Public Restrooms in Philly: 25 Spots for When You've Gotta Go

The best place to start a journey through Independence National Historical Park and the city at large is at the Independence Visitor Center, which offers maps, brochures, tickets, tour information, two welcome films, a gift shop and, of course, restrooms.

The facility’s large, clean restrooms (including a family restroom) are located opposite the gift shop, just inside the main entrance on Market Street by 6th Street.

Hidden away at the north end of Independence Mall is a secluded outdoor-access public restroom that few may be aware of. Embedded into the eastern exterior wall of the National Constitution Center is a public restroom by the Independence Transportation Center bus depot.

Look for the parked buses to confirm you’re in the right place.

One of William Penn’s five original city squares, Franklin Square features a spectacular fountain with a seasonal light show, a Philadelphia-themed mini golf course, the Parx Liberty Carousel, a playground, open space for lounging and picnicking, and a useful public restroom.

The restroom facilities are housed in a brick building on the eastern side of the park (closest to 6th Street) near the SquareBurger food stand.

The cheekily named Philly Phlush public restrooms are Portland Loo–style automated facilities to make going when you gotta go more convenient.

The project’s Center City location (one of three total) is located on North 15th Street at the intersection with Arch Street. Situated just across from LOVE Park at Thomas Paine Plaza, the Philly Phlush stall also includes a diaper-changing station, a free sanitary product machine, hand sanitizer dispensers and an external handwashing station.

The Comcast Center Campus in Logan Square houses the Comcast Center, the Comcast Technology Center, the Four Seasons Hotel Philadelphia and several dining options. Among those establishments is The Concourse at Comcast Center, a food court that offers a number of eateries — plus an accessible restroom.

To get there, head inside the Comcast Center (not the Comcast Technology Center) from the main entrance on Arch Street, go down the stairs to the concourse level and then follow the signs around to the base of the staircase. Note: The restrooms are often closed around lunchtime.

In Philadelphia, like most cities, restrooms are available at the public library. But convenience is the best seller at the Free Library of Philadelphia’s Parkway Central Library, which is located close to the city’s top museums along the Benjamin Franklin Parkway.

At the city’s largest library, visitors can head inside the entrance on Vine Street and find restrooms on the ground floor and the first floor on either side of the Grand Staircase, as well as on the fourth floor by the Skyline Room.

Public restrooms are available at the system’s other 53 neighborhood libraries as well, including Independence Library at the intersection of 7th and Market streets.

Located amidst One and Two Liberty Place (Philly’s O.G. skyscrapers), The Shops at Liberty Place feature more than 30 retail stores and eateries — and like any good mall, there are restrooms, located on the second level by the food court.

To find the facilities, first enter One Liberty Place at 17th and Ludlow streets or Two Liberty Place at 16th and Chestnut streets — or through any of the other half-dozen street-level entrances. Then head to the central rotunda, take the escalator up to the second level, turn toward the food court and find the hallway to the restroom on your right, about halfway down the concourse.

At nearly 1 million square feet, Fashion District Philadelphia is the largest mall in Center City — which also means plenty of restrooms.

Located in Market East atop SEPTA’s Jefferson Station, the mall offers two restrooms at street level (one near the Filbert Street entrance by Kate Spade and the other at the 9th Street entrance by Burlington Coat Factory), two on the concourse level (by T-Mobile and City Winery), and two on the second level (by Wonderspaces and behind the Levi’s Outlet).

Family restrooms are located on the concourse and second levels, and five specific wheelchair-accessible restrooms are also available.

As massive and historic as Reading Terminal Market in Center City is, it’s still a food hall — and where you find a food court, you find restrooms.

The facilities (including a family restroom) sit at the back of the building in the northwest corner. The nearest access is the tucked-away back entrance on Arch Street, between 11th Street and 12th Street — right between the Pennsylvania General Store and the security/housekeeping station. Just follow the helpful little green signs (or the scent of the adjacent Herbiary aromatherapy shop).

Even many lifelong Philadelphians aren’t aware that standalone permanent restrooms exist along the lower Penn’s Landing riverfront.

Indeed, a public restroom can be found between Spruce Street Harbor Park and the Moshulu along the Delaware River Trail — right across the path from the USS Becuna, on the exterior of the Penn’s Landing Operations Center.

Located a bit north of Penn’s Landing, Cherry Street Pier features artist studios (in refurbished shipping containers!), craft vendors, event spaces, dining options and — you guessed it — public restrooms.

Find the pier’s restrooms just inside the main entrance off Columbus Boulevard on the right. Bonus: Cherry Street Pier’s restrooms are sanitized hourly.

Table games, slot machines and a massive sportsbook are just some of the offerings at Rivers Casino Philadelphia on the Fishtown riverfront. But even if you don’t drop a single quarter, the casino is a great spot to find clean, ample restrooms, located just inside the main entrance.

As soon as you enter, walk to your immediate right to find the facilities along the wall of slot machines. Just note: Visitors must be 21 or over to enter (with a valid photo ID).

The Schuylkill Banks section of the Schuylkill River Trail is one of the most popular spots in Philadelphia for hikers, walkers, bikers and sightseers. But even trail veterans might overlook the cute green-and-white restroom cottage just south of the Walnut Street Bridge.

The private wheelchair-accessible lavatories are also part of the city’s composting restroom project, featuring waterless toilets that turn waste into a granular product that can be used as a plant fertilizer.

