All trains operate a through service onto the Keihin-Tōhoku Line past Yokohama to Kamata, Tokyo, Minami-Urawa and Ōmiya.

As a result, the entire service between Ōmiya and Ōfuna is typically referred to as the Keihin-Tōhoku—Negishi Line (Japanese: 京浜東北線・根岸線) on system maps and in-train station guides.

Between approximately 09:30 & 14:30 trains display Rapid, as they omit some stops in Central Tokyo on the Keihin-Tohoku Line portion of the service.

The line was extended to Kōzu on July 11, 1887; trains had to reverse direction at Yokohama via a switchback to continue their journey.

On August 15, 1915, a new Yokohama Station opened, absorbing nearby Takashimachō and becoming the new terminus of the line.

The line was planned to be extended to Ōfuna, and in 1920 the Government Railways decided that the extension route would be parallel to the Ōoka River and then turn to Hodogaya.

From Hodogaya to Ōfuna, additional tracks would be added to the existing Tōkaidō Main Line.

Freight services between Ōfuna and Isogo ceased on February 1, 1984; three days prior to this, the line adopted Automatic Train Control.