Home / London /Heathrow / Piccadilly line vs Elizabeth line and Stansted Express to Stansted
LHR → London · head to head
Piccadilly lineorElizabeth line and Stansted Express to Stansted?
The short answer
These do not go to the same place, so price is not the comparison. The Piccadilly line reaches Paddington, and the whole of Zone 1 beyond it; the Elizabeth line and Stansted Express to Stansted does not. The other airport, not the city. For a connection between Heathrow and Stansted; for central London take the Elizabeth line, the Piccadilly line or Heathrow Express.
The Piccadilly line is quicker: 50 min against 1 h 28. The Elizabeth line and Stansted Express to Stansted varies between 84 and 95 minutes.
Piccadilly line: 05:00–23:30. Elizabeth line and Stansted Express to Stansted: 05:21–22:25.
Priced against each other
Whole-party totals · adult fares
What each costs for the whole party, in GBP. The cheaper of the two is marked on every row.
Travelers
Piccadilly line
Elizabeth line and Stansted Express to Stansted
Difference
1
£5.90
£22.80
£16.90
2
£11.80
£45.60
£33.80
3
£17.70
£68.40
£50.70
4
£23.60
£91.20
£67.60
5
£29.50
£114
£84.50
6
£35.40
£136.80
£101.40
7
£41.30
£159.60
£118.30
8
£47.20
£182.40
£135.20
Side by side
Where each one leaves you
Piccadilly · Transport for LondonPiccadilly line
From
Underground stations at Terminals 2 & 3, Terminal 4 and Terminal 5
To
Every Zone 1 station without a change, including Piccadilly Circus and King's Cross
Luggage
No stated limit, but it is a tube train and the Piccadilly line has no racks.
Runs
05:00–23:30
Journey
50 min
It is the slowest of the three trains at about 50 minutes, and it stops everywhere. What it buys is £20.10 kept and a fare that counts towards your daily cap.
There is no off-peak fare on this journey. Landing at a quiet hour saves you nothing, which is not true of any other Zone 6 station.
The Night Tube runs on Friday and Saturday nights only, and not to Terminal 4.
Elizabeth→Stansted Express · Transport for London and Greater AngliaElizabeth line and Stansted Express to Stansted
From
Heathrow Terminals 2 & 3 or Terminal 4 rail station; changing at Liverpool Street
To
Stansted Airport station, under the terminal
Luggage
Racks at the ends of the Elizabeth line carriages; racks at the ends of the Stansted trains.
Runs
05:21–22:25
Journey
84–95 min
Change at Liverpool Street: TfL's planner allows 18 to 21 minutes between the trains, and the Stansted trains leave every 15 to 30 minutes.
Only a contactless card or phone pays the TfL fare; a paper ticket from Heathrow to Stansted is not priced here. The coach is cheaper (from £21.30) and about as quick, but runs about a dozen times a day.
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