Newark Liberty is in New Jersey, about sixteen miles south-west of Midtown. Despite the state line it is a New York airport in every practical sense — it is run by the same Port Authority as JFK and LaGuardia, and it handles a large share of the region’s international traffic.
It is frequently the cheapest of the three on airfare, particularly for transatlantic routes.
AirTrain plus NJ Transit — the standard route
AirTrain from your terminal to Newark Liberty International Airport rail station, then NJ Transit to New York Penn Station.
About 45 minutes door to door. Buy a combined ticket that includes the AirTrain fare — on the NJ Transit app, or from a machine at the station — rather than paying separately.
Trains run every 20 to 30 minutes during the day and considerably less often late at night. Check the last departure if you are landing after eleven.
This drops you at Penn Station, which is convenient for Midtown West and connects to the 1/2/3, A/C/E, and the LIRR.
Amtrak
Amtrak uses the same station and is faster — the Northeast Corridor trains do the run in about twenty minutes — and considerably more expensive. Worth it only if the timing happens to suit or you are continuing beyond New York.
Newark Airport Express
A coach service to Port Authority Bus Terminal, Bryant Park and Grand Central, at a fixed fare. Useful if you are staying on the east side, since NJ Transit only reaches Penn Station on the west. Slower than the train and subject to tunnel traffic.
Taxi and rideshare
Both cross a state line, which means tolls through the Lincoln or Holland tunnel and a surcharge, and the total is usually the highest of the three airports. Traffic through the tunnels can be dreadful at almost any hour.
Newark taxis to Manhattan operate on a zone-based fare schedule rather than a pure meter. Rideshares are dynamically priced and can be very expensive at peak.
If two or more of you are travelling with luggage and landing late, the road is a defensible choice. Otherwise the train is faster and a fraction of the price.
The airport itself
Terminal A was completely rebuilt and opened in 2023, and is now the best of the three. Terminals B and C are older; Terminal C is United’s hub and is large and busy.
The AirTrain connects all terminals and the rail station and runs 24 hours, though it has had a chequered reliability record and is being replaced.
Practical
Departing, allow extra time. Terminal C security backs up badly at peak and the drive out from Manhattan is unpredictable.
“Newark” on a booking site occasionally catches people out — check that a flight advertised as going to New York is not actually landing at Newark if you have planned around JFK, and vice versa. The airport code is EWR.
Do not confuse Newark Liberty International with Newark Penn Station, which is a separate station in downtown Newark on the same NJ Transit line. The airport station is one stop further out and is signed for the airport.