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Paris CDG Airport Terminals: Which Airline Uses Which Terminal

Charles de Gaulle has three terminals, but one of them is really seven halls, and the hall is what decides where your car should stop and which door you walk through. This directory tells you which airlines and alliances live where, how to read the terminal off your boarding pass before you leave the hotel, and what to do if you still end up at the wrong one. It is a chapter of our Paris CDG Airport guide, written by a team that drops and collects passengers at every CDG terminal several times a day. The layout itself — distances, walking times, the CDGVAL and parking — is covered in our CDG airport map guide.

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The quick answer

  • Three terminals: 1, 2 and 3. Terminal 2 is not one building but a chain of seven halls, 2A to 2G, and the hall letter is what matters when you travel.
  • Air France and SkyTeam use Terminal 2 — long-haul from 2E, European from 2F, regional from 2G.
  • Most Star Alliance carriers use Terminal 1, Lufthansa and United among them.
  • Low-cost and charter airlines use Terminal 3, with some exceptions in hall 2D.
  • The other international airlines are spread across halls 2A to 2D.

The terminal and hall are printed on your boarding pass and shown in your airline's app, and because allocations do change, that is the only source to trust on the day. Works, seasonal schedules and one-off gate moves are published in real time by Paris Aéroport on parisaeroport.fr, and the airline that issued your ticket always has the final word.

How many terminals CDG really has, and why the numbering confuses everyone

Officially, three. In practice, travellers meet nine different names on signs, tickets and taxi windows, and the confusion comes from Terminal 2.

Terminal 1 is the original 1970s building, the round concrete one with the glass tubes in the middle. It is a single terminal with a single name, and nobody gets lost over what to call it.

Terminal 2 is where the trouble starts. It was built in stages from the 1980s onward, each stage adding a new hall along a central roadway, and each hall was given a letter rather than a number: 2A, 2B, 2C, 2D, 2E, 2F and finally 2G. The halls were never merged into one building. 2A faces 2B, 2C faces 2D, 2E faces 2F, and 2G stands on its own further east. Each has its own check-in area, its own security lanes, its own arrivals hall and, for a car, its own kerb. When someone says "Terminal 2" they have told you where to drive, but not where to stop. The difference between 2A and 2F is a long walk with luggage; the difference between 2F and 2G is a shuttle bus.

Hall 2E adds one more layer: it has three boarding areas of its own, called K, L and M, two of which are satellites out on the apron. So a boarding pass can read "Terminal 2E, hall M", and all three parts of that are useful.

Terminal 3 is the simplest: a single low building a short distance from Terminal 1, at the Roissypôle business and station area. It has no satellites and no halls, and it is the one terminal many first-time visitors have never heard of until their low-cost ticket sends them there.

Why keep three numbers and seven letters rather than renumbering everything? Because the airport grew around operating airlines rather than around a master plan, and renaming a hall that handles tens of thousands of passengers a day would create more confusion than it removes. The practical consequence is simple: read the whole code. "CDG 2" is not enough; "CDG 2E" is what you need, and "2E hall L" is better still.

Terminal 1: airlines, alliances and the kind of flight you will find there

Terminal 1 is the home of the carriers that are not Air France and not in SkyTeam, and above all of Star Alliance. If your ticket is with Lufthansa, United, Turkish Airlines or Singapore Airlines, expect Terminal 1; the same goes for most of the Lufthansa group's European sisters and for a long list of other Star Alliance members. Qatar Airways, a oneworld airline, also operates from Terminal 1 at the time of writing, which is one of several reminders that alliance and terminal do not line up perfectly at CDG.

The flights themselves are a mix. Terminal 1 handles a great deal of long-haul traffic to North America, the Gulf, Asia and Africa, but also plenty of European flights by the same airlines. Because so much of the traffic is to destinations outside the Schengen area, Terminal 1 has substantial border-control facilities and e-gates, and its airside shopping is, with 2E, the widest at the airport.

The building works differently from Terminal 2. Check-in is in the circular central building; after security you take one of the enclosed walkways out to a numbered satellite, where the gates are. The satellite number is on your boarding pass next to the gate. After a long renovation completed in the early 2020s, the central building and the connection to the satellites were reorganised, so if your last visit was years ago, do not rely on memory.

Two constants help when planning: Terminal 1 has no railway station of its own — the nearest RER B station is at Terminal 3/Roissypôle, reached by the CDGVAL — and the arrivals and departures levels are stacked, with arrivals at the lower level. A driver meeting a Terminal 1 passenger waits at the exit of the baggage-claim area on that lower level; there is only one, which makes it the easiest terminal at CDG to be collected from.

