The principal application for maglev has always been considered to be the high speed transport of passengers between major centers of population. Maglev is often viewed as a sort of super-speed train that competes with airplanes for inter-city passengers. Moreover, potential maglev systems are generally examined in the context of routes between major population centers in a country or a region.

Maglev has many other applications, however, where it offers great advantages and benefits, and where systems can payback their construction cost in a much shorter time than an intercity passenger route.