Heathrow and Gatwick are London’s two largest airports and they sit on opposite sides of the city, connected by no direct railway. Every year a large number of passengers discover this the hard way, having booked two separate flights on the assumption that moving between them is a short hop. It is not. It is a cross-country journey of roughly forty miles that depends almost entirely on the M25, and the M25 is the least predictable major road in Britain.
This guide sets out every realistic way to make the trip, what each one costs, how long each actually takes, and — the part most people get wrong — how much time to leave between two flights.
The short answer
- Fastest and most reliable: a private transfer, door to door, typically 50–75 minutes. Fixed fare from £123 for the whole car.
- Cheapest: the direct coach, roughly 75–90 minutes scheduled, but running to a timetable and subject to the same traffic.
- By train: there is no direct service. You travel into central London and back out again, which realistically takes 1 hour 40 minutes to 2 hours with a change and full-fare tickets.
- Minimum time to leave between flights: five hours if the tickets are on separate bookings, four if they are on one through-ticket.
Why there is no train
Heathrow sits west of London and its rail lines run east into Paddington and the City. Gatwick sits south and its rail lines run north into Victoria, London Bridge and St Pancras. The two networks meet only in central London, which means any rail journey between the airports is a V shape rather than a line: in to the middle, then out again.
The practical routing is the Elizabeth line from Heathrow to Farringdon, then Thameslink from Farringdon straight through to Gatwick. It is a single change and it works well, but you are on a train for around ninety minutes plus the change, plus the walk to and from platforms with luggage, and you are paying two separate long-distance fares. For one person travelling light it is a perfectly sensible option. For two people with suitcases it stops making sense on both cost and effort.
What each option costs and takes
The fixed fare, by vehicle
Rushxo quotes this route as a fixed fare for the whole vehicle, agreed before you travel. It does not move with traffic, it does not move if your inbound flight is late, and there is no night surcharge.
The arithmetic that matters is per head. A saloon at £123 split between four travellers is around £31 each, door to door, with luggage loaded for you. Four sets of Elizabeth line and Thameslink tickets cost more than that before anyone has carried a bag up a flight of stairs. Below two passengers the coach is cheaper; from three upwards the private vehicle usually wins outright.
Weekend afternoon peaks carry a 10% uplift on this route. There is no night surcharge at any hour.
The route your driver will take
The standard routing is the M25 anticlockwise from Heathrow at junction 14 or 15, round the southwestern quadrant to junction 7, then south on the M23 to Gatwick at junction 9A. It is motorway the whole way and there is no realistic alternative of similar quality.
That is also the weakness. The southwestern M25 between the M3 and the M23 is one of the busiest stretches of motorway in Europe, and a single incident there has no bypass — the diversions run through Surrey market towns on single-carriageway roads and can add well over an hour. The A3 and A24 southbound through Guildford and Dorking exist as a fallback, and an experienced driver watching live traffic will take them when the M25 stops moving, but they are slower by design.
What this means for you is simple: the difference between a good and a bad Heathrow to Gatwick journey is almost never the vehicle. It is whether the person driving is watching the road network and left early enough to have options.
How much time to leave between two flights
This is the question that actually costs people money, and the answer depends on one thing: whether your two flights are on a single booking or two separate ones.
Separate bookings: leave five hours minimum
If you booked the flights independently, nobody is responsible for the connection but you. A delay on the first flight is not the second airline’s problem, and a missed departure means buying a new ticket at the walk-up fare. Five hours between scheduled landing and scheduled departure is the working minimum, and six is comfortable. That covers immigration, baggage reclaim, the transfer, check-in and security at the second airport, in each case at the slow end rather than the optimistic end.
One through-ticket: four hours is workable
If both legs are on one booking, the airline or alliance owns the connection and will rebook you at no cost if the first leg runs late. Airlines publish minimum connecting times for airport-to-airport transfers in London, and they are shorter than five hours, but they assume nothing goes wrong. Four hours is the shortest gap worth accepting voluntarily.