Terminal 2, hall by hall: who operates in 2A to 2G

Terminal 2 carries the majority of CDG's passengers. Air France and its SkyTeam partners dominate it, but halls 2A to 2D are shared by a large number of other international airlines, and this is where a wrong assumption costs the most time. Take the allocations below as the standing pattern, then confirm yours on the boarding pass.

Terminal 2A

One of the two oldest halls, at the western end of the chain. 2A is used by a number of international and long-haul airlines outside SkyTeam, and at the time of writing it is the hall of American Airlines. It is compact: arrivals and departures are close together, the kerb is short and the walk to a car is one of the quickest at CDG. 2A is connected airside to 2C, so a passenger arriving at one can sometimes reach a departure gate in the other without leaving the secure area.

Terminal 2B

2B reopened after a complete rebuild in the early 2020s and now shares a connecting building with 2D. It took over several airlines that previously used other halls; British Airways is the best-known name here at the time of writing. Like 2A, it is a short, manageable hall where the distance from aircraft to kerb is small.

Terminal 2C

2C sits next to 2A on the same side of the roadway and is linked to it behind security. Its most familiar occupant for long-haul travellers is Emirates, whose flights from Dubai have used 2C for many years. 2C is one of the halls closest to the Terminal 2 railway station, a few minutes on foot by covered walkway.

Terminal 2D

2D faces 2C and is joined to 2B. It is a busy short- and medium-haul hall used by a mix of European carriers, both full-service and low-cost, and it has at times hosted airlines you might expect to find at Terminal 3. This is precisely the kind of hall where the boarding pass, not the brand, tells you where to go: a budget fare does not automatically mean Terminal 3, and a well-known national airline does not automatically mean 2A.

Terminal 2E

The flagship long-haul hall of the airport. Air France uses 2E for its intercontinental flights and for most of its non-Schengen departures, and its SkyTeam partners use it too, Delta Air Lines being the most familiar name for transatlantic passengers. 2E has three boarding areas: K, inside the main building, and L and M, two satellites reached by an automatic shuttle train. Check-in and border control are in the main building whichever letter you hold, and every arriving passenger leaves through the same 2E arrivals level. Our dedicated CDG Terminal 2E guide covers K, L and M in detail.

Terminal 2F

2F faces 2E across the station and is Air France's main Schengen and European hall. KLM, Air France's sister airline, and several SkyTeam European partners use it as well. Most Air France domestic flights also depart from the Schengen halls, mainly 2F and 2G. 2F is open-plan and quick to cross, and the connection between a long-haul flight at 2E and a European flight at 2F is the most common at the airport. The shuttle bus to 2G leaves from the 2F side.

Terminal 2G

A small, separate building east of the main loop, reached only by a dedicated shuttle bus from 2F. 2G handles regional flights on smaller aircraft, essentially Air France's regional network and a few partner carriers, to French cities and nearby European destinations. It has its own small arrivals hall and its own kerb, which is why a pre-booked driver meets a 2G passenger at 2G itself rather than at 2F. If your boarding pass says 2G, add the bus ride to your timing in both directions.

Terminal 3: low-cost and charter flights

Terminal 3 is the airport's no-frills building, a few minutes' walk from the Roissypôle plaza and the Aéroport Charles de Gaulle 1 railway station. It serves charter operators and several low-cost airlines, on a mix of European, North African and seasonal leisure routes. There are no air bridges: you walk across the apron or take a bus to the aircraft, which is one reason the airlines that use it can keep their costs down.

Who flies from here changes more often than at any other terminal, because low-cost and charter contracts are short and seasonal. Rather than memorise a list, remember three things that are stable:

  • Not every budget airline uses Terminal 3. Some operate from Terminal 2, typically from hall 2D. Your boarding pass is the arbiter.
  • Ryanair and Wizz Air do not fly from CDG at all. Their Paris base is Beauvais-Tillé, some 85 km north of the city, and "Paris Beauvais" on a ticket means a different airport, not a terminal. Likewise, Transavia France operates from Orly, not from CDG.
  • Charter flights to ski, sun and pilgrimage destinations very often leave from Terminal 3, with group check-in opening on a fixed schedule set by the tour operator.

The great advantage of Terminal 3 is the RER B: the station is a short, covered walk away, and the CDGVAL stop for Terminals 1 and 2 is on the same plaza. Its disadvantage is that it is small and fills up quickly when two or three large charters depart at once, so the airline's suggested arrival time is not generous padding; it is the real queue.

How to know which terminal you are flying from before you leave

The single most useful habit at CDG is to find your terminal the evening before, not on the roadside. There are four reliable places to look, in order of authority.

