One of the best free internet radio stations is Rinse FM. Probably the longest-standing example of city-based community radio in Britain, Rinse started out life as a pirate station in 1994 before gaining a commercial license in 2010. It plays garage, grime, dubstep, house, jungle, UK funky, and other dance music genres popular in the United Kingdom. But unlike commercial contemporaries such as Kiss, it has yet to lose the raw-edged excitement of its pirate days.

The station hosts standout residencies from the formative dance music label Hessle Audio and the I Am Grime show, plus slots from the DJs Marcus Nasty, Jyoty, and A Guy Called Gerald. Rinse FM has been described as London's biggest pirate radio station. It provided first exposure to grime artists Dizzee Rascal and Wiley and later provided a home for dubstep DJs such as Skream, Kode9, and DJ Oneman. DJ Geeneus is the station's head.

• Website: https://rinse.fm/
• Founded: 1994

No Signal! is set up like a regular Sky TV system with similar graphics and numerous channels, which are flicked through until the show ends, meanwhile showing the various spoofs of commercials, documentaries, etc. An odd take on pre-show disclaimers air before each episode, which suggests that at least another series of No Signal! will be produced. The setup is considered strikingly similar to The Kevin Bishop Show, which began the previous year.

Born out of the cultural no man’s land of the first lockdown in 2020, self-defined #blackradio station No Signal has amassed a wildly loyal following with its celebratory selections from the black diaspora and its flagship show NS10v10, where two rival DJs or artists go head to head with the back catalog of two musicians over 10 rounds. Standouts so far have included the clash between Skepta and Giggs, as well as nimble lyricists Missy Elliot and Busta Rhymes and R&B icons Beyoncé and Mariah Carey.

• Website: https://linkin.bio/theresnosignal
• Founded: 2009

NTS Radio is one of the best free internet radio stations that you should try. Founded in 2011 by Femi Adeyemi and based at a shopfront studio in Hackney, east London, NTS Radio has grown to become perhaps the best-known British online radio presence, reportedly boasting 2.5 million unique monthly listeners in 2020. Eclecticism is the watchword for NTS’s 24-hour schedule, now spanning from London to Los Angeles, Shanghai, and beyond. Highlights include the late Andrew Weatherall’s residency, available to listen to via the archive, and Charlie Bones’ reliably uplifting breakfast show Do!! You!!! and regular crate-digging DJ slots from Anz, Moxie, and Éclair Fifi.

NTS broadcasts from its studios in London and Los Angeles, as well as remote worldwide broadcasts from its mix of resident hosts and guests. NTS produces a diverse range of live radio shows, digital media, and events. In 2019, NTS Radio won the Outstanding Contribution category in DJ Mag's Best of British Awards.

• Website: https://www.nts.live/radio
• Founded: 2011

Radiooooo is a project born in 2013, dreamt up by a little family of friends, both DJs and music lovers, who decided to share their record collections and the fruit of many years of research, for all to enjoy. Radiooooo is the foundation of this musical time machine. There is almost every possible type of music contained in this glorious wormhole of a platform – enough to see anyone through at least one more lockdown, with a special recommendation for the crooning of 60s Kazakhstan and 50s Bollywood melodrama.

Radiooooo is a collaborative website, whose goal is to open each and everyone’s horizons through culture and beauty. Its members' objective is to create a more open-minded and richer world. A better world. The treasures that constitute this ever-growing library come from the collective memory of our humanity, in its most universal and timeless form, music. By using Radiooooo, you are encouraging a world that understands and appreciates each other better through musical culture. You are cultivating your garden and helping your neighbors to grow theirs. Become the explorers of this bountiful world.

• Website: https://radiooooo.com/
• Founded: 2013

Soho Radio is an independent online radio station that broadcasts over two channels, Soho and NYC + Culture. It was founded in 2014. With one foot in London and another in New York, this station has been providing community-based, street-side radio, with its shows blending musical explorations with informative debate. The sound system stalwart Norman Jay hosts a weekly slot, while a hefty jazz contingent comes from the likes of the trumpeter Jaimie Branch and the saxophonist Tamar Collocutor. Chat is provided by the actor Harry Shearer’s monthly Le Show.

Soho Radio has over 250 resident presenters covering all genres, including Primal Scream's Simone Marie, dub legend Dennis Bovell, Groove Armada's Tom Findlay, UNKLE's James Lavelle, Jim Sclavunos of Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, Metronomy’s Anna Prior, DJ Norman Jay MBE and Anton Newcombe of The Brian Jonestown Massacre. Soho Radio was awarded Best Online Radio Station in the Mixcloud Online Radio Awards 2016.

• Website: https://sohoradiolondon.com/
• Founded: 2014

Noods Radio is among the best free internet radio stations and is an independent radio station broadcasting from Bristol's Stokes Croft. Founded in 2015 and born from Sunday morning music sessions, the station has grown to become the home of faces from around the globe. Online radio has also proven an effective magnifying glass for local scenes and sounds, with highlights including Palestine’s community-based Radio Alhambra and India’s Boxout FM. In Bristol, a city known for its trip-hop, dubstep, and dance music, Noods Radio has been promoting some of its finest talents. Listen out for residencies from the Bahraini collective Dar Disku, the techno luminary Regis, and Hessle Audio’s Bruce.

Tune in with open ears for daily shows from the misfits, dancers, collectors, and selectors. No playlists, no ads, just the people. Do you want to gain radio knowledge and studio skills and sign up to become one of the Bristol-based studio producers?

• Website: https://noodsradio.com/
• Founded: 2015

The Lot Radio is one of the best free internet radio stations that you should spend time trying. A nondescript shipping container in Brooklyn, New York, is the home of the independent station The Lot Radio, providing a welcome snapshot of the city’s vast cultural offerings. The producer and DJ Jessy Lanza hosts an essential semi-regular show, along with the drummer Shigeto, as well as featuring the down-tempo selections of Japanese composer Takuya Nakamura and passing showcases from touring talent such as Four Tet and the band Ezra Collective.

In addition to founder/owner Francois Vaxelaire, the station is run by Pauline Le Mell, who acts as "station manager, director of programming, coordinator of daily operations, social media manager, event producer, and catch-all liaison for everyone from labels to artists.", and program directors Chris Cherry and Lloyd Harris. Notable guests include Four Tet, Busy P, Floating Points, Hot Chip, Ellen Allien, etc. Each broadcast features live DJ sets with an emphasis on electronic music, disco, and soul music. Broadcasts are archived on a lot of radio's Mixcloud. The Lot Radio was the Winner of Best Online Radio Station, North America in 2016.

• Website: https://www.thelotradio.com/
• Founded: 2015

Worldwide FM is a freeform internet radio service that highlights "underground music, culture, and stories from around the globe." Founded in 2016 by DJ Gilles Peterson. A BBC Radio 6 stalwart, a veteran of the labels Acid Jazz and Talking Loud, and the founder of the London-based label Brownswood, Gilles Peterson started his own station in 2016 as an expansion of his genre-breaking DJing style, promoting new artists and lesser-known greats. After launching in 2016, the station had 130,000 listeners a month. As of 2020, Worldwide FM has a monthly audience of more than 400,000 listeners.

Based in London but also broadcasting specials from New York, Tokyo, and Johannesburg, Worldwide’s roster give ample space for its hosts’ tastes to breathe. Regular favorites include Peterson’s The 20 shows – selecting the finest tracks from a single genre each week – WW Daily with Erica McKoy and Papaoul, and Toshio Matsuura’s weekly jazz-inflected missive from Tokyo.

• Website: https://worldwidefm.net/
• Founded: 2016