Airport to city center: what does it cost?
Getting in from the airport can cost as much as a lunch or as much as a night's stay. For every city we collected three options: the cheapest, a more comfortable one and the taxi. Prices are per person one way; taxi prices are per car.
We compared 19 cities. The cheapest transfer: Warsaw (bus 175 or the S2 train: 75-minute ticket, PLN 4.40 (about $1)). The most expensive budget option: Paris (RER train or metro: airport ticket, €14 (about $16)).
| City and airport | Cheapest | More comfortable | Taxi |
|---|---|---|---|
| WarsawChopin Airport | PLN 4.40 (about $1) bus 175 or the S2 train: 75-minute ticket | – | PLN 50 (about $13) roughly |
| BudapestLiszt Ferenc | HUF 500–HUF 1,000 (about $2) bus 200E plus metro M3: regular tickets | HUF 2,500 (about $8) 100E express bus | – |
| NiceNice Côte d'Azur | €1.70 (about $2) free tram to the Grand Arénas stop, then a regular ticket (plus a one-off €2 for the card) | €10 (about $11) tram straight from the terminal: airport round-trip ticket, card included | €32 (about $36) flat fare |
| BordeauxBordeaux-Mérignac | €1.90 (about $2) tram: a regular ticket | – | €35–€45 (about $39) on average (day / night) |
| LisbonHumberto Delgado | €1.90 (about $2) metro: a regular ticket | – | €16–€19.20 (about $18) tourist office voucher (day / night) |
| LyonLyon-Saint Exupéry | €2.10 (about $2) bus 47 plus tram: a regular ticket | €15.20 (about $17) Rhônexpress (online price) | €70 (about $78) roughly |
| BostonLogan | $2.40 Silver Line SL1 bus: free from the airport; to the airport | $3 Logan Express to Back Bay: free from the airport; to the airport | – |
| CannesNice Côte d'Azur | €2.20 (about $2) ZOU bus 620 from the stop by Terminal 1 | €9.70 (about $11) free tram to the station plus the TER train (direct bus 81: €21.40) | €85 (about $95) indicative price |
| MilanLinate and Malpensa | €2.20 (about $2) from Linate, metro M4: a regular ticket | €15 (about $17) from Malpensa, the Malpensa Express train | – |
| Saint-TropezToulon-Hyères and Nice | €2.20 (about $2) from Toulon-Hyères, ZOU bus 878 | €59 (about $66) from Nice, the Var Express bus (in season), per person | – |
| PortoFrancisco Sá Carneiro | €2.30 (about $3) metro line E: a zone Z4 ticket | – | €20–€25 (about $22) on average |
| EdinburghEdinburgh | £2.40 (about $3) city bus 17 or 18 | £7.50 (about $10) tram (ticket bought online) | – |
| BarcelonaEl Prat | €5.90 (about $7) metro L9 Sud, airport ticket | €7.75 (about $9) Aerobús to Plaça de Catalunya | – |
| LondonHeathrow | £5.90 (about $8) Tube, Piccadilly line | £13.90 (about $18) Elizabeth line | – |
| RomeFiumicino | €7 (about $8) SIT Bus Shuttle to Termini station | €14 (about $16) Leonardo Express train | €55 (about $62) flat fare to the center |
| MarseilleMarseille Provence | €10 (about $11) bus 91 to Saint-Charles station | – | €70–€100 (about $78) roughly (day / night) |
| VeniceMarco Polo | €10 (about $11) bus to Piazzale Roma | €18 (about $20) Alilaguna water bus | €40 (about $45) flat fare to Piazzale Roma |
| New YorkJFK | $11.75 AirTrain plus subway | – | $70 flat fare to Manhattan, before surcharges and tip |
| ParisCharles de Gaulle and Orly | €14 (about $16) RER train or metro: airport ticket | – | €56–€65 (about $63) flat fare from CDG (Right / Left Bank) |
Amounts converted at the European Central Bank rate of .
Click a city in the table to see all its transport prices and estimate the whole trip.
How to read the table
“Cheapest” is regular public transport: a bus, metro, tram or regional train. The same ticket or pass you use around town is often enough.
“More comfortable” is a faster or direct link, such as an airport express train. A dash means there is no separate option of that kind, or we found no official price for it.
Taxi prices are per car. Where a flat fare applies, we say so; the other amounts are indicative and come from airport or tourist office sites. For four people a taxi can be cheaper than the express train.
What to watch out for
- A ticket bought at the airport can cost more than a regular one. In Nice the airport round-trip ticket costs €10 (card included). If you ride the free tram to the Grand Arénas stop, you pay €1.70 per ride plus a one-off €2 for the card, so €5.40 for the round trip.
- Express trains are much cheaper in advance: the Heathrow Express in London costs from £10 instead of £26.
- Check which airport you fly into. In Milan, the metro from Linate costs €2.20, while the train from Malpensa costs €15.