Find buses from Manchester to London

This is one of the busiest routes in the UK, with dozens of buses from Manchester to London every day, seven days a week. During peak holiday season, there are over 100 buses daily between the two cities, but if you take an average week during the year, there are over 400 buses to London from Manchester available, at roughly 50-90 a day. The busiest days are Friday and Saturday when you’ll find about 90 buses each. The buses run pretty much around the clock, from early morning through the night. They’re most densely concentrated at peak times, when several leave simultaneously, or within a few minutes of each other. During off-peak times, they leave anywhere from 20min to 1h apart.

When the first buses from Manchester to London leave poses a tricky question. If you take the day as starting after midnight, the first bus leaves at around 02:30 in the morning. For practical reasons though, the daily timetable really gets going at about 04:10, which is when the first of around 16 morning rush-hour buses departs. The last buses leave between around 23:20 and 23:50 – there are seven of these in all. There are also a couple of buses at around 00:10. The late night buses take between about 5h 30min and 10h 15min, with most coming in at around the 6h mark. The fastest early morning buses to London from Manchester take about 4h 10min, with the rest getting you to the capital in anywhere from 4h 50min to 6h 25min, depending on the operators, National Express and megabus.

Buses from Manchester to London depart from Manchester Victoria Station or Manchester Bus Station. You can get from the city centre to Victoria Station in about 8min on the No. 33B bus. Manchester Bus Station (or Coach Station) is about 1min away from central Manchester. Catch the Stagecoach South Lancashire No. 85 or 86 buses, or the No. 263 Arriva UK bus. Buses to London from Manchester, arrive at several stations. Most head for London Victoria Coach Station, about 10min from the centre on a London Buses No. 11. Others travel to London Golders Green Coach Station – you can catch a Northern Line Tube to the city centre in about 12min. Buses also go to London Finchley Station, about 17min outside the city on the Northern Tube line, plus a few to London Heathrow Station for passengers to catch flights.

Megabus and National Express are the two main bus companies offering bus tickets from Manchester to London. Megabus allows you to select the seat you prefer, and if you want more leg room, you can upgrade your seat for an extra fee. All of the buses are air-conditioned and offer free Wi-Fi. If you’re travelling in a wheelchair, each bus has one wheelchair space, so book early if you wish to use it. If you opt for National Express, you won’t be able to choose where you sit but all seats have USB charging points and individual air-conditioning. On-board staff will assist passengers with limited mobility requirements and you’re free to bring a wheelchair, with advance notice. Free Wi-Fi is also available on board.

Megabus has a very simple luggage policy – as long as all your hold luggage together doesn’t exceed 44lb in weight or occupy a cumulative space larger than 79 inches, you can bring virtually anything you want, subject to restricted luggage rules, of course. In addition, you can bring a single piece of hand luggage on board, as long as it’s small enough to fit under the seat ahead or on your lap. National Express Manchester to London buses allow you to bring either a single piece of hold luggage up to 44lb and not exceeding 31 x 20 x 12 inches, or two items up to 12 x 18 x 28 inches, with the same weight limit. Along with that you can bring a carry-on bag – note that only soft ones are allowed.

See available tickets from Manchester to London for this week that start at £8 one-way.

The most time-efficient journey by bus from Manchester to London currently available is 4h 05m. Depending on the bus you select, the travel time may vary by up to 0h 50m. FlixBus has the quickest available bus to your destination.

FlixBus, National Express, and Megabus are viable options. Check times and availability for FlixBus, as it was recently the cheapest bus available travelling from Manchester to London from £10 round-trip.

A bus from Manchester to London will travel much more than the 163.1 mi distance between them. The actual distance depends on the route taken, which can change based on traffic, tolls and closures. 4h 05m by bus is normal for this route.

We’ve found that taking a flight from Manchester to London with {10} is more time-efficient when based simply on travel duration. A train from Manchester to London or a bus from Manchester to London can take you longer than a 1h 00m flight.

A bus from Manchester to London from £8 can save you up to 89% on the cost of your trip compared to booking a flight from Manchester to London or a train from Manchester to London.