Seoul subway and bus fares, with a transfer calculator
Numbers checked against the official source on 2026-10-19
A single adult subway ride in Seoul costs ₩1,550 with a transit card and ₩1,650 in cash. A regular blue or green city bus costs ₩1,500. If you tap your card when you get off and transfer within 30 minutes, the next ride is mostly free: you pay the highest base fare of the modes you used, plus ₩100 for every 5 km beyond the first 10 km of the whole trip.
Trip calculator
Pick the rides of one trip in order, the total distance, and how you pay. The calculator only applies rules written on the Seoul Metropolitan Government's fare pages.
The calculator stops at 50 km because the official English page does not give the distance rule above 50 km. Age groups on the official bus page: adult 19+, teen 12–18, child 6–12 — the page lists age 12 in both the teen and child groups.
Subway fares
| Rider | Transit card | Cash (single-ride ticket) | Early morning, card (20% off) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adult | ₩1,550 | ₩1,650 | ₩1,240 |
| Teen | ₩900 | ₩1,650 | ₩720 |
| Child | ₩550 | ₩550 | ₩440 |
- Base distance: the base fare covers 10 km; after that the official page adds ₩100 per 5 km.
- Early morning discount: 20% off the first ride before 6:30 AM when paying by card.
- Cash costs more: the single-ride ticket from the vending machine is ₩100 above the card fare for adults. A teen paying cash pays the adult cash price (₩1,650), so a card saves a teen ₩750 per ride.
Bus fares
| Bus type | Rider | Card | Cash | Early morning, card |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Trunk (blue) / branch (green) | Adult | ₩1,500 | ₩1,500 | ₩1,200 |
| Teen | ₩900 | ₩1,000 | ₩720 | |
| Child | ₩550 | ₩550 | ₩440 | |
| Rapid (red) | Adult | ₩3,000 | ₩3,000 | ₩2,400 |
| Teen | ₩1,700 | ₩1,800 | ₩1,360 | |
| Child | ₩1,500 | ₩1,500 | ₩1,200 | |
| Circulation (yellow) / branch with differential fare | Adult | ₩1,400 | ₩1,400 | ₩1,120 |
| Teen | ₩800 | ₩800 | ₩640 | |
| Child | ₩500 | ₩500 | ₩400 | |
| Owl (late-night) | Adult | ₩2,500 | ₩2,500 | — |
| Teen | ₩1,600 | ₩1,800 | — | |
| Child | ₩1,400 | ₩1,400 | — |
A bus ride on its own is a flat fare — the official page calls it a single-fare system. The distance charge only starts to matter when you transfer.
How the transfer discount works
- Tap when you get off. The integrated fare only applies if you tap your card both when boarding and when getting off each bus or subway.
- Board the next ride within 30 minutes of getting off — 60 minutes between 9 PM and 7 AM.
- You pay the highest base fare among the modes you used. Ride a ₩1,500 bus and then the ₩1,550 subway, and the base is ₩1,550, not ₩3,050.
- Distance is added for the whole trip: ₩100 for every 5 km beyond 10 km, counting all rides together.
- No transfer on the same bus or route. Getting back on the same bus or the same route number costs a new base fare.
- Paying for others: one card can pay for several people on a bus, and they can transfer together only if they board and get off at the same places as the same group. The bus page says this group discount does not extend to the subway.
Where the two official pages disagree
The subway page and the bus page of the same city website describe the transfer rules in different words. Both are quoted here so you can see the gap.
| Topic | Subway page says | Bus page says | What it means |
|---|---|---|---|
| Number of transfers | "up to 5 free transfers" | "Transfers are accepted up to 4 times (5 boardings)" | The bus page counts transfers (4) and boardings (5) separately. The subway page's "5" matches the 5 boardings. In practice: one trip can include up to 5 rides; a 6th ride starts a new fare. |
| Late-night window | "60 min. from 9 PM to 7 AM" | Transfer rules: "Within 60 min. from 9 PM to 7 AM next day". Transfer tips: "within 1 hr from 9 AM to 7 AM next day" | The "9 AM" line in the bus page's tips box contradicts the rules box on the same page and the subway page. The longer window runs from 9 PM. |
Worked examples (adult, transit card)
| Trip | Calculation | You pay |
|---|---|---|
| Subway only, 8 km | Base ₩1,550 (within 10 km) | ₩1,550 |
| Subway only, 23 km | ₩1,550 + 3 × ₩100 (13 km over → 3 steps of 5 km) | ₩1,850 |
| Blue bus → subway, 14 km total | Highest base ₩1,550 + 1 × ₩100 | ₩1,650 |
| Green bus → subway → blue bus, 9 km | Highest base ₩1,550, no distance charge | ₩1,550 |
| Same three rides paid in cash | ₩1,500 + ₩1,650 + ₩1,500, no transfer discount | ₩4,650 |
Cards that work
The bus page lists prepaid transit cards — T-money, Cashbee, Hanpay, Rail+, Onepass and others — sold at convenience stores and bus card charging stations, and deferred (post-paid) transport cards such as credit or debit cards from card companies and banks.
Children under 6 ride free when they travel with an adult guardian, up to three per adult. A fourth child, or a young child riding alone, pays the child fare.
Common questions
Is a teen discount automatic?
The teen fare applies only on a card. Cash teens pay the adult cash fare on the subway (₩1,650).
Can I transfer when paying cash?
No. The integrated fare needs a card tap when boarding and getting off, so every cash ride is paid in full.
What is the "minimum transfer amount ₩250"?
The bus page lists "The minimum transfer amount is ₩250" among its transfer tips, without more detail. Keep more than that on the card when you tap off.
Which line has the 15-minute re-entry rule?
The subway page lists sections where you can tap out and back in within 15 minutes without a new fare (reference date Oct. 7, 2023). Lines 2, 5, 8, 9, the Ui-Sinseol line and the Sillim line are covered in full; Lines 1, 3, 4, 6 and 7 only between the stations named on that page.
Official sources
- Seoul Metropolitan Government — Subway — subway fare table as of Jun. 28, 2025; transfer and distance rules; 15-minute re-entry sections (checked 2026-10-19)
- Seoul Metropolitan Government — Bus — bus fare table as of Aug. 12, 2023 (New column); transfer rules and tips; payment methods; free rides for under-6s (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.