There are 6 main airports in London: Heathrow, London City, Stansted, Gatwick, Luton and Southend. People usually go for the cheapest flight when visiting the city but you can actually save money commuting TO the capital based on where you land.
This guide will help you identify which London airport is more convenient for your trip and which airports you should avoid before booking a flight to London. It will cover the location of such airports, commuting price and routes as well as other advantages and disadvantages.
I have been living in London for over 10 years and I like traveling so I had to learn this the hard way... Now I don't go for the cheapest flight unless I know where I will be arriving =).
Compare London Airports
✈️ Airport
🕓 Time to Central London
🚇 Nearest Central London Station
🚖 Recommended Transport Services
🏨 Recommended Stay Area
⭐️ Rating
Heathrow Airport (LHR)
15 - 30 min
Paddington
Heathrow Express (£25); Elizabeth tube line (£12); Taxi (£70+)
Paddington, West London
★★★★☆
London City Airport (LCY)
15 - 20 min
London City Airport
DLR or Elizabeth tube line (£3.60)
Custom House/Royal Victoria or Canary Wharf, Central East London
🚖 Recommended transport services: Heathrow Express (£25); Elizabeth tube line (£12); Taxi (£70+)
🏨 Recommended stay area: Paddington, West London
⭐️ Rating: ★★★★☆
London's main and busiest airport with around 210,000 passengers per day or 76 million passengers yearly. The airport has 4 terminals (Terminal 1 to 4), each for different type of flights (e.g. regional, continental, intercontinental, etc.).
It operates major airlines including but not limited to British Airways, Qatar Airways, Air France and more. You can visit Heathrow's airline contact info website for a full list.
Where is it and How to get there?
Heathrow Airport is located in west London zone 6. The cheapest way to travel from or towards there is with Piccadilly line for just £3.60 using an Oyster or Contactless card. The journey is approximately 45-60min long. There are other methods of transportation such as:
Coach services from Heathrow to London Victoria for £6 one-way but this method is slower and traffic-dependent.
Taxi which may cost you around £60-70 depending on where you are traveling to or from and is also traffic-dependent.
Heathrow Express which is a direct train from Paddington train station (station in west central London) for about £22 in just 15min. You may find cheaper tickets if you book in advance.
✔️ Advantages
Connected to London (you can use Contactless or Oyster card to travel there).
Large variety of shopping and food, as well as best for comfort and security.
Large airport with multiple airline choices.
Best for plane spotting.
❌ Disadvantages
Immigration control can get very busy or congested.
Not the best airport if you are staying in East or very North London (journey can be 2h long).
🚇 Nearest central London station: London City Airport
🚖 Recommended transport services: DLR or Elizabeth tube line (£3.60)
🏨 Recommended stay area: Custom House/Royal Victoria or Canary Wharf, Central East London
⭐️ Rating: ★★★★★
London City Airport is the closest airport to the city center and also the smallest airport out of the six. Mainly designed for business travel with just one runway, small planes and not many airlines.
Where is it and How to get there?
Located in east London zone 3 in London City Airport DLR station, one of the 11 London train lines. The best way to travel from or towards there is via public transport, costing also £3.60 (or less if off-peak hours) and less than 20 minute away from the city center.
Taxis can cost around £30 and are only recommended if traveling long distances from this airport.
✔️ Advantages
Closest to central London.
Best if traveling from New York or Europe major cities such as Dublin, Amsterdam, Ibiza, Malaga, Luxembourg, and more.
❌ Disadvantages
Limited flights depending on your destination.
Few commercial non-business flights.
Not the cheapest airport to get a flight from. Flights are usually more expensive if travelling towards or from this airport but that's not always the case.
🚖 Recommended transport services: National Express Coach (£10); Taxi (£60+)
🏨 Recommended stay area: Stratford, East London
⭐️ Rating: ★★★★☆
A nice and small airport usually best for budgeted flights. It serves over 160 destinations and operates a few airlines such as Ryanair, easyJet, TUI, Jet2.com, British Airways and a few others. You can see the full list of destinations served from London Stansted airport website.
Where is it and How to get there?
London Stansted airport is located in North East London and the best way to commute there is via Stansted Express from £7 if you book tickets well in advance from train stations like Liverpool Street or Tottenham Hale. If you don't tickets might cost you around £20. The journey is usually 40-50 min long. Other methods of transportation include:
Coach services like National Express buses serving from different points in London and costing around £6-10 one-way. It is traffic dependent so if you do get this service make sure to aim to arrive at the airport 2 to 3 hours before your flight. The journey usually takes 50 minutes but can take hours if there is traffic.
Taxis cost around £50-60 from the city center to the airport.
✔️ Advantages
Usually the cheapest flights are from this airport.
