Cheapest Way to Get From JFK to Uniondale, NY: 7 Honest, Essential Facts for 2027

The cheapest way to get from JFK to Uniondale, NY is the train-and-bus chain: AirTrain JFK to Jamaica, the LIRR Hempstead Branch to Hempstead, and a NICE bus into Uniondale — $18.50 off-peak and $20.75 at peak, for a trip of about 18 miles that takes roughly 35 to 50 minutes by car on a clear road. Uniondale sits in Nassau County, just past the Queens line, so the ride is short enough that the train wins on price and a car wins only on convenience, luggage, or a late-night arrival.

Uniondale is a hamlet in the Town of Hempstead, in Nassau County on Long Island, and its landmarks are the ones that fill the cars: the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum and Hofstra University, whose campus sits on the Hempstead–Uniondale line. Picture a parent flying in for a Hofstra move-in weekend, landing at JFK on a Friday afternoon with two suitcases and a dorm-room shopping list: the question is not whether Uniondale is far — it is not — but whether to spend $18.50 and change twice or pay for a car that drops her at the dorm door.

Written by Emily Davis · Fact-checked by Alex Freeman, Editor-in-Chief · Last verified November 2026

The drive: about 18 miles on the Belt and the Southern State

The usual routing leaves JFK on the Belt Parkway east, runs the Southern State Parkway east across the Queens–Nassau line, then takes the Meadowbrook Parkway north to Hempstead Turnpike and into Uniondale. Uber’s published route averages put the run at 18 miles and about 37 minutes, and a clear-road drive lands in the 35-to-50-minute range; the Southern State is the variable, and a Friday-afternoon backup there can add half an hour without adding a single mile. The transfers from JFK Airport to Manhattan guide shows how the airport end of the trip works before the short Long Island miles begin.

• About 18 miles by road from JFK to Uniondale, roughly 35 to 50 minutes with a clear road
• Belt Parkway east, Southern State Parkway east, Meadowbrook Parkway north to Hempstead Turnpike
• Uniondale is a hamlet in the Town of Hempstead, Nassau County — the Coliseum and Hofstra anchor the area
• JFK is the closest major airport to Uniondale, about 18 miles away
• No direct train or bus runs from JFK to Uniondale — the LIRR stops at Hempstead and the NICE bus covers the last few miles
• A yellow taxi runs under Rate #04 — the meter doubles from the city limit outbound, and the $70 JFK flat fare does not apply
• The cheapest chain costs $18.50 off-peak — AirTrain $8.75, LIRR $6.75, NICE bus $3.00

The cheapest chain: AirTrain, LIRR, and the N70 bus

Start at any JFK terminal on the AirTrain to Jamaica, $8.75, then cross to the LIRR Hempstead Branch for Hempstead station. The LIRR fare from Jamaica to Hempstead is $6.75 off-peak and $9.00 at peak under the MTA schedule effective January 4, 2026, and the ride is about 30 minutes. At Hempstead’s Rosa Parks Transit Center, the NICE n70, n71, and n72 buses run east through Uniondale, stopping at Hofstra University; the NICE full fare is $3.00, with OMNY accepted since January 4, 2026. Add it up: $8.75 plus $6.75 plus $3.00 is $18.50 off-peak, and $20.75 at peak. Door to door, budget about 1 hour 15 minutes to 1 hour 45 minutes including the two changes — slower than the car, but less than half the price of any other way there. Buy the LIRR ticket at a machine or in the app before boarding, because buying onboard adds a surcharge. The cheapest car service JFK to Merrick page ranks the same AirTrain-and-LIRR ladder for the next town east.

