits potentially spending nearly £3 billion annually on these events.

Our analysis shows that attending big events, like Glastonbury or concerts by artists like Oasis, could cost up to £4,653, including tickets, travel, accommodation, and even outfits¹. Glastonbury alone could total over £1,000. For 18-24 year olds, this could mean using 12% of their savings.

Estimated spend per person for popular events²:

• Glastonbury Festival: £1,037.99
• Reading Festival: £727.25
• Wireless Festival: £805.50
• Oasis concert: £766
• Coldplay concert: £630.25
• Billie Eilish concert: £686.60

Since you’ll likely need to use your savings for these experiences, it’s a good idea to make sure that your money is working hard for you. The average easy-access savings account rate is only 2.72% AER³, and many high street banks offer less, which can push more people with money sitting in these accounts towards expensive “buy now, pay later” options that can harm credit⁴.

The solution could be in maximising the interest that your savings earn. For example, a 24-year-old with £8,336 in a 4.75% AER saving account could see an annual return that’s enough to cover over half the cost of a major UK concert or a Reading festival ticket⁵. That’s a smart way of making sure you can afford those tickets and avoiding potential credit issues.

Reward Yourself This Summer

Atom bank’s Instant Saver Reward product offers a ‘Reward’ rate of 4.75% AER if your savings are left untouched. Even when you make a withdrawal, the rate adjusts to 2.50% AER for that monthly interest period, reverting to 4.75% AER if no withdrawals are made the next month.

Aileen Robertson, Head of Savings at Atom, notes: “The experience economy is now fully established, ticket holders are going above and beyond to create lasting memories.” She adds that loyalty to low-paying banks can hinder enjoying summer events. Moving to a decent savings provider can mean hundreds, even thousands, more pounds annually.

“Our Instant Saver Reward product is designed to be flexible, ideal for those occasional bigger purchases, like event tickets, without locking your money away.” We encourage Brits to shop around for great rates and flexibility to say yes to all summer plans.

This summer, make memories without financial stress. Discover how Atom can help you make the most of your savings and enjoy some of the amazing gigs and events this summer!

Notes

Rates correct as of 27.06.2025

1 Atom bank used desk research and calculated festival costs using official festival packing lists to find the average cost of each item suggested and prices from official festival websites, such as ticket price, travel costs, etc to find average spend per person. For concerts, this was again calculated using ticket prices from official ticket retailers, such as Ticketmaster, along with average costs for accommodation in each location of the tour and prices of food and beverages at each of the venue.

2 This was calculated using the total capacity at each festival and total capacity at each venue on each tour. For example for Glastonbury: Capacity is 210,000 x spend of £1,037.99 per person = £217,958,100

For example for Billie Eilish: 6x shows at The O2 Arena means total attendees of 120,000 (20,000 per night), 4x shows at Co-op Live means total attendees of 94,000 (23,500 per night), x2 shows at OVO Hydro means total attendees of 28,600 (14,300 per night)

3 Moneyfacts Compare, May 2025

4 BBC, ‘New buy now, pay later rules aim to protect shoppers’, May 2025

5 A sum of £8,336 held in a savings account with an interest rate of 4.75% AER will have paid out a total of £404.70 in interest after 12 months. The table above shows the price for each individual event.