London Airport Drop-Off Charges 2026 and Calculator

Dropping someone off at a London airport terminal costs £7 to £13 for a ten-minute stop in 2026, depending on the airport, and Heathrow is the cheapest at £7 per entry. All five airports record number plates on camera, and the charge must be paid by midnight the following day, online or, except at Luton, by phone.

The charge is per vehicle and per visit, not per passenger, and it applies to private cars and private hire vehicles alike. At London City, check with the airport how other licensed vehicles are charged. Heathrow charges the same whether you stop for two minutes or twenty; the other four charge by the minute or in steps, so a long goodbye at Stansted or Gatwick costs two to three times the basic fee.

Charges, limits and free options at each airport, checked 25 September 2026

Gatwick charges £10 for the first 10 minutes in the North or South Terminal drop-off zones, then adds a charge for each extra minute up to 20 minutes. The maximum stay is 30 minutes, and there is a daily cap for repeat visits. Staying on the coast? A Gatwick to Brighton chauffeur transfer collects you in the arrivals hall rather than at the kerb.

• Official payment page: dropoff.gatwickairport.com, the Gatwick payment site linked from the airport. Enter the number plate and the date of the visit.
• Pay by midnight the day after your visit, online, by phone or with AutoPay; late or missing payment brings a Parking Charge Notice.
• Free alternative: the Long Stay car parks are free for two hours, with a free shuttle bus to both terminals.
• Blue Badge holders are exempt once they register the vehicle with the airport.
• No barriers: drive in, stop in a marked bay and leave; cameras record the time in and out.

A long goodbye is the expensive part at Gatwick: twenty minutes costs double the basic fee. The Gatwick airport transfer page explains where our driver meets you. If you want company through check-in, meet and assist at Gatwick starts at the departures kerb and guides you through security to your gate.

The Luton drop-off charge is £9 for up to 12 minutes in the Drop Off Zone, then rises by the minute, with a maximum stay of 30 minutes. The zone is a five-minute walk from the terminal and payment is online only, by midnight the following day.

• Official payment page: lutondropoff.apcoa.com, the Luton payment site linked from the airport. Enter the number plate and the date of the visit.
• Staying beyond 30 minutes brings an enforcement charge, reduced if paid within 14 days.
• Free alternative: the Long Stay car park is free for two hours, with a ten-minute bus ride to the terminal.
• No Blue Badge concession in the main zone; Blue Badge holders get 30 minutes free in Terminal Car Park 1.

Luton, like Stansted’s Express Set Down, gives Blue Badge holders no reduction in its main drop-off zone. The Luton airport transfer page lists fixed fares into London. Connecting to a Heathrow flight? See our Luton to Heathrow car service.

Yes. Every airport applies the charge to private hire vehicles as well as private cars. London City sets its own rules for other licensed vehicles. A driver who waits on the forecourt for a delayed passenger pays by the minute at Gatwick, Luton and London City. A pre-booked chauffeur avoids the forecourt clock by waiting in the car park and meeting you inside the terminal. In central London, private hire cars also pay the Congestion Charge in a chauffeur car, which an all-inclusive fare covers.

• One fixed, all-inclusive fare. A Tripyana airport transfer includes the meet and greet, 60 minutes of free waiting after landing and live flight tracking, so a late flight does not add a charge.
• No friend doing a favour. A return trip to drop off and later collect a traveller means two forecourt charges plus the fuel and time, and a delayed pickup on the Stansted forecourt jumps to the top tariff.
• Delays are normal. Almost one in four Heathrow arrivals reached the gate more than 15 minutes late in the latest year of CAA data; our Heathrow flight delays study has the figures by route and airline.

• Heathrow — Terminal Drop-Off Charge · Gatwick — drop-off charges · Stansted — pick up and drop off · Stansted — Express Set Down charges from 19 March 2026 · Luton — dropping off · London City — drop-off charges. All read on 25 September 2026.
• Airports change these charges with little notice: Stansted, for example, changed its fees on 19 March 2026. We re-check every quarter; the next check is due in December 2026. Related data: London airport statistics 2026.
• The calculator adds up the airport’s published tariff for the minutes you enter; it is a guide, not a receipt. Pay only through the airport’s own website or phone line. Corrections: contact Tripyana.

Tripyana Ltd is a UK-licensed chauffeur company based by Heathrow (licence PHOP950, company number 16308293), meeting arriving guests inside the terminal at all five London airports. Free cancellation up to 24 hours before pickup.