How Trainline Saves You Money on Train Tickets Especially With UK Journeys (PLUS a Limited Time Discount Code!) Review + Guide

If you’re booking train travel, and specifically in the UK, Trainline can be one of the easiest ways to save money. How? From SplitSave ticketing to comparing prices against multiple operators for you, Trainline offers several built-in ways to reduce the cost of train travel without sacrificing convenience. And now there’s a limited time discount code (with a limited numbers of total redemptions available!)

Let’s take a look at how Trainline can save you money and of course, I’ll show you the pros and cons versus booking direct and a real world example of when to use Trainline plus I’ll detail my own personal experience with Trainline!

SplitSave: Trainline‘s Biggest Money-Saving Feature

SplitSave is Trainline’s most powerful cost-cutting tool. Instead of selling you a more expensive ticket for a long journey, Trainline automatically checks whether splitting the route into multiple tickets is cheaper without adding any additional changes to your itinerary. Here’s why this works: if you are using one carrier, as long as the train stops at those stations then the tickets are valid.

SplitSave Examples:

Instead of buying one ticket for this itinerary: London → Manchester
Trainline may split it into (three tickets for): London → Milton Keynes + Milton Keynes → Stoke-on-Trent + Stoke-on-Trent → Manchester

In a nutshell: you will just have multiple tickets for the journey instead of one ticket but everything else stays the same: ie if your ticket doesn’t have a change, the SplitSave tickets will also not have a change! Read more about SplitSave here!

Why SplitSave Works

UK rail pricing isn’t linear as shorter segments can sometimes cost less combined than one long ticket. SplitSave takes advantage of this pricing quirk automatically.

• 10–30% on average
• Occasionally 40%+ on long UK routes
• Most effective on peak-time and long-distance journeys

Trainline Discount Codes & Promotions

Trainline occasionally offers discount codes for first-time user discounts or seasonal promotions. These discounts are typically applied at checkout or via promo codes.
Beautiful Tip: Savings stack well with SplitSave – meaning you may still get split-ticket pricing plus a promotional discount.

LIMITED Discount Code!

• Offer: Promo Code of 10% discount (up to $20 discount, not applicable on booking fees)
• Expiration date: February 28, 2025 (23h59 EST) or when discount limit # max reached
• Code name: EUROPE26
• Terms & Conditions
  • Available exclusively using this link: www.thetrainline.com, for the purchase of train tickets to travel in Europe (European Union and UK).
  • Offer exclusively valid for customers based outside EU and UK paying in dollars (USD)
  • Please note, promo codes cannot be used in conjunction with any other Trainline offer and can only be applied once.
  • Note that there are a limited number of discount codes so if those are exhausted, then the campaign will end before 28 February 2026 (23h59 EST)
  • To see the full conditions and restrictions that apply to this Promo Code Offer, take a look at our  Terms and Conditions.

Price Comparisons Across Multiple Train Operators

Another way Trainline saves money is by showing fares from multiple rail operators in one search. Instead of checking National Rail, individual operator websites, international rail sites, Trainline compares everything in one place, including: Advance fares / Off-peak tickets / Flexible options.

This helps you quickly spot the cheapest option, especially on routes served by more than one operator.

Trainline doesn’t just show you train options but also shows you bus tickets which typically are cheaper with the trade-off often being that the bus trips take longer.

How Trainline Differs from Booking Direct

Booking directly with a rail operator can sometimes be cheaper but not always.

Is Trainline Actually Cheaper?

Example of How Booking with Trainline Saves Money VS Booking Direct

In many cases, SplitSave more than offsets the booking fee, making Trainline cheaper overall for long journeys as seen in this example below.

Tickets Details: One-way on June 14, 2026 London (Waterloo station) → Southampton

BOOKING DIRECT with South Western Railway

I chose Waterloo because I know that there is a direct train (no changes) to Southampton such as the one leaving at 10:35 and arriving at 12:01 will cost £45.10

BOOKING with Trainline

The exact same direct train (no changes) to Southampton such as the one leaving at 10:35 and arriving at 12:01 will cost $59.41. Note that Trainline often chooses the cheapest ticket but that may involve multiple transfers.

SplitSave Booking Details

Trainline using SplitSave split the journey into two tickets: London → Woking + Woking → Southampton.

Some of My Favorite Features About Trainline

• Trainline is very clear and upfront with their pricing + booking fees
• SplitSave booking details are super clear with not only exactly what the split tickets look like but as importantly that it is explained how to use the split tickets: look at the SplitSave booking details photo and that you are told how you will “stay on the train, just switch tickets“
• So much useful information on the website such as how booking now IS NOT a good time as it will be cheaper around 12 weeks before travel!

What Was My Experience Like Using Trainline

I booked a round-trip ticket from London Waterloo → Southampton (but unfortunately this was before Trainline introduced SplitSave!) I was able to add my ticket electronically to my Apple Wallet and used it without incident. We were severely delayed on the train to Southampton and I was able to get my compensation easily even with the ticket booked through Trainline!

Final Verdict: Is Trainline Worth Using to Save Money?

Buying tickets with some train operators like South Western Railway is pretty straightforward and easy to understand, but there are other operators that are notoriously difficult especially if it’s in a language that you don’t understand. Trainline often delivers real savings while making train travel dramatically easier particularly for international travelers and in the case of United Kingdom trains, SplitSave more than makes up the booking fee!