London Stansted Airport ground transportation
London Stansted is London's third-busiest airport, a single-terminal site off the M11 in Essex, about 64 km (40 miles) from the centre of the capital. It handled a rolling 30.87 million passengers in the 12 months to September 2026, most of them on short-haul European flights, and it is the main London base for low-cost carriers. That matters for ground transport: many flights land late in the evening or leave at dawn, so the question of what still runs at 01:00 comes up more often here than at Heathrow.
The rail station sits directly beneath the terminal, about two minutes' walk from arrivals, with lifts and ramps throughout. The Stansted Express runs every 15 minutes to London Liverpool Street, calling at Tottenham Hale for the Victoria line, and takes 46 to 48 minutes. Since March 2026 you can tap in with a contactless card or phone; Transport for London's fare table puts the trip to Liverpool Street at £21.00 off-peak and £23.00 in the weekday morning peak. Advance tickets bought online start at £9.90. Oyster cards are not valid to or from the airport. CrossCountry and Greater Anglia trains also run north to Cambridge in about half an hour.
The coach station is opposite the terminal entrance and runs 24 hours a day. National Express operates three London routes: the A6 via Baker Street and Paddington to Victoria, the A8 via Tottenham Hale, Shoreditch, Liverpool Street and Waterloo to Victoria, and the A9 via Stratford and Canary Wharf. Advance fares start at £7. Flibco runs every 30 minutes to Stratford, Liverpool Street, Redbridge and Finsbury Park from £7.49. First Essex Airlink buses (X10, X20, X30) connect to Chelmsford, Colchester, Basildon and Southend, the X20 for a flat £3.
There is no London-style black-cab rank. The on-airport car operator, Street Cars, has a desk in the arrivals concourse and quotes per journey. This guide compares price, time and timetable for the eight most-searched trips from Stansted, all in pounds sterling.
London Stansted Airport to London city centre
Central London (Liverpool Street) is 60 km from STN, about 46 min at the quickest. Stansted to Liverpool Street is about 60 km. The Stansted Express is quickest at 46–48 minutes for £21 off-peak on contactless. National Express coaches run 24 hours from £7.
| Option | Time | Fare | Frequency |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stansted Express (Greater Anglia) Fastest | 46 min | £9.9–23 | Every 15 min · From Stansted about 05:30 (05:55 Tue–Thu) until the last train at 00:30 |
| National Express A8 / A9 Cheapest | 1h 10m | £7 | Several an hour, 24 hours · 24 hours; first departure of the day 00:05 (A9) |
| Flibco | 1h 30m | £7.5 | Every 30 min · 24 hours |
| Street Cars (on-airport operator) | 1h 10m | £105 | On demand · 24 hours |
| Pre-booked transfer (Kiwitaxi and similar) | 1h 10m | £99 | On demand · 24 hours |
Where are you heading?
Every destination from STN: cheapest way and taxi fare
| Destination | Distance | Cheapest way | Taxi | Fastest |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Central London (Liverpool Street) | 60 km | National Express A8 / A9 · £7 | £105 | 46 min |
| Cambridge | 50 km | CrossCountry / Greater Anglia · £8 | £80 | 30 min |
| London Victoria | 68 km | National Express A6 / A8 · £7 | £105 | 1h 1m |
| Stratford (Westfield & Olympic Park) | 50 km | National Express A9 · £7 | — | 50 min |
| Canary Wharf | 58 km | National Express A9 · £7 | — | 1h 12m |
| London Heathrow Airport | 100 km | National Express (direct inter-airport coach) · £21 | — | 1h 30m |
| London Gatwick Airport | 125 km | Train · £25 | — | 1h 42m |
| Colchester | 56 km | First Essex Airlink X20 · £3 | — | 45 min |
Buying tickets in London
Trains. The Stansted Express and Greater Anglia accept contactless bank cards and phone wallets at the station gates. Since 8 March 2026 the fare is worked out by Transport for London's system. Tap in at the airport and out at your London station. To Liverpool Street it costs £21.00 off-peak, or £23.00 Monday to Friday between 06:30 and 09:30. Oyster cards are not valid to or from Stansted. You can use them on the Tube once you reach Tottenham Hale or Liverpool Street.
Advance Stansted Express singles start at £9.90 online, but they are tied to one train. Railcard discounts do not apply to contactless, so railcard holders should buy a ticket. CrossCountry trains (towards Cambridge and Birmingham) do not take contactless, so buy a ticket online, from the machines, or at the ticket office. The office is open 06:30–00:00 every day.
Coaches. National Express has desks and touch-screen machines in baggage reclaim and the arrivals hall. Booking online is cheaper, and the £1.50 booking fee is dropped when you are logged into My Account. A standard ticket is valid on a similar departure up to three hours either side of the booked one. For £5 more, Change & Go lets you board any coach within 12 hours either side. Flibco tickets are cheapest online and valid on any departure that day until 04:00 the next morning. First Essex X20 tickets cost £3 and you can pay the driver in cash or by contactless, or use the First Bus app.
Taxi scams & safety in London
Stansted has no rank of metered London black cabs. The airport's on-site car operator is Street Cars. Its desk is in the international arrivals concourse, and there is a courtesy phone in the domestic baggage reclaim area that rings the desk. Street Cars quotes a price for your exact address before you travel, takes cash or card, and its cars collect from right outside the terminal. Agree the fare at the desk before you go to the car.
In England a private-hire car must be booked through a licensed operator. Turn down anyone who approaches you in arrivals offering a ride. Pre-booked transfers and app cars use the collection points given in the booking, not the kerb. The most common expensive mistake here is not a scam at all: tapping an Oyster card at the station gate. Oyster is not valid at Stansted, so use a contactless bank card, a phone wallet or a paper ticket.
Step-free access in London
The rail station is directly under the terminal. The airport says the walk takes about two minutes and is step-free by lifts, escalators and ramps. The coach station is opposite the main terminal entrance and is also reached step-free.
- National Rail lists Stansted Airport station as step-free category A, with step-free access to every platform, lifts, accessible toilets, a Changing Places toilet and baby changing.
- Station staff are available around the clock, and the ticket office opens 06:30–00:00 daily. Induction loops are fitted.
- To book help with a train journey, email Greater Anglia's passenger assistance team ([email protected]) at least 24 hours before you travel.
- The airport says the coach station has a full range of accessibility services. For help inside the terminal, use the airport's Assisted Travel service.
London Stansted Airport transport — FAQ
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