Located along the Schuylkill River Trail between Boathouse Row and Fairmount Water Works is the Lloyd Hall Recreation Center, a Philadelphia Parks & Recreation establishment that includes an information center, a cafe, indoor basketball courts, a reception hall, bike rentals and public restrooms.

The facilities at Lloyd Hall are located outside, along the rear of the center where Waterworks Drive meets Kelly Drive.

Further up the Schuylkill River Trail, Temple University’s East Park Canoe House — home to the Temple Owls’ rowing teams — sits just south of the Strawberry Mansion Bridge.

The facility, opened in 1914, was renovated in 2016 to become a more accessible public boathouse and dock — away from Boathouse Row. Included in the project: newer restrooms facing the river along the front exterior, accessible through a dedicated door under the main portico.

Please note: The restrooms (fully wheelchair accessible) are not clearly marked, but can be found behind the only unlocked door.

Located along South 9th Street in East Passyunk, Philadelphia’s historic open-air Italian Market dates back to the late 19th century, making it America’s oldest outdoor food and wares market.

Among the produce vendors, butcheries, bakeries, fishmongers, fromageries, old-school cafes and modern restaurants sits the Italian Market Visitor Center. At the intersection of 9th and Montrose streets, the welcome facility and gift shop offers visitors information, gift cards and a public restroom during business hours.

Established in 1801, South Philadelphia’s Navy Yard operated as the nation’s first naval shipyard and continued operation as a naval base until its reclassification in the 1990s.

Over the last two decades, the area has grown into a large mixed-use business campus, housing 150 companies, restaurants, a hotel and riverfront green spaces, including the beautiful Central Green park.

Central Green’s five acres offer a running track, hammocks, outdoor table tennis, bocce courts, a fitness station and public restroom facilities — built into the back of the park’s sun lawn amphitheater, right along the track.

Franklin’s Table Food Hall’s proximity to the University of Pennsylvania campus gives the food court a distinct college vibe, with plenty of homegrown Philly vendors and atypical food hall fare like veggie cheesesteaks, sushi and spurritos (burrito-sized spring rolls).

The cafeteria-style market, just like other food halls on this list, has restrooms open to the public, located at the back of the refectory. Enter the building through the main entrance on Walnut Street or through the small rear patio off Moravian Court.

The building, part of the Shop Penn district, opens early enough for breakfast most of the year.

If you find yourself on the University of Pennsylvania’s campus and nature calls, round third base and head for home. The Penn Park facility, located on the eastern edge of the Ivy League school’s campus, doubles as a peaceful park with pedestrian paths and Penn’s turf-sports athletic complex (used for a number of school programs).

In the middle of the park — just outside the Quaker softball team’s appropriately named Multipurpose Stadium — are public restrooms on the exterior of the grandstand, along the pedestrian path by Hamlin Tennis Center.

Amtrak’s third-busiest station and one of the top 10 busiest rail stations in the nation, William H. Gray III 30th Street Station features 95-foot ceilings, art deco chandeliers, gilded columns, marble floors, cathedral windows and, of course, restrooms.

The concourse’s primary restrooms are located on the north side, behind Amtrak’s waiting area and by the escalators down to the track level. A second set of restrooms can be found on the opposite side of the concourse, down the hallway toward Market Street and The Porch at 30th, on your left (by the U.S. Post Office).

Twelve floors and 95 feet up atop the Cira Centre South Garage, Cira Green — Philly’s “Park in the Sky” — is 31,000 square feet of green space overlooking the Schuylkill River and the Center City skyline.

The elevated urban park is home to many attractions, including a summer beer garden, weekly programming (like outdoor movie nights), and a seasonal bar and cafe. Also included: public restrooms located along the western roof edge, built directly into the lawn-covered hill near Sunset Social.

Restrooms, as well as the entire park, are wheelchair accessible.

Deep in West Philly, at the edge of the Cedar Park neighborhood, is the green, tree-filled Malcolm X Memorial Park.

Located across from the shops and cafes along South 52nd Street, the six-acre park features more than 100 towering oak trees, two playgrounds, scores of benches and picnic tables, a summer jazz festival, and public restrooms by the park’s central building.

Yet another beautiful green space in West Philadelphia, Clark Park boasts nine sprawling acres in the Spruce Hill neighborhood.

In the midst of the park’s bustling activities — from flea markets and vendor pop-ups to one of the largest farmers markets in the city — the newest Philly Phlush facility has found its home. You’ll find it by the basketball court, near the corner of 43rd Street and Regent Square.

The nation’s oldest botanical garden — located along the Schuylkill River Trail — features the original Franklin tree, a community farm and a ginkgo tree nearly as old as America. Also located here: two outdoor public restrooms open during regular park hours.

The primary restrooms can be found in Bartram’s Courtyard next to the barn, while gender-neutral and family restrooms are located along the side of the Bartram House.

While the Center City Philly Phlush gets a lot of attention (see above), that lavatory wasn’t the project’s first Philly first installation. That honor goes to Fotterall Square Park, just off North Broad near Temple University.

The 130-year-old park saw major renovations in July of 2023, which included upgraded playgrounds, new athletic courts and fields, and the city’s very first Philly Phlush — located on the north side of the five-acre park’s mini soccer grounds.

Like its Center City and West Philly counterparts, the privy includes a diaper changing station, free sanitary products, hand sanitizer dispensers and a sink with running water.