The station was opened by the London and South Western Railway (LSWR) on 5 May 1845,[2] but was substantially enlarged and rebuilt in 1880.

[2] LSWR services to Farnham via Tongham began on 8 October 1849 and the New Guildford Line to Leatherhead and Epsom Downs on 2 February 1885.

The line to it describes a curve around the town on an embankment, crossing the River Wey by a high bridge.

Guildford station was also the northern terminus of the former Cranleigh Line which was opened 2 October 1865 by the London Brighton and South Coast Railway and closed almost one hundred years later on 12 June 1965.

Guildford station was the site of an important motive power depot opened by the LSWR in 1845.

[10] In April 2011, BAA announced that it was abandoning the project,[11] citing the unavailability of government subsidy and other priorities for Heathrow,[12] such as linking to Crossrail and High Speed 2.