1. Your boarding pass. Once you have checked in online, it shows the terminal and, at Terminal 2, the hall letter: "2E", "2F", "T1". At 2E it adds the boarding area (K, L or M). At Terminal 1 it adds the satellite number. If a boarding pass shows only "CDG" with no terminal, check-in has probably not allocated it yet; look again a few hours before departure.

2. Your airline's app or booking page. Most airlines show the departure terminal as soon as the booking exists, sometimes days ahead, and push a notification when the terminal or gate changes — the one channel that will warn you about a last-minute move.

3. The Paris Aéroport website and app. Search by flight number or by airline on parisaeroport.fr and the departure terminal appears alongside the status. The airport's data is live, so it is the right place to double-check an unusual allocation.

4. The screens at the airport. Every hall has departure boards listing flights from all terminals, with the hall shown next to each. If you arrive at the wrong hall, the board in front of you will tell you where to go.

Three traps are worth knowing. First, a codeshare flight departs from the operating airline's terminal, not the marketing airline's: a ticket bought from Delta but operated by Air France leaves from Air France's hall. The operating carrier is named on the ticket as "operated by". Second, arrivals and departures of the same airline can use different halls, so the terminal a friend arrived at last week is not proof of where you depart. Third, the terminal on your return ticket is the one at your destination, not at CDG; read the right line.

If you are being driven, give the driver the flight number rather than the terminal. A flight number can be looked up and followed; a terminal remembered from a previous trip is only an assumption.

A note from the people who drive there

A terminal is not a fixed fact; it is a plan the airline can change up to the day of travel. Our chauffeurs do not drive to the terminal you booked, they drive to the terminal your flight is actually using. We follow the aircraft on your flight number, and if your arrival is moved from 2E to 2F, or from Terminal 1 to a hall at Terminal 2, the driver is at the new exit with your name before you have cleared passport control. Sixty minutes of waiting after touchdown are included, enough for the border and the baggage belt after a night flight.

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The three alliances at CDG: where SkyTeam, Star Alliance and oneworld concentrate

Paris is a rare airport where all three global alliances have a clear presence, and knowing which one your airline belongs to is the quickest shortcut to the right terminal, with one honest caveat: the fit is close, not perfect.

SkyTeam is Terminal 2. This is the strongest rule at CDG. Air France is a founder member and CDG is its main hub, so SkyTeam partners cluster around it: long-haul partners such as Delta at 2E, European partners such as KLM at 2F. If you are flying any SkyTeam carrier, start from the assumption that you are at 2E for a non-Schengen flight and 2F for a Schengen flight, then confirm.

Star Alliance is, broadly, Terminal 1. Lufthansa, its European group airlines, United, Turkish Airlines and Singapore Airlines are the names most travellers recognise, and they share Terminal 1 with other Star members from Asia, Africa and the Americas. The exceptions are real, though: a few Star Alliance carriers use halls at Terminal 2, so "Star Alliance equals Terminal 1" is a good first guess and a poor last word.

oneworld is the dispersed one. There is no single oneworld terminal at CDG. At the time of writing, British Airways uses 2B, American Airlines uses 2A and Qatar Airways uses Terminal 1 — three oneworld airlines in three different buildings. If you fly oneworld, the alliance tells you nothing useful about your terminal; only the airline does. The upside is that halls 2A to 2D are all short walks from one another.

Airlines in no alliance are spread wherever the airport has room: Emirates at 2C is the best-known example, and the low-cost carriers at Terminal 3 and 2D are, almost by definition, unaligned. For these, the brand is the only clue, and the boarding pass the only certainty.

Domestic and Schengen flights versus international flights: what actually changes

The terminal is only half the story at CDG. The other half is whether your flight crosses the Schengen border, because that decides whether you pass through passport control, how long you need, and even which part of a hall you use.

The Schengen area is the group of European countries that have abolished passport checks between them. France is a member, as are Germany, Spain, Italy, the Netherlands, Switzerland and most of the rest of continental Europe. The United Kingdom and Ireland are not, which matters for the thousands of daily passengers between Paris and London: a flight to Heathrow is an international flight with full border control, even though it is barely an hour long.

Domestic and Schengen flights: you check in, pass security and go to the gate. There is no passport control at departure, and none on arrival. You still need photo ID to board. Air France groups these flights in its Schengen halls, 2F and 2G, and the other carriers' Schengen flights use the Schengen zones of their own terminals. Two hours before departure is the usual recommendation.

