Transit cards for visitors
Korea’s buses and subways run on a tap card, and your home contactless card is not a dependable transit pass yet. Here’s how T-money and the Climate Card work — and which one fits your trip.
A rough estimate from the figures you enter — actual fares, transfer discounts and prices vary, so verify the current price before buying. Nothing you type is stored.
Which transit card should I get?
For most visitors, T-money is the simple default — buy it on arrival, tap, and top up as you go. The Climate Card is worth it only if you’ll ride a lot within Seoul for 1–7 days. Foreign contactless tapping is still being rolled out, so don’t rely on your home card as the transit card.
Why is that? Korea’s fare gates still mostly read prepaid transport cards (or domestic cards with a transport function), not overseas Visa/Mastercard contactless. T-money works nationwide; the Climate Card trades flexibility for unlimited Seoul rides over fixed dates.
T-money: buy, top up, refund
Buy a T-money card at any convenience store or station booth, load it with cash, and tap on. When you leave, you can refund the leftover balance at a convenience store — minus a small fee, and not the card price itself.
Why is that? T-money is prepaid and cash-based: top-up machines and store clerks take cash, not foreign cards. Tapping both on and off (especially on buses) is what triggers the transfer discount.
Climate Card: unlimited rides in Seoul
The visitor-friendly Climate Card is the short-term Seoul pass: 1, 2, 3, 5 or 7 days of unlimited subway and bus rides within the covered Seoul area. It does not replace T-money for the airport, Gyeonggi/Incheon, or longer trips.
Why is that? It’s a Seoul city pass, so the deal is unlimited rides for a flat price inside the city. If you ride a lot in central Seoul it can beat paying per trip; if you only ride a few times a day, leave the city, or stay longer than the short-pass window, T-money is usually simpler.
Can I just tap my own card?
Do not plan on it yet. Seoul is rolling out open-loop (EMV) acceptance, but it is not complete enough to treat an overseas Visa/Mastercard contactless card as your main transit card. Carry T-money or a Climate Card.
Why is that? Korea’s transit fare system was built around domestic transport cards, not the EMV contactless used abroad. The city is upgrading readers in phases, so full foreign-card tapping is a few years out.
Find your fit
Common terms
Frequently asked
For Seoul subway, Tmoney lists the adult base fare as ₩1,550 with a transport card; buses and long-distance rides can differ. Transfers between bus and subway within about 30 minutes usually don’t add a new base fare.
Only if you ride a lot within Seoul. For multi-day Seoul-only sightseeing it often starts to make sense around three rides a day, but the card cost and your exact days matter — use the picker above with your own plan.
The Climate Card is a Seoul pass. You may not be able to exit outside the covered area, and you cannot board with it at Incheon Airport Terminal 1 or 2. Keep a T-money card for the airport, Gyeonggi/Incheon, and intercity trips.