How much is the subway in Daegu? Flat fare by card or single ticket, and bus transfers
Numbers checked against the official source on 2026-10-19
A Daegu Metro ride is a flat ₩1,500 for an adult on a transit card, whatever the distance, on all three lines. A one-time token ticket costs ₩1,700, so the card saves ₩200 a ride. Teens (13 to 18) pay ₩850 and children (6 to 12) ₩400 on a card. The operator's fare page was last edited on 2026-01-15.
Card or single ticket?
| Rider | Age on the page | Transit card | One-time ticket | Card saves |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adult | 19 and over (see the age note below) | 1,500 | 1,700 | 200 |
| Teen | 13 to 18 | 850 | 1,700 | 850 |
| Child | 6 to 12 | 400 | 500 | 100 |
The "saves" column is derived arithmetic: adult ₩1,700 − ₩1,500 = ₩200, teen ₩1,700 − ₩850 = ₩850, child ₩500 − ₩400 = ₩100. The page lists the one-time token for "adult/youth" at ₩1,700 and a discounted ₩500 for children. A child aged 6 or over pays the child fare even before starting school, and a child aged 12 or under pays it even in middle school.
Which cards work, and where you can top up
- Prepaid cards that can be used: Daegyeong, Toppass, Onepass, T-money, Cashbee, Hanpay and Rail+. Postpaid: KB, BC, NongHyup, Shinhan, Lotte, Hyundai, Samsung, Hana and Citi credit cards.
- Top-up: the page says prepaid cards other than Daegyeong, Toppass and Onepass can be used on Daegu Metro but cannot be topped up there. Load a T-money card elsewhere first (see our T-money page).
- Top-up limits: Daegyeong ₩1,000 to ₩100,000; Toppass and Onepass ₩1,000 to ₩500,000; in ₩1,000 units. Buying a ticket or topping up is by cash or a bank cashier's cheque of ₩100,000 or less only.
- Refunds: card balances are refunded at iM Bank branches, not at metro stations; the card purchase price is not refunded and a handling fee applies.
Transfers to buses and the Daegyeong Line
With a transit card, switching between the metro and a bus (or the Daegyeong Line) is free or discounted, within the Daegu area (Daegu, Gyeongsan, Yeongcheon, Cheongdo, Goryeong, Seongju, Chilgok, Gimcheon and Gumi).
| Mode | Fare |
|---|---|
| Metro, seat bus, regular bus | Adult 1,500 / teen 850 / child 400 |
| Express and direct bus | Adult 1,950 / teen 1,100 / child 650 |
| Daegyeong Line (regional rail) | 1,500 to 2,800 by distance |
- Time limit: within 30 minutes of getting off (60 minutes on routes other than the Daegu/Gyeongsan shared routes and the Daegyeong Line); the page prints "once, two transfers possible", which is not explained further.
- Express buses charge the difference. Getting off the metro and re-boarding the metro, or boarding the same bus route again, is not a free transfer.
- Metro to Daegyeong Line transfers are 50% off. You must tap the card correctly when you get off.
Free rides and the age note
Free passes cover disabled people (including one companion of a severely disabled person), national merit holders and seniors. The page's own tables disagree on the senior age:
| Where on the page | What it says |
|---|---|
| Ticket table, adult card row | Adult card: age 19 or over and under 67 |
| Ticket table, free pass | Free at 70 or over, "phased age increase": 67 in 2025, 68 in 2026, 69 in 2027, 70 in 2028 |
| Card-type table | Adult card: age 19 or over and under 68 |
So in 2026 the senior free age is 68 on the schedule and the second table agrees; the first table shows the 2025 figure. Seniors' free cards are issued only to residents of Daegu, Gyeongsan and Yeongcheon, so a visitor pays the adult fare. Children under 6 ride free (up to three per guardian).
Group tickets and penalties
- Group ticket: for 20 or more people, 90% of the number of people times the base (card) fare, i.e. a 10% discount.
- Fare evasion: using a youth, child or senior card without qualifying, or entering without a valid ticket, is charged the correct fare plus 30 times the card fare (derived arithmetic: 30 × ₩1,500 = ₩45,000 for an adult card fare).
- Youth, child and senior cards require an ID on request.
Common questions
Is the Daegu metro fare based on distance?
No. The operator describes a flat-fare system: one fare for any distance on Lines 1, 2 and 3.
Can a foreign visitor use a T-money card in Daegu?
Yes, T-money is on the list of usable prepaid cards, but the page says it can be used but not topped up at the metro.
Read on 2026-10-19; the page prints a last-edit date of 2026-01-15. The English version of the page was not read, and these figures come from the Korean page. Not covered: the Daegyeong Line fare table, tax-deduction rules for card spending, and application steps for the I-Joa and senior cards.
Official sources
- Daegu Transportation Corporation (DTRO) — fare system — flat fare, ticket table, cards and top-up, free passes, group ticket, refund; page prints last-edit date 2026-01-15 (Korean page, read 2026-10-19) (checked 2026-10-19)
- DTRO — metro to bus and Daegyeong Line transfers — free/discounted transfer area, fares, time limit, cards (Korean page, read 2026-10-19) (checked 2026-10-19)
- DTRO — surcharge for improper fares — 30 times base fare surcharge (Korean page, read 2026-10-19) (checked 2026-10-19)
Prices change. If an official page shows a different number from this page, the official page wins — and please tell us so we can fix it.