Tales of struggling musicians are nothing new, but Ed Sheeran has revealed he roughed it for years before he became one of the biggest names in pop.

There have been exaggerated reports that Sheeran spent time as a homeless teenager on the streets of London, but in reality the middle-class British singer-songwriter was essentially couch-surfing while trying to forge a career in music.

Top of his game: Ed Sheeran performs at the AFL Grand Final in Melbourne in September. Credit:Joe Armao

In his new book, A Visual Journey, a personal account of his rise to fame, Sheeran, 23, describes how he spent years drifting as he struggled to make it in the music industry.

"I didn't have anywhere to live for much of 2008 and the whole of 2009 and 2010, but somehow I made it work," he says in the book. "I knew where I could get a bed at a certain time of night and I knew who I could call at any time to get a floor to sleep on. Being sociable helped. Drinking helped."