Non-Schengen flights — the UK, Ireland, the Americas, Africa, Asia, the Middle East and Oceania — add passport control between security and the gate on departure, and between the aircraft and the baggage belt on arrival. Automated e-gates are open to adults with biometric passports from the EU and a list of other countries, including the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada and Australia; everyone else uses a manned booth. Non-EU travellers are now being registered in the European Entry/Exit System on first entry, which lengthens the queue on busy mornings. Three hours before departure is the usual recommendation, and sixty minutes a sensible margin for arrivals on a night flight.

Inside Terminal 2, the split is physical: 2E is almost entirely non-Schengen, 2F almost entirely Schengen, and a connection between them involves a border crossing. Terminal 1 contains both zones under one roof, with passport control positioned between them. The practical lesson: the same airline, the same terminal and the same fare can mean a very different morning depending on whether the destination is Milan or Manchester.

Services by terminal: check-in, baggage, customs and tax refund

Every CDG terminal is self-contained for the basics, and that is both a comfort and a trap: everything you need is in your hall, and nothing you need is in the hall next door.

Check-in and bag drop. Counters and self-service bag-drop machines are specific to each terminal and, at Terminal 2, to each hall. An Air France desk in 2F cannot take a bag for a flight from 2E, and there is no central check-in for the airport. Airlines close bag drop between 40 and 60 minutes before departure for most flights, earlier for some long-haul services; your airline's cut-off is printed on your ticket conditions and is enforced.

Baggage on arrival. Belts are signposted by flight number in each arrivals hall; trolleys are free throughout the airport. Lost-luggage desks belong to the handling agent of your airline and are inside the baggage hall, before customs, so report a missing bag before you leave the secure area, not after.

Customs. After the belts you pass through the green channel (nothing to declare), the red channel (goods to declare) or, from another EU country, the blue channel. Allowances are set by French customs and are the same at every terminal.

Tax refund (détaxe). Visitors resident outside the European Union can reclaim VAT on purchases made in France above a minimum amount per shop and per day, provided the retailer issued an electronic tax-free form. At CDG the form is validated at the PABLO self-service kiosks in the departures area of each terminal. Do this before checking in any bag that contains the goods, because customs may ask to see them, and leave time for it. The rules and thresholds are set by the French customs authority and change; confirm them on the official sites before you shop.

Lounges, shops and restaurants are airside and specific to each terminal; the widest choice is at 2E and Terminal 1. Left luggage is limited at CDG and not available in every terminal, so do not plan a day in Paris around a locker without checking first. Pharmacies, cash machines and currency exchange exist in each terminal, and Wi-Fi is free throughout.

One service does not belong to any terminal: the information desks run by Paris Aéroport, which exist in every hall and will tell you, in several languages, where your flight is leaving from today. If a screen contradicts your boarding pass, the desk settles it.

Going to the wrong terminal: what to do and what it costs

It happens every day, to experienced travellers as much as to first-timers. The important thing is to recognise it quickly and act, because the cost is measured in minutes you may not have.

Recognise it. The first sign is usually the departure board: your flight is listed with a different hall letter, or not listed at all. The second is the check-in area: no desk shows your airline. Do not queue to ask; look at the board, then go.

Within Terminal 2, halls A to F. You walk. The halls are linked by covered walkways on the public side, and from one end of the chain to the other takes a solid quarter of an hour with luggage; between neighbouring halls it is a few minutes.

To or from 2G. Go to 2F and take the dedicated shuttle bus; allow for the wait and the ride. There is no walking route to 2G.

Between Terminals 1, 2 and 3. Take the CDGVAL, the free automatic train that links the three; it is signposted from every hall and needs no ticket. Door to door, a mistake between terminals costs between twenty and thirty minutes. Do not try to walk, and do not take a taxi for it: the train is quicker. Timings and platforms are in our CDG airport map guide.

If you are now short of time, tell the airline at the first desk you find in the right hall. Bag-drop closure is strict, but agents can sometimes accept a late bag or move you to the next flight if you are in front of them before the gate closes. If you have only hand luggage and a mobile boarding pass, go straight to security, which is the step that takes longest.

On arrival, the mistake is the other way round: your driver, your family or your colleague is waiting at the wrong hall. This is why giving a flight number rather than a terminal to whoever is collecting you matters. A person watching the flight will be at the right exit; a person watching the clock will be at the one you told them a week ago.

Connections at CDG: between airlines and between terminals

CDG is one of Europe's largest connecting hubs, and the terminal structure is built around the most common transfer: an Air France or SkyTeam long-haul flight at 2E joining a European flight at 2F, or the reverse. Other combinations work, but they ask more of your schedule.

Same airline or same alliance, one ticket. The comfortable case. Your bags are checked through, the airline has calculated a minimum connection time it considers achievable, and if the first flight is late, the airline rebooks you. Follow the "correspondances / connecting flights" signs rather than the exit: they keep you airside where possible and route you through passport control only when you cross between Schengen and non-Schengen zones.

