It runs from Cercedilla northwest of Madrid to Guadalajara railway station.

[1][2] The C-8 shares tracks for the majority its length with Madrid commuter rail service line C-3 while it also shares significant parts with lines C-7, and C-10.

Like the rest of Cercanías Madrid lines, the C-8 runs on the Iberian gauge mainline railway system, which is owned by Adif, an agency of the Spanish government.

The C-8 operates on a total line length of 135 kilometres (84 mi),[citation needed] which is entirely double-track.

The trains on the line call at up to 32 stations, using the following railway lines, in order from west to east:[3] The following table lists the name of each station served by line C-8 in order from west to east; the station's service pattern offered by C-8 trains; the transfers to other Cercanías Madrid lines; remarkable transfers to other transport systems; the municipality in which each station is located; and the fare zone each station belongs to according to the Madrid Metro fare zone system.