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✈️ London area · 6 airports · 179M passengers/year

Cheap Flights from London

Compare prices from all 6 airports serving London — Heathrow, Gatwick, Stansted, Luton, City and Southend. One search covers the largest airport catchment in Europe.

179M
Passengers/year combined
6
Airports serving London
130+
Airlines
400+
Destinations worldwide
Where to fly from

Airports in London

Six commercial airports serve Greater London. Each has a different mix of airlines, typical routes and price profile — pick the right one and you can cut 30–60% off the same fare.

Quick rule of thumb: Stansted (Ryanair base) and Luton (easyJet/Wizz base) are cheapest for European leisure routes. Heathrow wins for long-haul breadth and premium cabins. Gatwick splits the difference — low-cost Europe plus long-haul leisure. London City is the business shortcut. Southend is niche but often the cheapest of all if your route is on the list.
LHR
London Heathrow
The UK's busiest airport and Europe's #2. BA hub with 90+ long-haul routes. Best for North America, Asia, Gulf and premium cabins.
80M pax/yr5 terminals
LGW
London Gatwick
easyJet's largest base. Huge short-haul leisure schedule plus Virgin Atlantic, TUI and Norse long-haul. Two terminals (N & S).
46M pax/yr2 terminals
STN
London Stansted
Ryanair's biggest UK base — 180+ European destinations. Almost all short-haul low-cost. Single terminal, Foster-designed.
28M pax/yrRyanair mega-hub
LTN
London Luton
easyJet, Wizz Air and Ryanair all operate here. Wide Europe coverage plus some North Africa and Middle East routes.
18M pax/yrDART monorail
LCY
London City
Docklands airport for business routes — 20 minute check-in cutoff. BA CityFlyer, KLM, Lufthansa, Swiss, Aer Lingus.
5M pax/yrDLR connected
SEN
London Southend
Smallest London airport — Essex coast, 53 minutes from Liverpool St. easyJet seasonal routes plus a handful of charters.
1.5M pax/yrRebuilding routes
Where people fly to

Top destinations from London

The 12 most-searched routes from any of London's six airports, with the cheapest typical one-way fare across all carriers and airports.

LON → BCN
Barcelona · 2h 10m
from
£30
LON → AMS
Amsterdam · 1h 15m
from
£45
LON → DUB
Dublin · 1h 20m
from
£35
LON → PAR
Paris · 1h 15m
from
£39
LON → ROM
Rome · 2h 40m
from
£49
LON → MAD
Madrid · 2h 35m
from
£45
LON → PMI
Palma · 2h 25m
from
£55
LON → ATH
Athens · 3h 50m
from
£99
LON → LIS
Lisbon · 2h 45m
from
£89
LON → DXB
Dubai · 7h 05m
from
£299
LON → JFK
New York · 7h 40m
from
£299
LON → BKK
Bangkok · 11h 30m
from
£449
Who flies from London

Popular airlines flying from London

Every major European carrier, every Gulf carrier and most large Asian and North American airlines serve at least one London airport. Below are the carriers with the biggest London footprint.

AirlineMain London baseTypeRoutes from London
British AirwaysHeathrow T5 (hub) + LGW, LCYFull service200+ (incl. long-haul)
easyJetGatwick (base) + LTN, LHR, STNLow-cost140+ short-haul
RyanairStansted (biggest UK base)Ultra low-cost180+ European
Wizz AirLuton + GatwickUltra low-cost70+ CEE & Mediterranean
Virgin AtlanticHeathrow + Gatwick (seasonal)Full service long-haul30+ long-haul
EmiratesHeathrow + Gatwick + STNFull service long-haulDubai (multi-daily)
Qatar AirwaysHeathrow + GatwickFull service long-haulDoha + onward
American Airlines / Delta / UnitedHeathrow T3/T2Full service20+ US cities
VuelingHeathrow + Gatwick + LTNLow-costSpain & Mediterranean
Jet2.comStansted (leisure base)LeisureBeach / package routes
When to fly

Cheapest months to fly from London

Average cheapest one-way fare to Europe (across all 6 airports). January, February and November are consistently the cheapest window; July and August carry a 2–3× premium.