Different airlines, one ticket. Many interline tickets exist across alliances, with the same protection. The difference is that the two airlines may be in different terminals, which at CDG can mean a CDGVAL ride and a second security screening. These connections are perfectly feasible, but they are not the ninety-minute kind.

Two separate tickets. The case to approach with caution. Nobody checks your bags through, nobody has promised a connection time, and if the first flight is late the second airline owes you nothing. You will collect your luggage, clear customs, leave the secure area, find the right terminal, check in again and repeat security. Allow three hours at a minimum, and treat anything tighter as a gamble.

Which connections are physically easiest? Within a single hall; then 2E to 2F; then between the paired halls 2A/2C and 2B/2D, which are linked airside; then anywhere within Terminal 1. Connections that involve 2G or a change of terminal are the ones to pad generously. Passport control is the variable that dominates.

One final rule covers all cases: your airline's published minimum connection time is the one that counts, and it assumes you follow the connecting-flight signs rather than exiting.

Frequently asked questions

How many terminals does Paris CDG Airport have?

Three: Terminal 1, Terminal 2 and Terminal 3. Terminal 2 is divided into seven separate halls, 2A to 2G, each with its own check-in, security and arrivals, so in practice a ticket names one of nine places. Read the full code on your boarding pass, letter included.

Which terminal does Air France use at CDG?

Terminal 2. Air France uses 2E for long-haul and most non-Schengen flights, 2F for Schengen and European flights, and 2G for regional flights on smaller aircraft. The hall is printed on your boarding pass; some flights are moved, so always check it before leaving for the airport.

Which airlines use Terminal 1 at CDG?

Mainly Star Alliance airlines, with Lufthansa, United, Turkish Airlines and Singapore Airlines among the best known, together with some other long-haul carriers such as Qatar Airways. A few Star Alliance members use Terminal 2 instead, so confirm your own airline on your boarding pass or on parisaeroport.fr.

Which terminal is Terminal 2E, and who flies from it?

2E is the flagship long-haul hall of Terminal 2, used by Air France for intercontinental and most non-Schengen flights and by SkyTeam partners such as Delta Air Lines. It has three boarding areas, K, L and M, two of them satellites reached by an automatic shuttle, all served by one check-in area and one arrivals level.

Do low-cost airlines use Terminal 3 at CDG?

Several do, along with charter operators, but not all of them: some budget carriers fly from Terminal 2, typically hall 2D. Ryanair and Wizz Air do not serve CDG at all; they fly from Beauvais, a separate airport 85 km north of Paris. Transavia France flies from Orly. Your boarding pass settles the question.

How do I find out which terminal my flight leaves from?

Check, in this order, your boarding pass, your airline's app, and the flight search on parisaeroport.fr. All three show the terminal and hall. For a codeshare, the terminal is the operating airline's, not the one that sold the ticket. Look the evening before and again shortly before leaving, because allocations can change.

Where does British Airways fly from at CDG?

At the time of writing, hall 2B of Terminal 2, which reopened after a full rebuild and shares a building with 2D. Flights to London are non-Schengen, so allow for passport control. As with every airline, confirm the hall on your boarding pass, as allocations do change.

Where does Emirates fly from at CDG?

Hall 2C of Terminal 2, next to 2A on the same side of the central roadway and a short covered walk from the Terminal 2 railway station. Emirates has used 2C for many years, but check the hall on your boarding pass before you travel.

What happens if I go to the wrong terminal at CDG?

Between halls 2A and 2F you walk, a few minutes between neighbours and about a quarter of an hour end to end. To 2G you take the shuttle bus from 2F. Between Terminals 1, 2 and 3 you take the free CDGVAL train, which costs twenty to thirty minutes door to door. Check the departure board, go straight to the right hall and tell the first agent you find if you are now short of time.

Can I connect between Terminal 1 and Terminal 2 on one ticket?

Yes. Many interline and alliance tickets connect a Terminal 1 airline with one at Terminal 2. You follow the connecting-flight signs, take the CDGVAL, and pass security again in the new terminal, plus passport control if you cross between Schengen and non-Schengen zones. The airline's published minimum connection time is what counts; on two separate tickets, allow at least three hours.

Related guides

Arrive at the right terminal, every time

Whichever hall your flight is using today, a pre-booked chauffeur is waiting at that exit with your name. We follow your flight number, not the terminal you booked, so a last-minute move changes nothing for you. Fixed price from €119 to Paris, 60 minutes of waiting included, door to door.

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