The days when you can drop off a passenger at any London airport for free are over now that City Airport has joined the charging spree. Gatwick and Heathrow airports have been doing so for the last few years, and they have raised their charges again in what motorists are dubbing the “Drop-off rip-off”.
London Gatwick – £10
London Gatwick has hiked its drop-off charge from £7 to £10, making it the most expensive airport drop-off fee in the country, and probably the world, for a measly 10 minutes. They say the decision to do so was not “taken lightly” and blamed the “doubling of business rates”. The airport started charging in 2021 when it imposed a £5 charge. This increased to £6 in 2024. Then it was increased again in May 2025 to £7 with a 40% hike imposed on January 6th 2026.
Gatwick say they have a solution – take the train or make the drop in the long-term car park, where the passenger can hop on a shuttle – not exactly convenient.
London Heathrow – £7
London Heathrow started charging £5 in 2021 to reduce congestion on its forecourt. The airport then increased the fee in December 2024 to £6 and has now increased this again on January 1st 2026. The airport has a strict 10-minute only rule, and anyone going over will be charged £80.00
There is no option to pay at the airport, and payment must be made in advance of by midnight on the next day online.
To avoid Heathrow’s drop-off charge, you can make use of the free 30-minute parking available at the Long Stay Car Park for each terminal and catch the shuttle to the terminal.
London City Airport – £8
London City Airport, the last bastion of the freebie drop-off, has imposed a levy of £8 from January 6 2026, making it the most expensive airport per minute at £1.60 per minute for five minutes. Anything over will be charged at £1 per minute up to a maximum of 10 minutes.
You can avoid the fee by dropping off passengers at the corner of Drew Road and Leonard Street. From there, passengers can walk to the terminal in under a minute via a pedestrian tunnel.
A spokesman for London City said, “This move is part of our commitment to encourage more travel to and from the airport via public and sustainable transport modes, of which two-thirds of our passengers already use.”
Blue badge holders will be exempt from the charge at all airports.
Other UK airports that charge a drop-off fee:
- Stansted: Around £7 for 15 mins, with higher rates for longer.
- Luton: £7 for up to 10 minutes then £1 per extra minute (max 30 mins)
- Bristol: Around £6 for 10 mins
- Birmingham: £6 for 10 mins, £23 for 30 mins
- Leeds Bradford: £7 for 10 mins, £12.50 for 30 mins
- Manchester: Around £5 for 5 mins, £6.40 for 10 minutes, £25 for up to 30 mins
- Edinburgh: £6 for 10 mins, £26 for up to 30 mins
- Glasgow: £6 for 10 mins
- Newcastle: £5 for 10 mins £10 for 30 mins
- Southend: £15 for 10 mins