Vande Bharat Express: how many trains, full route list, and what makes it different

Vande Bharat has gone from a single showcase train in 2019 to one of the backbones of India's premium rail network. As of early 2026, more than 160 Vande Bharat services operate across upwards of 100 routes, plus the country's first Sleeper variant — and Indian Railways continues to add new corridors regularly, so exact counts shift month to month.

How many Vande Bharat trains are there right now?

The network has grown from a single Delhi–Varanasi service in 2019 to well over 160 trains today, spread across every major railway zone in the country. Because new routes are flagged off every few weeks, the most reliable way to confirm the current count for a specific corridor is IRCTC's train search rather than any fixed number — treat any "as of" figure, including this one, as a snapshot rather than a permanent total.

The chair-car network

Most Vande Bharat services are self-propelling AC chair-car trainsets, built under the Make in India programme, designed for fast daytime intercity travel — the same slot Shatabdi Express used to own, but with quicker acceleration and a noticeably smoother ride.

• Popular corridors include New Delhi–Varanasi, New Delhi–Katra (Mata Vaishno Devi), Mumbai–Ahmedabad, Chennai–Bengaluru, and Howrah–New Jalpaiguri.
• The Howrah–New Jalpaiguri route is a favourite with travellers heading onward to Darjeeling.
• South and East India have both seen steady additions, including Secunderabad–Visakhapatnam and Durg–Visakhapatnam services, alongside newer corridors into previously underserved cities like Ranchi.
• Newer additions, including a Jammu–Srinagar service, continue to extend the network into previously underserved corridors.

Vande Bharat Sleeper — the overnight version

The first Vande Bharat Sleeper service, connecting Howrah and Kamakhya, began regular operation in January 2026 — India's first sleeper Vande Bharat and, for now, the only one you can actually book. It's aimed squarely at routes currently served by Rajdhani-class trains, with more sleeper corridors expected to follow as additional rakes clear testing.