What you have to do in between
Whichever airport you land at, you must reclaim your checked luggage, clear immigration if arriving from outside the Common Travel Area, travel between airports, and check in again from scratch. Bags are not through-checked between Heathrow and Gatwick even on a single booking, because they are separate airports with separate baggage systems. Budget for the full sequence, not just the drive.
Which terminal, and where to meet
Heathrow has four operating passenger terminals spread over a large site and they are not adjacent; Gatwick has two, North and South, linked by a shuttle. Getting the terminal wrong at either end costs fifteen to twenty-five minutes you may not have.
Give your flight number when you book rather than a terminal name. Terminals change with aircraft and airline, sometimes at short notice, and a booking tied to a flight number resolves to the right terminal automatically. For an inbound arrival, choose the meet-and-greet option in the arrivals hall: your driver waits with a name board, tracks the flight, and adjusts to the actual landing time. Kerbside pickups at both airports operate in controlled zones where vehicles cannot wait, which makes them fine when everything runs on time and difficult when it does not.
Common mistakes on this route
- Assuming there is a train. There is not, and discovering that at the Heathrow station with two hours to spare is a bad moment.
- Booking a clock time rather than a flight number. A driver booked for 09:00 has no reason to know your flight landed at 10:20.
- Treating the two airports as one city stop. They are forty miles and two separate security regimes apart.
- Relying on a metered fare in peak traffic. The one journey where the meter runs longest is the journey where you are already stressed.
- Booking a saloon for four adults with four large cases. Book the MPV. The fare difference is £27; the alternative is a vehicle that cannot take you.
Travelling in the other direction
Gatwick to Heathrow is the same road, the same distance and the same fixed fare of £123 for a saloon. The one practical difference is the morning peak: the M25 anticlockwise carriageway between the M23 and Heathrow is heavily loaded from around 06:30 to 09:30, so a Gatwick landing at 06:00 followed by a Heathrow departure at 09:30 is tighter than the clock suggests. If you have a choice of direction for a same-day double connection, take the Heathrow-first option.
Frequently asked questions
How much is a taxi from Heathrow to Gatwick?
A fixed fare of £123 for a saloon carrying up to four passengers. Executive is £146, MPV £150, 8-seater £165 and 9-seater £172. The fare covers the whole vehicle and does not change with traffic or a late inbound flight.
How long does it take to get from Heathrow to Gatwick?
By private car, 50 to 75 minutes door to door in normal conditions. The direct coach is scheduled at around 75 to 90 minutes. By train, allow 100 to 130 minutes because you must travel into central London and change.
Is there a direct train from Heathrow to Gatwick?
No. The two airports are on different rail networks that meet only in central London. The best rail routing is the Elizabeth line from Heathrow to Farringdon and then Thameslink through to Gatwick, which is one change and around 100 to 130 minutes in total.
How much time should I leave between flights at Heathrow and Gatwick?
Five hours minimum if the two flights are on separate bookings, because no airline is responsible for the connection. Four hours is workable if both legs are on a single through-ticket. You must reclaim luggage, clear immigration, travel between airports and check in again.
Is my luggage transferred between Heathrow and Gatwick?
No. They are separate airports with separate baggage systems, so you reclaim your bags at the arrival airport and check them in again at the departure airport, even when both flights are on one booking.
Which is cheaper, the coach or a taxi?
For one or two passengers the coach is cheaper. From three passengers upwards a fixed-fare vehicle usually costs less in total, because the £123 saloon fare is for the car rather than per person and works out at around £31 each for four people.
Is there a night surcharge on this route?
No. There is no night surcharge at any hour. Weekend afternoon peaks carry a 10% uplift, and that is the only time-based adjustment on the route.
What route does the driver take?
The M25 anticlockwise from Heathrow to junction 7, then the M23 south to Gatwick at junction 9A. When the M25 is blocked the fallback is the A3 and A24 through Surrey, which is slower, so drivers watch live traffic and leave with enough margin to switch.
Should I book by terminal or by flight number?
By flight number. Terminals change with aircraft and airline at short notice, and a booking tied to a flight number resolves to the correct terminal automatically and lets the driver track the actual landing time.