Best for people based in East or North London.
Easy to commute.
❌ Disadvantages
Only budgeted airlines.
Not best if based in South or West London.
Train tickets can be costly if you don't book in advance.
I have had close calls due to traffic towards this airport as you will have to go through busy roads and a few roads in central London.
🚇 Nearest central London station: Victoria; Blackfriars; London Bridge; Waterloo
🚖 Recommended transport services: National Rail (£12); Taxi (£60+)
🏨 Recommended stay area: Victoria or London Bridge, Central South London
⭐️ Rating: ★★★★☆
The second busiest airport in the UK. It has 2 terminals: North and South. It supports 90 airlines and over 200 destinations. You can find a full list of airlines and their corresponding terminal in the gatwick airport site.
Where is it and How to get there?
London Gatwick is located south of London, in West Sussex. The best way to travel to or from there is via National Rail. Southern Railway tickets will cost you £6-9 one-way and will leave you in major London stations such as London Bridge, Victoria, or Blackfriars in 30-50 minutes. Other methods of transportation include:
Gatwick Express which takes passengers to Victoria station in 15 minutes with tickets costing £18.50 one-way.
Coach services like Natinal Express buses usually leaving you in Victoria station in approximately 2 hours for £8.
Taxi services can cost at least £60 and could take about 1h.
✔️ Advantages
Convenient if staying in south central London.
Multiple flights and airlines.
Fast transport to central London via train.
Fast security at the airport.
❌ Disadvantages
Not the best if staying outside of central London.
Might be confusing to go there via train due to large number of trains going to South England. Also, some do more stops than others.
🚖 Recommended transport services: National Rail (£12); Taxi (£80+)
🏨 Recommended stay area: Baker Street or Hyde Park, Central West London
⭐️ Rating: ★★☆☆☆
Similar to Stansted airport, Luton Airport is home to budget airlines and is located 28 miles from the city center. It is one of the oldest operational airports in the UK and also a historical place in the country since it used to be home to many military aircrafts in WWII. London Luton airport serves 122 destinations in 33 countries.
Where is it and How to get there?
The airport is located north of London and the best way to get there is via coach, usually taken from Victoria Coach station, costing £11 one-way with a journey time lasting approximately 1.5 hours.
There are also train tickets usually £13-19from London St Pancras station with 50 minute journey. However, you will need to change at London Luton Airport Parkway and take a shuttle coach to the Luton Airport (or viceversa if traveling towards London) once you arrive there.
Taxis are usually more expensive if traveling from or towards this aiport with prices starting from £70 with journeys lasting at least 1h.
✔️ Advantages
Cheap flights or flight packages.
More destinations that London Stansted.
❌ Disadvantages
Far from the city center.
Train journeys are fast but still lengthy, you also need to change to take a shuttle bus.
🚖 Recommended transport services: National Rail (£12)
🏨 Recommended stay area: Stratford, East London
⭐️ Rating: ★☆☆☆☆
An international airport situated 36 miles from London city center, so it is the farthest away from the city. It is located near the East cost of England in Southend-on-Sea so there are still mixed feelings about it being called 'London Soutend Aiport'. The airport covers a few destinations listed on their website and only operates 3 airlines: easyJet, Aer Lungus and Thomson.
Where is it and How to get there?
The airport is located in Southend-on-Sea, at the East coast of England, and the best way to travel from or towards there is via national rail. You will arrive at London Liverpool Street in 50 minutes and train prices range from £15-19.
I would not recommend a coach or a taxi due to long commuting time and extremely high prices with taxi journeys costing approximately £110...
✔️ Advantages
New experience and interesting area.
Unusual airport for arrivals to London so it is usually not crowded and not a hassle to pass through security.
❌ Disadvantages
Farthest away from the city center.
Commute is more costly when compared to other aiports.
Summary of Aiports in London
Commute prices are the cheapest (less than £3.60) at London Heathrow and London City airports since you can use public transport and pay with Contactless or Oyster cards payment methods.
If you are travelling from New York or main cities in Europe and money is not a problem, you may find London City airport as your first choice.
London Stansted and London Luton airports have the cheapest flights and flight package deals. Travelling to or from London Stansted is cheaper and easier than London Luton, but you may select London Luton over Stansted airport if staying near London Victoria station.
London Gatwick has similar commuting times than from London Heathrow airport. Although it is not convenient to flight to or from London Gatwick if you are staying outside the city center or not in South London.
London Southend airport is the farthest away from the city center and the least busy one. You may find flights to this aiport from cities like Malaga, Ibiza, Faro and related.
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Before booking a flight consider at which airport you will be arriving to or flying from as you will have to add commuting prices to your total flight cost.
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