London Stansted Airport to London Heathrow Airport
Heathrow is about 100 km from Stansted. The direct National Express coach takes about 1 h 30 from £21.30. By rail, the Stansted Express and Elizabeth line via Liverpool Street take 92–101 minutes for £22.80 off-peak on contactless.
Transferring between Stansted and Heathrow means crossing the whole of London, usually against the clock. There are two sensible public options at almost the same price: a direct coach that runs only until early evening, and a rail route with one change that runs until after midnight. Here is how to pick between them, and how much spare time to allow.
How far is London Heathrow Airport from London Stansted Airport?
London Heathrow Airport is 100 km (62 miles) from London Stansted Airport by road, about 1h 30m by car outside rush hour. In a straight line it is 67 km. By public transport, National Express (direct inter-airport coach) takes about 1h 30m and costs £21.3.
Every way to get there
Our verdict: National Express (direct inter-airport coach) is the one to take: £21.3 with no change, and only about 15 minutes slower than going by car. Timetable: From Stansted 02:30 to 19:25.
What it costs for your group
The bus / shuttle is charged per person, while a private transfer is one price for the whole car — so the more of you there are, the better door-to-door value looks.
| Group | Bus / shuttle (per person) | Private transfer (per car) | Best value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Solo · 1 traveller | £21 | £126 | Bus / shuttle |
| Couple · 2 travellers | £43 | £126 | Bus / shuttle |
| Family of 4 · 4 travellers | £85 | £126 | Bus / shuttle |
Which option should you choose?
| If your priority is… | Our pick | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Lowest price | National Express (direct inter-airport coach) | From £21.3, about 1h 30m, no change needed. |
| Speed | Pre-booked transfer (Kiwitaxi and similar) | 1h 15m and door-to-door, from £126. |
| A group of 4 | National Express (direct inter-airport coach) | Four tickets still come to about £85.2 — less than a car. |
| A late-night arrival | Pre-booked transfer | National Express (direct inter-airport coach) stops overnight — timetable: From Stansted 02:30 to 19:25. |
By transport mode
Bus / shuttle
From £21.30. Stops at Heathrow Central Bus Station (T2/T3), Terminal 4 and Terminal 5. No change; luggage stays in the hold.
Where to catch it: Stansted coach station, opposite the terminal
Times: From Stansted 02:30 to 19:25
Best for solo & budget travellersTrain
One contactless fare: £22.80 off-peak, £27.80 Mon–Fri 06:30–09:30 and 16:00–19:00. Change at Liverpool Street. Oyster not valid at Stansted.
Where to catch it: Stansted Airport station, below the terminal
Times: From Stansted about 05:30 (05:55 Tue–Thu) until the last train at 00:30
Best for budget travellers near a stationPrivate transfer
Saloons from about £126. Door to door between terminals; makes sense per head for families or for a pre-dawn departure.
Where to catch it: Heathrow-bound drivers wait at the Stansted arrivals point shown on your voucher
Times: 24 hours
Best for families, groups & late arrivalsLondon Heathrow Airport & London in photos
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.
Getting from STN to London Heathrow Airport
Start with your buffer
Before you choose a route, work out the margin. The two airports are about 100 km apart by road, at opposite corners of London. Every option below takes around an hour and a half on a good day. Add baggage reclaim at Stansted, security at Heathrow and some allowance for things going wrong. Most self-transfer connections need several hours between landing and take-off. National Express itself advises arriving at Heathrow three hours before your flight.
Option one: the direct coach
National Express runs a direct coach between the two airports, up to nine times a day on its current timetable. It quotes the fastest journey as 1 hour 30 minutes and fares from £21.30. From Stansted the first departure is at 02:30, arriving at Heathrow Central Bus Station at 04:00. The last is at 19:25, arriving 20:55. At Heathrow, coaches stop at Central Bus Station for Terminals 2 and 3, and outside Terminals 4 and 5.
The coach's big advantage is that you change nothing. Your bags go in the hold at Stansted and come out at your terminal. Your seat is reserved, and the ticket includes one large case or two medium ones plus a soft bag. The weakness is the M25, which can add a lot of time when traffic is bad. The coach also stops early in the evening, so a late arrival at Stansted rules it out.
Option two: two trains, one fare
Take the Stansted Express to Liverpool Street (46–48 minutes), then the Elizabeth line west to Heathrow. In TfL's planner the Elizabeth line leg to Terminals 2 & 3 took 36 to 40 minutes, and the whole trip 92 to 101 minutes depending on the connection. It is all one contactless journey: tap in at Stansted and tap out at Heathrow. TfL's fare is £22.80 off-peak and £27.80 at peak times, which on this pair means Monday to Friday 06:30–09:30 and 16:00–19:00. Oyster is not valid at Stansted.
At Liverpool Street you go from the main-line concourse down to the Elizabeth line platforms. It is signposted, step-free and busy at rush hour. The Elizabeth line also serves Terminals 4 and 5 on its branches, so check which train you need before you board.
The rail route runs until the last Stansted Express at 00:30, which makes it the only public option for an evening arrival. It also avoids the motorway entirely. The trade-off is that you carry your own luggage through two busy stations.
Terminal 4 and Terminal 5
Check your Heathrow terminal before you set off. The coach stops separately at Central Bus Station (Terminals 2 and 3), Terminal 4 and Terminal 5, so you can stay on board until your terminal. On the Elizabeth line, trains from central London split between the Terminal 4 and Terminal 5 branches, and both call at Terminals 2 & 3 on the way. Boarding the wrong branch costs you an inter-terminal transfer at the busiest point of your trip.
The cost works out like this. One person by rail at peak times pays £27.80. Four people pay £111.20, which is close to the £126 starting price of a private car. The coach at £21.30 a head comes to £85.20 for four, if the timetable suits you.
Which one fails better
If something goes wrong on the coach, you sit in traffic with no alternative. If something goes wrong on the rail route, there is usually another train in 15 minutes, or another way across London. For a tight connection that is a real argument for rail, even though the coach is a little cheaper and needs no change.
Booking a car
Comparison sites list private transfers between the two airports from about £126 for a saloon, quoted at about 1 hour 15 minutes in clear traffic. Street Cars, Stansted's on-airport operator, quotes longer journeys from its desk in the arrivals concourse. For a family of four with heavy bags, a car can cost less per head than four rail fares at peak times. It is the most exposed to the M25, though, so allow extra time.
Quick reference
- Daytime, plenty of time, bags heavy: the coach.
- Evening arrival, or a tight connection: the train.
- Group with luggage, budget not an issue: a booked car with a generous pickup time.
STN to London Heathrow Airport — FAQ
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What is the cheapest way from Stansted to Heathrow?
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Sources
Fares and times on this page were last held against their official sources on 21 October 2026. Operators change prices without notice — if you spot a difference, the operator’s own page is the authority. How we check fares.
- National Express — Stansted to Heathrow · checked 2026-10-21
- National Express — Stansted Airport transfers (routes A6, A8, A9 and stops) · checked 2026-10-21
- London Stansted Airport — travel between London airports · checked 2026-10-21
- TfL Unified API — single fare finder (pay as you go fares from Stansted Airport) · checked 2026-10-21
- TfL Journey Planner — sample journeys from Stansted Airport, 27 Oct 2026 · checked 2026-10-21
- London Stansted Airport — travel by train (Stansted Express, contactless, first/last trains) · checked 2026-10-21
- Kiwitaxi — Stansted to Heathrow private transfer prices · checked 2026-10-21
- London Stansted Airport — taxi services (Street Cars desk, courtesy phone) · checked 2026-10-21
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