The first station near this location, simply named "Upwey", was opened in 1871 by the Great Western Railway (GWR). On 19 April 1886 that station was replaced by the current station, then named "Upwey Junction", a railway junction that opened south of the original station to provide access to the single track Abbotsbury branch. The branch was absorbed into the GWR and survived for 66 years before closure under British Railways in 1952. On the closure of the branch Upwey Junction was renamed "Upwey and Broadwey" on 1 December 1952, and took its current name, "Upwey", on 12 May 1980.