How to Ride the Seoul Subway: Tickets, Gates, Transfers (2026)

1Step 1 — Read the line, the station number and the direction

Every line has a number and a colour, and every station has a number. The first digit or digits are the line: Seoul Station on Line 4 is 426, Seolleung on Line 2 is 220, Daechi on Line 3 is 345. Station signs show the station name in Korean, English, Chinese and Japanese, with the previous and next stations on either side.

On the street, look for the numbered 출입구churipguEntrance sign and the station name. Map apps call these numbered exits ("Exit 5"), and the same number works for entering.

2Step 2 — Pay: T-money or a single-journey ticket

With T-money, go straight to the gates. Without one, use the machine labelled 1회용 발매·교통카드 충전기ilhoeyong balmae gyotongkadeu chungjeongiTicket vending and card reload machine. Seoul Metro's guide gives these steps:

1. Choose your language at the bottom of the screen: 한국어hangugeoKorean, ENGLISH, 日本語 or 中文.
2. Choose the single-journey ticket. In English mode it reads "Single Journey Ticket". On the Korail-run machine in our reference photo the Korean button reads 목적지 선택mokjeokji seontaekSelect destination.
3. Find your destination by the first letter of its name, or by "Search Station Number" on the line map.
4. Choose how many tickets, then pay the fare plus a ₩500 deposit per ticket.
5. Take the ticket from 1회용 교통카드 나오는 곳ilhoeyong gyotongkadeu naoneun gotSingle-journey ticket comes out here.

As of October 2026 a single-journey ticket costs ₩100 more than the card fare, so ₩1,650 for the first 10 km, plus the deposit. Since 17 March 2026, 440 new-type machines in 273 stations on Lines 1–8 accept foreign Visa and Mastercard cards for single-journey tickets, with an average 3.7% service fee, according to Seoul city.

Know the limits of the 1회용 교통카드ilhoeyong gyotongkadeuSingle-journey ticket. It works only on the subway, so there is no bus transfer. Seoul Metro's machine screens also warn that it cannot be used for a few gated line changes, such as between Line 1 and Line 9 at Noryangjin.

3Step 3 — Tap through the gate

The reader is on the right side of the turnstile. Hold the card or ticket flat on it. T-money says a good tap shows a circle (○) with one beep. Three beeps and an X mean "tap again". Take the card out of your wallet first: two cards near the reader can both be charged.

If you go through the wrong gate, a card user who taps again at the same station within 15 minutes is not charged the base fare a second time (same line only at transfer stations). This does not apply to single-journey tickets, according to Seoul Metro.

4Step 4 — Find the platform and ride

Follow the line colour and the direction signs to the platform. The direction sign lists the next stations, so check that your destination is on it.

5Step 5 — Transfer

To change lines inside the station, follow the 갈아타는 곳garataneun gotTransfer signs with the colour and number of the next line. You stay inside the gates.

The free transfer between subway and bus works only with a transit card. Board the next vehicle within 30 minutes of tapping out, or within 60 minutes between 21:00 and the next day's 07:00. Seoul Metro says that if your card does not touch the reader when you get off, you lose the transfer and pay separate fares.

6Step 6 — Exit and get your deposit back

Follow the 나가는 곳naganeun gotExit signs and tap your card or ticket on the reader again.

With a single-journey ticket, go to the 보증금 환급기bojeunggeum hwangeupgiDeposit refund machine near the gates:

1. Insert the ticket into 카드 넣는 곳kadeu neonneun gotInsert card here.
2. Take your ₩500 coin from 동전 나오는 곳dongjeon naoneun gotCoins come out here.

The machine only refunds used tickets. If you bought a ticket and did not travel, press 역 직원 통화yeok jigwon tonghwaCall station staff on the machine; T-money's FAQ says the fare and deposit of an unused ticket can be refunded within 45 days of issue. You can claim a deposit at any station, not only where you got off.