Trains in London
There are over 20 train companies providing trains in London, over a vast rail network that covers 2,671 miles and is still growing to this day. Most Overground lines in London are well-connected to the Underground (subway), and it’s easy to get around. You can quickly pop in the stations you need to travel to/from in our Journey Planner and buy cheap tickets to London stations in a flash. Or you can travel around London with an Oyster card, Travelcard or Contactless bank card. Read on for more info on trains in London and see a complete list of all train stations in the capital.
Train companies in London
As the capital of England and a bustling hub for work and major events, London has dozens of train companies serving its stations every day, offering routes to pretty much every corner of the country and beyond. Find them below and see where you could go!
- Greater Anglia – from London to Essex, Norfolk, Suffolk, Hertfordshire and Cambridgeshire, as well as parts of the East of England.
- c2c – from London to Essex.
- Caledonian Sleeper – from London to Scotland (overnight services).
- Chiltern Railways – from London to Buckinghamshire, Warwickshire, Oxfordshire and the West Midlands.
- Docklands Light Railway – For services within London’s Docklands area.
- East Midlands Railway – from London to the East Midlands and Yorkshire, as well as the East of England.
- Eurostar – from London to Amsterdam, Brussels, Lyon, Paris, Rotterdam and more.
- Gatwick Express – from London to Gatwick Airport and Brighton.
- Grand Central – from London to Bradford and Sunderland.
- Great Western Railway – from London to Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire, the West of England, South Wales and the South Coast of England.
- Heathrow Express – from London to Heathrow Airport.
- Hull trains – from London to Hull/Beverley.
- London North Eastern Railway – from London to the North East of England and Scotland.
- London Overground – for services within London.
- South Western Railway – from London to Surrey, Hampshire, Dorset, Berkshire, Wiltshire, Somerset and Devon.
- Southeastern – from London to Kent and East Sussex.
- Southern – from London to Sussex, Hampshire, Kent and Surrey.
- Stansted Express – from London to Stansted Airport.
- TfL Rail – from London to Shenfield and Heathrow Airport.
- Thameslink – from London to Sutton, Horsham, Sevenoaks and Brighton.
- Great Northern – from London to North East England, Yorkshire, Scotland, as well as Peterborough and Cambridge.
- Avanti West Coast (formerly Virgin Trains) – from London to the West Midlands, the North of Wales, the North West of England and Scotland.
- West Midland Trains – from London to the West Midlands, Liverpool and North Wales.
Getting around by bus and tube
Travelling around London will, of course, involve some tube and bus journeys, and it’s easy to pay for these by grabbing a Visitor Oyster Card, a regular Oyster Card (if you’re staying in London a bit longer), or by using a contactless bank card. Oyster Cards are most easily purchased at Underground stations. Alternatively, you can purchase a Travelcard, which can cover some or all zones of travel in London and allow you to use different modes of transport.
How to get cheap train tickets in London
Follow our handy tips and tricks, and you’ll be in with a great chance at securing cheaper train tickets. First off, make sure to pick up a National Railcard. One will only set you back £30 for the year (£20 if you get the Disabled Persons Railcard) and it’ll then allow you to save up to 1/3 off the price of your train tickets*.
When using your Railcard, make sure to book an Advance ticket. Most train companies release their Advance tickets for routes around 12 weeks ahead of the departure dates. It’s at this stage when the tickets are usually at their cheapest, so make sure to grab an early deal and book your tickets.
To learn more, visit our Advance train tickets page for a complete guide.
More handy tips
Another way you can cut the pounds off the cost of your train tickets is to travel during off-peak times. Off-peak times are usually when services are at their quietest. For example, if you travel at the weekend, then your train ticket will be classified as Off-Peak.
For more info, head over to our Off-Peak train tickets page.
Last up – if you’re travelling into or out of London in a group of three to nine people, you could make use of the 34% discount applied to Off-Peak services thanks to GroupSave, a type of discount that doesn’t require you to purchase a Railcard (but which does appear in the Railcard dropdown when making a booking). Please bear in mind that GroupSave is not applicable for all journeys by the various train companies and will be automatically applied if valid for your journey and selected in the Railcard dropdown. All tickets must be purchased in a single booking, and all passengers must travel together on the day of departure.
Want more handy hints on how to save money on train tickets? Check out our cheap train tickets page.
*Conditions and peak travel time exclusions may apply on some Railcard types.
London train stations
Find a list of all the Overground train stations in London below. For station information or to quickly buy tickets, follow the link to the station of your choice.
London terminals
London terminals include the list of stations below:
- London Bridge
- London Blackfriars
- London Charing Cross
- London Cannon Street
- London Fenchurch Street
- London Kings Cross
- London Liverpool Street
- London Marylebone
- London Paddington
- London St Pancras International
- London Waterloo
- London Waterloo East
- London Victoria
- London Euston
- Moorgate
- Vauxhall
- Old Street
When you book a ticket to London, and the ticket reads ‘valid for London terminals’, these are the stations that you can alight at.
Ready to book? Search for a ticket!
