The leading rail retailer Trainline has an advertising campaign pledging: “You won’t find cheaper tickets anywhere else!” That claim is demonstrably untrue, and the organisation is relying on smaller print saying “Or we’ll refund the difference” to justify its assertion.

But with another fares rise impending, how can the traveller minimise the cost of rail tickets?

These are the key questions and answers.

Who sets ticket prices?

The government prescribes “regulated” rail fares in England. These cover season tickets, journeys in and out of major cities, and longer-distance off-peak fares.

On 2 March such fares will rise by 4.6 per cent, significantly above the current rate of inflation of 3 per cent. The off-peak one-way fare from Manchester Piccadilly to London Euston will rise by £2.50 to £79.80. The 24-mile trip on the Great Western Railway from Didcot Parkway to Swindon increases by £1.40 to £32.60 at peak times. This is thought to be the most expensive stretch of track in the UK apart from the Heathrow Express from London to Britain’s busiest airport – which costs £25 for a journey that is under 15 miles.

Other fares are set by individual train operators, with many advance tickets “demand-responsive” in the same way as airlines. At peak times, they are more expensive, but when demand is light they are cheaper.

Can companies charge more than the ticket price?

Yes. Rail retailers – as opposed to train operators – can add a fee on top of the 5 per cent commission they earn from online sales (which falls to 4.5 per cent from 1 April 2025).

Trainline adds a fee to about one-third of transactions, charging up to £2.79 or 4 per cent on some tickets. You can avoid this but still get the excellent functionality of Trainline by using the ScotRail or Northern Trains website or app.

How can I pay less than the full fare?

The easiest way, if you can comply with the restrictions, is by using a railcard. You get one-third off many tickets (or half-price with the 16-17 card) though discounts do not apply to all journeys, with time and minimum fare restrictions on some cards.

Anyone below 31 or above 59 can benefit from an age-specific card (16-17, 16-25, 26-30, Senior). Between these ages, the best bet is a Family & Friends railcard – which requires you to be travelling with a child – or a Two Together railcard. The latter is valid if you are travelling with a named individual.

For longer-distance trips within south east England – extending as far as Exeter, Worcester, King’s Lynn and Harwich – the Network railcard is a worthwhile investment. Note that it is valid only from 10am from Monday to Friday, when a £13 minimum fare also applies.

Railcard prices rise by £5 to £35 on 2 March, the same day as the rail fare rise in England and Wales.

Do any companies give discounts on normal prices?

Yes. Uber is the leading discounter, saying you can “get up to 10 per cent back in Uber credits to spend on trains, rides or eats”. This applies to Eurostar and Heathrow Express as well as “ordinary” train operators, and in addition you can link to a British Airways loyalty account to earn Avios points.

Trip.com has a deal of 2 per cent off rail travel up to 20 June 2025. The company says it also has a “split tickets” function on which you can “save an average of 30 per cent”.

Tell me about split tickets

The British rail fare system is rotten, unfair and full of anomalies. For a journey from A to C, often it can be cheaper to buy one ticket from A to B and a second from B to C.

Between Bristol and London, for example, nobody who’s aware of “split ticketing” would ever dream of buying a ticket straight through. Much better to deploy the “Didcot Dodge” and save up to £57 by buying one ticket to Didcot Parkway and another from there. No need to change trains. The one essential is to ensure that the train stops at your chosen split point – some London-Bristol trains whizz through Didcot at 125mph.

Trainline and many other apps search for split tickets.

On other journeys, particularly with CrossCountry, multiple splits are possible – specialist firms such as TrainSplit and TrainPal can identify these.

Do train operators have loyalty schemes?

Some do, with the main intercity firms on the East and West Coast main lines offering the best deals.

Sign up for LNER Perks and you get an immediate £5 in credit to spend on journeys on the East Coast line from London King’s Cross to Yorkshire, northeast England and Scotland. Better still, refer a friend and you both get £10 in credit. On all journeys with LNER, you get 2 per cent credit for future journeys.

Avanti West Coast, meanwhile, has Club Avanti. Upon joining, members get an immediate 10 per cent off the price of a standard return ticket on the network, which connects London Euston with the West Midlands, northwest England, North Wales and southern Scotland. You also get one free hot drink on board.

If you make nine qualifying journeys within a year of join date, you get a complimentary standard premium return ticket (these are the carriages with first-class seats but no free catering); you must book this at least a week ahead. After 20 journeys you get a free First Class return plus a one free First Class Lounge pass.

ScotRail has an age-restricted loyalty scheme for older travellers, Club 50, which also requires a £15 annual subscription. But this buys the chance to travel anywhere in Scotland for a flat fare of £17 return at certain times of year; a 20 per cent discount on advance and off-peak tickets bought online; and half-price drinks on trains.

Is there much competition on the railways?

It’s patchy. On the East Coast main line, “open access” operators Grand Central, Hull Trains and Lumo compete with state-run LNER. Fares should be shown on all websites so you can compare easily.

Sometimes competition is silly. On the 10-minute journey between Manchester Piccadilly and Stockport, for example, you can choose from five different train operators charging anything from £2.10 to £5.10. (Regrettably, the 70p option on Transport for Wales is no more.) But if you inadvertently travel on a rival train with an operator-specific ticket, you are treated as though you have no ticket.

What if I travel without a valid ticket?

You will be joining about one in 30 fellow travellers who, according to TransPennine Express, do not bother to obtain one. But if you are found to be on a train without a ticket, the minimum penalty is £50 – with criminal prosecution a possibility.

Any other ideas?

Yes: get up early. The Independent has revealed that catching pre-dawn intercity trains on some routes – including the Great Western Railway and East Midlands Railway – can halve the cost of travel compared with the morning rush hour.

Next, trade speed for savings. On the West Coast main line, for example, London Northwestern offers much cheaper tickets than Avanti West Coast on many journeys – particularly at peak times. For example, on a morning journey around 8am from Birmingham New Street to London, booking a day ahead, Avanti West Coast charges £71 for an 80-minute journey, while London Northwestern has a £30 fare and takes around 50 minutes longer.

From Leeds to Sheffield, CrossCountry charges £14 while Northern is only £6.60 – though the journey takes twice as long and involves a change at Doncaster.

Finally, “limited-distribution fares,” as they are known, are sold only by the train operator and usually online. They include Avanti West Coast’s Superfares, which offer trips such as London to Birmingham for £9 and Liverpool to London for £15 if you book at least a week ahead and let the firm specify exactly which train you will travel on.