Public transport
Using Copenhagen's public transport system is easy and convenient. On this page, you can read about your different travel options.
About the Metro, buses and S-trains
Understand Copenhagen's public transport system and learn which means of transport to use and when.
From airport to city centre in 12 minutes
Take the train or the metro. The ride takes appromixately 12 minutes. Tickets can be purchased at the platform or the metro station. Both are located in the airport. Learn more.
To plan your journey, visit the Offical Public Transport website.
Metro
All three metro lines are in service 24/7. There are 2-4 minutes between each train during rush hour, and 3-6 minutes outside rush hour and during the weekends. Friday and Saturday night (after 01:00) trains arrive with a 7-15 minutes interval and a 20 minutes interval after midnight on weekdays (Sunday through Thursday).
When using public transportation in Copenhagen, all members of the family must have a valid ticket, with the exception that an adult on his/her ticket always can bring up to two children younger than 12 years. You can read more about the various ticket types and their prices here. There is ongoing ticket control, and both Copenhageners and tourists are responsible for having the correct tickets. If you and your family are travelling without a valid ticket or with an insufficient number of tickets, you can all be individually fined. If you find that you have wrongfully been given a fare evasion ticket, you can file an online complaint to Metro’s customer service. Sometimes, they are willing to cancel or reduce some or all fare evasion tickets issued to tourist families.
On 29 September 2019, 17 brand new stations were added to the metro. Known as line M3, “The City Circle Line (or “Cityringen” in Danish) the new line connects the neighbourhoods of Vesterbro, Frederiksberg, Nørrebro, Østerbro and the city centre.
Please note that maintenance of the rails may occur during the night, which can result in a slightly longer journey. The maintenance is between 01:00-01:25 and again between 04:15-04:45.
To plan your journey, visit the Offical Public Transport website.
Bus
The A-buses are the primary buses in central Copenhagen. They drive every 3-7 minutes during rush hour (which is between 07:00-09:00 in the morning and 15:30-17:30 in the afternoon) and usually about every 10 minutes before and after rush hour. The A-buses serve at all hours.
The S-buses drive every 5-10 minutes during rush hour and every 20 minutes outside of rush hour. The S-buses are faster than the A-busses due to fewer stops. They usually serve between 06:00 in the morning and 01:00 at night.
Night buses are in service between 01:00 and 05:00 in the night. You can recognise the bus stops by the grey colour of the bus stop signs. The night buses are all N buses, for an example 85N.
To plan your journey, visit the Offical Public Transport website.
Trains
The S-trains are a hybrid urban-suburban rail serving the Copenhagen urban area, except Amager.
The S-trains run between 05:00 in the morning and 00:30 at night. During daytime, Line F runs every 5 minutes, line A, B, C and E run every 10 minutes, and line H and Bx run every 20 minutes.
Friday and Saturday the trains run all night. However, line F runs every half hour during these hours.
Other types of trains not part of the S-train network include "Kystbanen" ("The Coastal Line") - a regional railway line between Copenhagen and Elsinore on the north coast of Zealand.
To plan your journey, visit the Offical Public Transport website.
The Harbour bus
The yellow harbour buses take you up and down the harbour on a regular bus ticket.
The harbour bus route has 9 stops located on each side of the water, as the yellow ferries zig-zag between places like The Royal Library, Islands Brygge, Refshaleøen and other places where you can get off and explore.
Please note that the harbour buses have two different route numbers:
- Havnebus 991 - direction: Teglholmen (south)
- Havnebus 992 - direction: Orientkajen (north)
To plan your journey, visit the Offical Public Transport website.
Free public transport with a Copenhagen Card
With a Copenhagen Card in hand you don’t have to worry about zones and ticket prices, as you get unlimited transportation in the entire Capital Region (including to/from Copenhagen Airport). Learn more.
How to plan your trip with journeyplanner.dk
Find out the best way to get from A to B with a few, easy clicks at Journey Planner. You simple type in your point of departure (address, station or bus stop) together with your destination and time of departure. Easy.