Home / Manchester /Manchester Airport / Metrolink tram vs Pre-booked private transfer

MAN → Manchester · head to head

Metrolink tramorPre-booked private transfer?

The short answer

For one traveler the Metrolink tram is cheaper by £49.40. That does not change up to 8 travelers.

The Pre-booked private transfer is quicker: 15 min against 52 min. The Metrolink tram varies between 49 and 60 minutes.

Metrolink tram: 05:45–23:15. Pre-booked private transfer: Runs all night.

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.
TravelersMetrolink tramPre-booked private transferDifference
1£4.60£54£49.40
2£9.20£54£44.80
3£13.80£54£40.20
4£18.40£54£35.60
5£23£108£85
6£27.60£108£80.40
7£32.20£108£75.80
8£36.80£108£71.20

Side by side

Where each one leaves you
Metrolink · Transport for Greater Manchester (Bee Network)Metrolink tram
From
The Metrolink platform inside The Station, between Terminals 2 and 3; tap in at the reader on the platform before boarding
To
Deansgate-Castlefield in 49 minutes, St Peter's Square in 52, Market Street in 55 and Victoria in 60, via Wythenshawe, Sale Water Park, Chorlton, Trafford Bar and Cornbrook
Runs
05:45–23:15
Journey
49–60 min

It costs £4.60 because the airport is in zone 4 and the center is zone 1, so the ride crosses every zone and pays the network maximum. One zone is £1.40. There is no airport supplement; there is simply no way to reach town through fewer zones.

Tap out. A journey tapped in and never tapped out is charged the full £4.60 and counts towards no cap. Use the same card or phone every time, one card per adult; tap-and-go charges adult fares, so buy family tickets at the platform machines for children.

Going back the same day by tap costs £4.90 in total, not £9.20: the all-zone off-peak day cap is thirty pence more than one single. It is £7.10 if the first tap is between 07:00 and 09:30 on a weekday.

It is 2.3 times the price of the 43 for the same 50 minutes, and slower than the train by half an hour. What it buys is a seat and stops the bus and the train do not make: Wythenshawe, Chorlton, Deansgate-Castlefield, St Peter's Square, Victoria.

Buy or tap before boarding; nothing is sold on the tram. Untapped at an inspection is £60 on the spot or a £120 penalty fare.

The last through tram is 23:15 (00:15 on Fridays and Saturdays) and the first 05:45 (06:45 on Sundays). Outside those hours the 43 is the public transport, and on Tuesday to Saturday mornings the £6.20 train runs until 02:28.

Metrolink tram: price for every party size

Check Metrolink fares with TfGM
transfer · Welcome PickupsPre-booked private transfer
From
Driver meets you in arrivals with a name board
To
Any address
Luggage
Stated when booking; choose the vehicle by luggage as well as seats.
Runs
All night
Journey
15 min

This price is indicative: the operator sets it, and it moves with vehicle size, luggage and the exact address. Confirm the total at the time you book.

Larger vehicles are quoted when you book.

Pre-booked private transfer: price for every party size

Book transfer through Welcome Pickups

Partner link

This compares two of 6 options. See all of them ranked for your party size

The other comparisons at Manchester Airport