How to transfer between Shanghai airports on the Airport Link Line
A transfer-first guide to Shanghai's Airport Link Line: confirm the terminals, baggage and onward-flight process, then use the current rail, payment, and staffed fallback route.
Shanghai's Airport Link Line connects Hongqiao Airport Terminal 2 with Pudong Airport Terminal 1&2, but it is only one part of an airport-to-airport transfer. Before entering the rail system, confirm the terminal for each flight, whether your airline has accepted or checked your baggage through, the current flight and rail timetable, and the time required for check-in, security, immigration, or a terminal change. Shanghai's official guidance describes a roughly 40-minute rail journey and seven stations, with only the Zhongchun Road connection to Metro Line 9 described as an in-station transfer; it does not make a same-day flight connection safe or guarantee a payment method, boarding result, baggage transfer, or onward-flight outcome.
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Confirm the transfer is actually airport-to-airport
Start from the flight records, not the name of the city. Shanghai Airport Link Line serves Hongqiao Airport Terminal 2 and Pudong Airport Terminal 1&2; a flight at another terminal, a separate airport check-in requirement, an untagged bag, or an international-arrival procedure can add work outside the train ride. Shanghai Airport Authority presents the line as one choice among metro, bus, maglev, and taxi routes, and its published timings remain reference information rather than a connection promise.
- Read the arriving and departing terminal, airline, flight number, baggage tag, check-in deadline, and any immigration or customs requirement before leaving the first airport.
- Ask the operating airline or its staffed transfer desk whether the ticketed itinerary includes baggage handling or a protected transfer. Do not infer this from using the same airline, alliance, booking site, or city pair.
- If the time is already tight, confirm the responsible airline's live instruction before committing to a rail, taxi, or bus route; the rail journey itself does not replace airport processing time.
Navigate to the exact Airport Link station
Use the airport's current signs and the official Shanghai transport route for the terminal you are physically in. The official Airport Link guide lists seven stations: Hongqiao Airport Terminal 2, Zhongchun Road, Jinghong Road, South Sanlin, East Kangqiao, Shanghai International Resort, and Pudong Airport Terminal 1&2. It also says that Zhongchun Road has a direct in-station transfer to Metro Line 9, while the listed Hongqiao, Jinghong Road, and Pudong connections are out-of-station transfers. Treat a terminal walk, exit, re-entry, or fare decision as its own live step.
- At Hongqiao, verify that the itinerary leads to Terminal 2 before following Airport Link signs; Terminal 1 has a different city-transport setup.
- At Pudong, verify whether the onward flight uses Terminal 1 or Terminal 2, then follow the airport's current terminal signage after reaching the T1&2 rail station.
- Keep the airline confirmation and exact Chinese destination or terminal name available offline, and ask station or airport staff for the route when a sign, exit, or interchange is unclear.
Choose one current payment route before the gate
Shanghai's current municipal Metro guidance includes the Airport Link Line in its eligible transport-code coverage and describes several rail payment routes, including eligible contactless cards, Metro Daduhui or Alipay/WeChat QR routes, and single-journey tickets. Those descriptions do not guarantee that a particular overseas issuer, card, device, app account, gate, discount, fare package, or transfer will work for you. Choose one method that is already ready, retain a ticket or payment record, and use a staffed service center when the first method fails rather than repeatedly entering a gate.
- If using a transport QR code, open the official route and check that the code is current before entering; do not rely on an old screenshot or a code set up for another city.
- If tapping a card or device, make sure it is eligible and has sufficient available balance or credit; a previous retail payment does not prove gate acceptance.
- If a card, code, gate, or fare looks wrong, stop at the staffed service point and explain the exact journey before exiting or attempting a new payment method.
Protect the onward flight when the plan fails
The current official guide publishes a timetable and notes that train formation, waiting position, and real-time directions can change, while Shanghai's airport guide says specific departure times may be adjusted. Recheck the operating day rather than relying on a saved timetable, particularly after a delayed arrival or late-evening landing. If the line, gate, transfer, luggage route, or flight status changes, separate the problem: staff at the rail station handle the rail step; the airline decides check-in, baggage, rebooking, and flight acceptance; airport staff direct terminal access and security.
- Keep the confirmation, baggage receipt, passport, and the airline's verified help route with you; do not give a stranger a passport, payment code, card, booking login, or baggage receipt to solve a transfer problem.
- Do not assume an out-of-station connection is included in the rail fare, that an airport counter can override airline cutoffs, or that missing one train cancels an airline's separate rules.
- When the safe transfer margin has disappeared, use the airline's staffed assistance and live airport information before choosing a different city-transport option.
Before you rely on this answer
China travel rules and app behavior can change by city, route, account, passport, airline, and local inspection practice. Treat this page as a traveler-friendly starting point, then verify official or provider details before booking or packing anything important.
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Frequently asked questions
Does the Shanghai Airport Link Line go to both airports?
Yes. Shanghai's official guide lists Hongqiao Airport Terminal 2 and Pudong Airport Terminal 1&2 as the line's endpoints. Check the actual arrival and departure terminals, because the line itself does not settle a terminal change, baggage process, check-in, or flight connection.
How long does the Airport Link Line take between Shanghai airports?
Shanghai's official guidance describes a roughly 40-minute journey, but that is not a complete airport-transfer time. Add the current terminal walk, rail wait, any station exit or re-entry, baggage process, check-in, security, immigration, and the airline's own deadline.
Can I use a foreign bank card on Shanghai's Airport Link Line?
Shanghai's municipal Metro guidance describes eligible contactless cards and other payment routes, but it does not guarantee that every overseas issuer, card, device, wallet, gate, or fare will work. Check the current route, then use the staffed service center or a single-journey ticket route if the first method fails.
Is the Airport Link Line an in-station transfer to Shanghai Metro?
The official Airport Link guide identifies Zhongchun Road to Metro Line 9 as an in-station transfer and describes the listed Hongqiao, Jinghong Road, and Pudong connections as out-of-station transfers. Follow current signage and ask staff before exiting or paying again.