Volunteer with us at
Download Festival 2026

• No admin fees deducted from deposits
• Deposits refunded in full 30 days after the festival
• Choose shifts before the festival
• Private, secure camping and car parking
• Bring your campervan, caravan or motorhome
• Free phone charging and wi-fi
• Crew toilets and hot showers
• Free tea, coffee and hot chocolate
• Discounted festival food

Our Download volunteers can be found across the festival site assisting with a wide variety of tasks. It'd be tricky to list everything we get up to, but some of the most common roles include:

• Assisting Download festival-goers with directions.
• Helping festival-goers carry their belongings and pitch their tents.
• Answering questions about Download performances and line-ups.
• Reporting any problems, such as a build-up of litter or faulty facilities.
• Working alongside Download Fire Safety, Medical and Security teams.
• Assisting with various roles across the site, including stewarding pedestrian and vehicle gates, handling wristband exchanges, overseeing facilities, and monitoring stages and walkways.
• Keeping an eye on the Download Festival campsites from the fire towers.
• Making sure festival-goers have the best time possible at Download Festival!

We work very hard to ensure that everyone who joins us at Download Festival has an amazing experience - and that includes giving you a great shift pattern!

We know how important it is that you have time off-shift to watch your favourite bands, so everyone who joins us has the opportunity to select shift preferences and receive their schedule before arriving at the festival.

Volunteer shift patterns at Download are arranged by way of shift preferences that you can select. A few weeks before the festival, we'll open shift selection and let you know via email, our news and socials that it's time to login and make your choices. There are usually 20-30 volunteer shift patterns for you to rank from the most, to the least, preferable.

All Download Festival volunteer shift patterns contain 3x 8-hour shifts. Most of these shift patterns contain 1x Early (09:00 - 17:00), 1x Late (17:00 - 01:00) and 1x Night (01:00 - 09:00) shift.

Shift patterns are allocated based on deposit payment date, therefore the earlier you apply and pay the refundable deposit to confirm your place, the best chance you have of being allocated your top choice shift pattern! However, we work very hard to make sure everyone gets the highest shift preference possible.

We guarantee all volunteers have at least two of the main festival evenings off-shift to enjoy the music; some volunteers will even have all three evenings off!

When you volunteer with Hotbox Events at Download Festival, we make sure you have all you need to complete your shifts and have a safe and enjoyable week!

Here are the essentials we always provide at Download Festival – and once you're onsite, we're always around if there’s anything else you need!

• A volunteer info pack will be uploaded to your Hotbox Events PAAM portal a few weeks before Download Festival. In this pack, you will find thorough details of your role, responsibilities and other information about the festival.
• We guarantee you'll have the same shift pattern as any friends you list on your Hotbox Events PAAM profile!
• Secure Download Festival volunteer parking within walking distance of (and often right next to) your own private campsite!
• A private and secure Download Festival volunteer camping area within the main festival crew area. The Hotbox festival office is also here, so we're always close-by if you need anything!
• A Download Festival volunteer marquee with chairs, tables, device charging points, hot water and free tea, coffee and biscuits!
• Free festival wi-fi, exclusive to Hotbox volunteers within the Hotbox compound.
• Access to Download Festival crew toilets and hot showers!
• Access to an exclusive Download Festival crew catering provision, which will save you money on your festival meals.
• A Download Festival crew pass, which will allow you to move about the site and access the arena when you're not on shift.
• A thorough onsite briefing and Q&A from us and other Download Festival teams before you start work.
• Everything you'll need at the beginning of each shift, including a Download Festival tabard, a radio and any PPE required.

There are a few bits below you'll need to make sure of when applying to volunteer at Download Festival.

• Be 18 years old or over by the day you arrive onsite.
• Be available to arrive onsite on either Tuesday 9th or Wednesday 10th June 2026 and attend an onsite briefing at 19:00 that evening. You will need to attend the briefing on the day before your first shift (eg. if your first shift is on Wednesday you need to arrive on Tuesday and attend the Tuesday evening briefing). We strongly recommend planning to arrive several hours before your briefing time, as you will need to sign in, go through security checks and collect your accreditation before the briefing. You are welcome to arrive at Download Festival from midday on Tuesday 10th. You will be able to let us know if you have a preferred briefing day when you select your shift preferences a few weeks before the festival.
• Be available to volunteer for 3x 8-hour shifts at any time between 09:00 Wednesday 10th (or 01:00 Thursday if arriving for the later briefing) and 14:00 Monday 15th. Most shift patterns include 1x Early (09:00 - 17:00), 1x Late (17:00 - 01:00) and 1x Night (01:00 - 09:00) shift.
• Arrive at the Hotbox Events festival office one hour prior to your shift to be signed in and have your zone and/or position allocated. You will then need to allow between 5 and 30 minutes to make your way to your zone. This time is outside of your allocated 8-hour shift in a similar way that travelling to your place of work or study is outside of paid work or classroom hours.
• Be able to produce original documents that prove your right to work and volunteer in the UK when you arrive at the festival. You can read more about proving your right to work and volunteer in our FAQs
• Provide a refundable security deposit.

The refundable deposit is your way of showing us you are committed to joining us at the festival.

You only need to pay one deposit a year to join us at as many festivals as you like!

Your deposit refund will be processed within 30 days of the end of the festival.

If this is your first time joining us at a festival, the refundable deposit is £95. If you've joined us before, the refundable deposit is discounted by almost 50% to £45!

There are no admin fees charged on deposits, so you'll receive your entire deposit back as long as you complete all of your shifts or cancel your place at least 20 days before the festival arrival date.

For more info about deposits, please head to the deposits section of our FAQs!