How to Get from Each London Airport to the City Centre on a Budget

July 17, 2025
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London has four main airports: Heathrow, Gatwick, Luton and Stansted. While a trip to London can quickly add up cost-wise, the journey from the airport is more affordable than you may think.

I lived in London for over 15 years and have flown into all four airports in that time. I have summarised the cheapest ways to get to the city centre from each below.

A little note here is that the earlier you book your airport transport for any of the airports, the cheaper the journey will be. London also has tons of budget-friendly things to do, check out my budget guides:

Table of Contents

How to get from London Airports to the City Centre:

There is usually a fast route from each of the four main London Airports and a slightly slower one that is cheaper. Unless you are in a big rush or on a short layover, the budget-friendly version is usually worth it.

To get a quick overall look at train times, I recommend checking Trainline. For the tube and buses in London you can use your contactless card to get the best prices.

Heathrow Airport

Heathrow is the biggest international airport in London and international flights will land here. It is the easiest airport to get into London from and the cheapest.

🚍 The actual cheapest option to get to the city centre is by bus, costing £1.75 per hour travelled on the bus (you can change buses within that hour for free). I think this is a decent option if you are staying in West or South-West London as there are express buses.

🚇The Picadilly line is the cheapest option from Heathrow Airport to central London , costing around £5.50, and takes around one hour to get to central London. Alternatively, you can get the new Elizabeth Tube line which takes only 30 minutes to Paddington and costs £12.80 one way.

🚅The fastest way to get from Heathrow into central London is the Heathrow Express costing £10 if booked well in advance (otherwise £22). It goes every 15 minutes from Heathrow Airport straight to Paddington station in 15 minutes.

Gatwick Airport

Gatwick also has a ton of international flights that land there.

🚉 The normal trains that go here are fairly cheap and actually pretty fast. I’d recommend going to London Bridge Station. The journey takes 29-50 minutes depending on the train and cost £10.70 during off-peak times (09:30 to 16:00 and after 19:00) if using your contactless card. During peak times, it’s cheaper to get a train ticket on Southern Railway – check the website to see both options.

🚅The Gatwick Express is similar to the Heathrow Express but heads to London Victoria. It takes 31 minutes and costs £21.50.

Stansted Airport

Stansted Airport is home to most budget airlines. There are mostly flights to Europe, but also some international ones. Journey time for this airport is the longest.

🚍Shuttle buses are usually the cheapest way to get into the city centre. Technically, the journey time is around 50 minutes. However, the queuing system for the buses is a bit chaotic at Stansted. If there are a lot of people, you sometimes have to wait 2-3 buses before you can get on.

Bus companies that run are National Express (with tickets starting at £7 if booked in advance) and Flibco (whose journey seem to always cost £9.99). It is usually cheaper to buy a return ticket and some airlines offer discounted bus tickets if booked directly with your flight (e.g. Ryanair).

🚅The fastest way to get into the city is once again the Express train which takes 48 minutes and costs £9.90 if booked well in advance and exponentially more the closer you book to your travel date. Standard is around £21.90. If booked in advance, the express train is actually one of the cheapest options.

Luton Airport

Luton Airport once again services mostly budget airlines that go to Europe. It also has some international flights.

🚍 If you book in advance, you can get to London by National Express bus for as little as £6, it does go up to £14 for more last-minute journey. To Victoria, the bus takes around 90 minutes. Arriva also has the Green Bus 755/757 that goes to Victoria for £13 in 90ish minutes.

🚊 There is a shuttle train called DART (£4.90) that brings you from the airport to Luton Airport Parkway, the station that connects to central London. If you book the train journey in advance on Trainline, you can get tickets from as little as £3 to/from Luton Airport Parkway. The whole journey takes about 50 minutes.

Where to stay in London on a budget?

While London is a pretty expensive city, it is definitely possible to find budget-friendly accommodation in the city centre. Check out my full guide on budget-friendly accommodation in London below.

🛏️ Wombats City Hostel
🏬 The Crescent Hyde Park London Hotel
🏩Tavistock Hotel