Free parking in Copenhagen — where you can park for free

The City of Copenhagen has 17 time-limited parking zones where parking is free for up to 3 hours on weekdays with a parking disc — and unlimited on weekends and public holidays. The zones cover districts like Vanløse, Grøndal, Bispebjerg, Nordvest, Ålholm, Valby Syd, Kongens Enghave, Sundbyvester, Sundbyøster, Lergravsparken, Amager Strand, Havnestad, Grønjord, Ryparken and along Strandvejen. Most apply 08:00-22:00 on weekdays (some 08:00-19:00), and in Kødbyen the limit is 1 hour, Monday to Saturday 08:00-17:00.

By law the municipality cannot charge for parking in these zones — so they are genuinely free as long as you remember the parking disc and respect the time limit. That includes EVs: their exemption from the time limit ended on 1 January 2024. See the current zones and hours at the City of Copenhagen (in Danish).

Refshalevej is Copenhagen's best-known free parking, and the public road along Christianshavns Vold is still free — typically with a 3-hour limit on weekdays, so check the signs. But mind the nuance most guides miss: the island's own lots are no longer free — Refshaleøen's property company has introduced paid parking on all its areas. When parking on the road, keep clear of the solid road markings — a classic source of fines.

In the payment zones, the first hour of your first registered parking is free from Saturday 17:00 to Monday 08:00 — and the same applies on public holidays, Constitution Day and 24 December. The trap: the hour must be registered in an app or at a meter to be free — just pulling in without registering risks a fine. Outside the free hour, evening parking costs DKK 18/h (18:00-23:00) and night parking DKK 6/h in all zones. See all zone rates here.

The outer boundary of the payment zones (yellow zone) broadly follows the Ring rail line in Nørrebro and Østerbro and Vigerslev Allé in Valby. That means free, unlimited street parking in the districts beyond: Brønshøj-Husum, Vanløse beyond the Ring line, Valby south of Vigerslev Allé and parts of Sydhavnen and outer Amager — with the time-limited zones listed above as the exceptions. No expansion of the payment zones has been announced as of July 2026.

Frederiksberg is its own municipality with its own rules — and friendlier ones: parking is free from Saturday 17:00 to Monday 07:00 and on Sundays and public holidays, with no registration required. On weekdays the rates are progressive (DKK 10 for the first hour, rising thereafter) — still far below Copenhagen's DKK 45/h in the red and green zones. Note that Frederiksberg's old 2-hour free rule was abolished in 2023; today there are 30-minute parking-disc bays on shopping streets like Gammel Kongevej and Godthåbsvej instead. Source: Frederiksberg Municipality (in Danish).

Three popular free-parking tricks no longer work — and outdated guides still mention them:

• Free Sunday parking: abolished — since 1 April 2025 you pay every day of the week in the payment zones.
• Free parking for EVs: ended 1 January 2024 — zero-emission cars pay the same rates as everyone else on public spaces.
• Long-term parking at the Amager Strand metro: the previously unlimited lots at Femøren and Øresund are now 3-hour zones (weekdays 08:00-22:00) — introduced precisely to stop airport parking.