Jan
£32
Feb
£35
Mar
£48
Apr
£62
May
£55
Jun
£78
Jul
£95
Aug
£99
Sep
£58
Oct
£52
Nov
£36
Dec
£68
Widen the net

Nearby cities worth comparing

If you live in the Home Counties or outer London, these alternative departure cities sometimes beat the London airports outright — especially when combined with off-peak trains.

Flights from Birmingham

BHX is 1h 20m from London by Avanti West Coast and often undercuts Heathrow for transatlantic and Jet2 beach routes.

Compare Birmingham →

Flights from Bristol

Westbound Londoners frequently beat Gatwick and Luton prices by driving or training to BRS — easyJet's #2 base.

Compare Bristol →

Flights from Manchester

MAN is the UK's biggest long-haul airport outside London and regularly undercuts LHR on Asia, Gulf and US routes.

Compare Manchester →
Common questions

London flights FAQs

Which London airport is the cheapest to fly from?
Stansted and Luton are typically cheapest because they host Ryanair's largest UK base and Wizz Air / easyJet bases respectively. Southend is also low-cost but has far fewer routes. Heathrow is usually the most expensive for short-haul Europe but most competitive for long-haul, where its scale drives prices down.
Which London airport is best for long-haul flights?
Heathrow (LHR) is by far the best for long-haul — it has the widest choice of airlines to North America, the Gulf, Asia and Africa. Gatwick is a secondary option for long-haul leisure routes (Virgin Atlantic, TUI, Norse). Stansted, Luton, City and Southend are effectively short-haul only.
Is London City Airport only for business travellers?
No — anyone can fly from LCY. It's optimised for fast turnarounds (20-minute arrival cutoff) and serves mainly European business cities: Amsterdam, Frankfurt, Zurich, Edinburgh, Dublin, Palma, plus a handful of leisure routes. Fares are higher than Stansted or Luton but the time saved versus Heathrow is often worth it if you're in the City or Canary Wharf.
How do I get to each London airport?
Heathrow: Piccadilly line, Elizabeth line, Heathrow Express. Gatwick: Gatwick Express (30 min to Victoria) and Thameslink. Stansted: Stansted Express (45–50 min to Liverpool Street). Luton: EMR trains to Luton Airport Parkway then shuttle, or DART monorail. London City: DLR direct. Southend: Greater Anglia train (53 min from Liverpool Street).
Which London airport should I fly from for Spain?
For the cheapest fares to Spain, compare Stansted (Ryanair — Barcelona, Madrid, Alicante, Malaga, Palma), Luton (easyJet, Wizz — wide Spain coverage) and Gatwick (easyJet, Vueling, BA — biggest Spain schedule of any London airport). Heathrow has BA, Iberia and Vueling to Madrid and Barcelona only, with premium-leaning pricing.
Can I connect between London airports?
It's technically possible but not usually a good idea on one ticket — you'd be responsible if bags don't transfer. Heathrow to Gatwick by National Express coach takes 90 minutes. Stansted to Gatwick is ~3 hours by public transport. If you must connect, allow 5+ hours and book bags through separately.
Pre-flight stay

Hotels near London Airport

Early flight or late return? Book a room within minutes of LHR so you're not racing the clock from home.

🏨
Booking.com
Compare hotels near London Airport
Premier Inn, Holiday Inn, Hilton Garden Inn and more — typical pre-flight stays from £49/night with free shuttle to LHR.
Compare stays →
More from compareflights

Related pages

Other from-city aggregator pages and key airport guides.

Flights from Manchester Flights from Edinburgh Flights from Glasgow Flights from Birmingham Flights from Bristol Flights from Liverpool Flights from Leeds Flights from Newcastle Flights from Belfast Heathrow Airport Gatwick Airport Stansted Airport Luton Airport London City Airport Southend Airport All UK airports