Taxi from JFK to Uniondale: the meter doubles past the city line

A yellow taxi from JFK to Uniondale runs under Rate #04, the TLC rule for Nassau and Westchester: the meter doubles from the city limit on the outbound leg, so the Nassau miles cost twice the metered rate. The $70 JFK flat fare covers Manhattan only and does not apply here, and there is no flat fare to Uniondale at all. A $0.50 MTA surcharge also applies to trips ending in New York City, Nassau, Suffolk, Westchester, Rockland, Dutchess, Orange, or Putnam. Tolls are extra and the tip is extra, so a taxi is the most expensive way to make this short trip — the doubling rule is the whole story, and it is why the train-and-bus chain wins on price by a wide margin. For the same rule on a longer Nassau run, see the stretch limo from JFK to Wantagh page, and the taxi from JFK to Rego Park guide for how the meter works while the cab is still inside the city.

What a booked car costs on the Uniondale run

JetBlack prices this route as a written per-trip quote agreed before the car moves — one fixed number for your date, your terminal, and your vehicle, with no surge and no meter running through Southern State traffic. Tolls are extra, a 20% tip is suggested and not included, and governmental fees are extra — see the additional charges for tolls or other expenses page before you compare quotes. Cancellation is free before your booking is confirmed, and $31 in total after confirmation — $25 plus $5 in fees plus a $1 technology fee. An economy sedan is $45 an hour with a 3-hour minimum, which is hourly service, not a trip price, and the $44 figure you may see elsewhere is the first-mile per-mile tier, not an hourly floor. Book in advance — make a reservation for a specific time and date — and give your flight number so the driver tracks a delay instead of leaving. A stretch limo seats 6 to 25 people depending on the vehicle, child seats are provided for about $35 per seat, confirmed at booking, and wheelchair-accessible vehicles are provided on request.

JFK is the closest airport to Uniondale

JFK is the closest major airport to Uniondale at about 18 miles, and that is the one piece of luck on this route: the airport you most likely fly into is also the nearest one. LaGuardia sits farther west across Queens, so it adds miles and minutes for no benefit, and Newark is a different trip entirely — about 48 miles from Uniondale by road. If your flight exists at JFK, take it; if it only exists at LaGuardia, the same train-and-bus chain works in reverse from the other direction, but the car ride is longer. The airport closest to Manhattan comparison is a reminder that the nearest airport depends on the destination, not on the airport’s size, and the transportation options available at Kennedy Airport page covers the airport end. The cheapest way to get from JFK to Oswego page shows how the same cheapest-first ladder works on a far longer upstate run.

Related pages and articles

Questions travelers ask

Sources

• Uber — JFK Airport to Uniondale, NY: average route distance 18 miles, average travel time 37 minutes, accessed 2026-11-10
• Nassau Inter-County Express (NICE) — Fares and Passes: full fare $3.00, OMNY accepted from January 4, 2026, accessed 2026-11-10
• Nassau Inter-County Express (NICE) — n70/71/72 timetable: Hempstead Rosa Parks Transit Center to Uniondale Hofstra University, accessed 2026-11-10
• MTA Long Island Rail Road station fares, effective January 4, 2026: Jamaica to Hempstead $6.75 off-peak, $9.00 peak, accessed 2026-11-10
• MTA — How to get to JFK Airport on public transit: AirTrain fare $8.75, accessed 2026-11-10
• Travelmath — Uniondale, NY to Newark, NJ: driving distance 48 miles, accessed 2026-11-10
• NYC Taxi and Limousine Commission — Taxi fare: meter, JFK–Manhattan $70 flat fare, Rate #04 and Rate #05 rules, MTA surcharge counties, accessed 2026-11-10
• Port Authority of New York and New Jersey — JFK Airport ground transportation and terminals, accessed 2026-11-10
• JetBlack Transportation — owner-confirmed service facts (booking, cancellation, tip, hourly rates, child seats, wheelchair-accessible vehicles), confirmed 2026-10-26, accessed 2026-11-10

JetBlack Transportation · 34 W 34th St, New York, NY 10001 · +1-646-214-4828 · Prices verified November 2026 and subject to change — confirm your fixed quote in writing before you travel