What Pub, Beer Scoring and the Good Beer Guide

How you can help as a CAMRA Member?

You are probably aware of the ‘Good Beer Guide’, CAMRA’s flagship publication which lists the best 4 500 pubs in the UK. But what you may not know is how those pubs are selected to appear in the Guide. The answer is that pubs are nominated at the nominations meeting, and then debated at the selection meeting where beer scores are taken into account, including beer scores submitted by CAMRA members from all over the country. Individual beer scorers remain anonymous; it’s just the scores that count.

So, if you are a CAMRA member, you can send in beer scores from the comfort of your own home with your computer (see the large picture below on the left), or, if you have a smart phone, whilst you are having a drink (see the large picture below on the right). If you’ve ever wondered why your favourite pub isn’t in the Guide, this may well be because you, and others, haven’t entered beer scores rating the quality of beer in that particular pub. By beer scoring, you can contribute to the process of selection of pubs that go in to the CAMRA Good Beer Guide.

So how do I score the quality of the beer?

You don’t have to be an ‘expert’ to begin scoring your beer. However, it is not about your personal favourite beer receiving the highest scores! You may try a beer that isn’t to your normal taste, but what you need to consider is the quality of that beer, how well the pub has kept it and served it, and score it according to the general guide below. We changed the system of a ten point range from 0 to 5, with half points being used. We now have 6 choices, from Excellent, Very Good, Good, Acceptable, Poor and Undrinkable. This new and easier system started on 1st June 2026 after surveys/questionnaires were done in 2025.

Undrinkable Unpleasant to drink, likely with a disgusting taste, incorrect appearance and off/foul aroma. Poor.. Noticeably imperfect. Acceptable. Unremarkable and ordinary, with no noteworthy characteristics. Good. Nice appearance, good carbonation, aromas and flavour. Very Good. Satisfying and well-kept with a great appearance, good carbonation and enticing aromas and flavours. Excellent. Exceptional and clear (if intended to be) with fantastic aromas, flavours and ideal carbonation. A seasoned drinker will award this score very rarely.

How do I submit my scores?

In order to submit your scores, you need to login to CAMRA’s online pub guide WHAT PUBeither on a computer or by smart phone. In order to start submitting scores via What Pub you need to login. To do this, you need your CAMRA membership number and your password. If you do not know your password. be aware that What Pub is now linked to the national Camra site and you just click on the heading Find Pubs & Clubs to visit. please click HERE.

2. You can then search for your pub by name. Be careful here, as there are many pubs in the country which share the same name. My advice is to search by the pub name and the town. The What Pub smart phone/tablet web page also gives you the option to search for real ale pubs nearby, very useful if you are in an unfamiliar town or area.

3. Once you have found your pub, a ‘Beer Score’ box will appear on the right hand side of the screen (or on the tab bar underneath the pub photo if you are using a smart phone).

4. Select the date and your score. Then, as you begin typing, the Pubs recent beers should automatically appear on a list. If you can not find your beer go to the bottom of the list, the tab/box should read "Beer not in list?". Enter the name of the beer you are drinking and it will start putting up beers of similar names, the beer should appear, unless it's a new brew. In some cases, the beer you are drinking may be a new or a one off brew by the Brewery, so may not appear on the list. If this is the case, you can simply type in the beer name. Check all the details are correct, one click ‘Submit Score’ and your score will be entered into the database.

It is as simple as that. An added bonus is that What Pub will keep a record of your scores so that you can look back to see what beers you have had and how you rated them if you want to. This list of your previous beer scores appears at the bottom of the pubs page.