Korea Transit Cards Compared: T-money, Climate Card and Tourist Passes (2026)

Which card should you get?

Your trip	Best choice
A few days, mixed subway, bus and taxi, maybe Busan too	T-money (or a T-money variant with tourist discounts)
1–7 days of heavy subway and bus use inside Seoul	Climate Card short-term pass
You’d rather not carry cash and want a prepaid card for shopping too	WOWPASS
Planning to visit lots of paid attractions in Seoul	Discover Seoul Pass (transit is a bonus, not the point)
Long-distance trains around the country	KORAIL Pass (on top of a T-money card for local travel)

T-money: the default choice

T-money is Korea’s standard rechargeable transit card. You load money onto it and tap in and out.

• Where to buy: convenience stores (GS25, CU, 7-Eleven, Emart24 and others), subway station machines, and Tmoney Town at Seoul Station.
• Price: about ₩3,000 for a plain card. Tourist versions with partner discounts cost a little more (see below).
• Top-up: with cash, in ₩1,000 steps up to ₩90,000 at a time, at convenience stores and station machines. Bring Korean won.
• Where it works: subways and buses nationwide, taxis with a card reader, and convenience stores.
• Fares: a basic subway ride in Seoul costs about ₩1,550 and a city bus about ₩1,500.
• Transfers: switching between subway and bus, or between different buses, within 30 minutes (1 hour from 9 pm to 7 am) gets you a discount. Tap your card when you get off the bus too, or you lose it.
• Refunds: unused balance can be refunded minus ₩500. The card price is not refunded.

Tourist versions of T-money

Card	Price	What’s different
Tmoney Travel Card	₩4,000	Normal T-money plus discounts at partner shops and attractions. Sold at convenience stores and the Incheon Airport bus ticket office
Tmoney Travel Card+ (WOWPASS)	₩6,000	Combines T-money with WOWPASS payment features. Sold at convenience stores

The older Korea Tour Card is no longer sold. If you already have one, it still works and gets the same partner discounts.

Climate Card short-term pass (unlimited rides in Seoul)

Seoul’s Climate Card gives unlimited rides on Seoul’s subway and buses. Visitors can buy short-term passes:

Pass	Price
1 day	₩5,000
2 days	₩8,000
3 days	₩10,000
5 days	₩15,000
7 days	₩20,000

The physical card costs an extra ₩3,000.

How it works

• The pass starts on the day you charge it and runs from the first to the last train. You can’t charge it in advance.
• Buy it with a foreign card: since 17 March 2026, the newer machines at 273 stations on subway Lines 1–8 accept Visa and Mastercard, with a fee of around 3–4%. You can also pay with cash.
• The mobile version needs a Korean payment method, so visitors should get the physical card.

What’s included

• Seoul subway lines, including getting off at Incheon Airport and Gimpo Airport
• Seoul city buses, including night buses

What’s not included

• The Shinbundang Line
• Stations outside Seoul
• Express and airport limousine buses
• Gyeonggi Province buses
• Starting an airport train trip at Incheon Airport

Is it worth it? At about ₩1,500 a ride, the 1-day pass pays off on your fourth separate trip of the day. The 3-day pass works out to about ₩3,300 a day. If you’ll mostly walk, or you’re going to Busan, stick with T-money.

WOWPASS

WOWPASS is a prepaid card for foreign visitors that also works as a T-money transit card.

• The card costs ₩5,000. You need your passport to get one, from a WOWPASS kiosk or ordered online for pickup.
• You can top up the transit balance in the WOWPASS app with Visa, Mastercard, JCB or PayPal. This is handy if you don’t want to carry cash.
• Kiosks also exchange cash in many foreign currencies.

Discover Seoul Pass

This is mainly an attractions pass covering around 70 sights, with 72-hour and 120-hour versions. The physical card also works as a T-money transit card and includes one free airport train ride. Pick it up at Incheon Airport, Gimpo Airport or the Myeongdong Tourist Information Center. Buy it for the attractions, not for transit.

Paying with your phone

• iPhone: since March 2026, the Tmoney app has a foreigner option. You can top up with a foreign Mastercard, Amex or UnionPay (not Visa) and add T-money to Apple Wallet to ride the subway and buses. The Climate Card can’t be added to Apple Wallet.
• Tapping a foreign bank card at the gate: not possible yet. Seoul plans to accept foreign contactless cards on city buses from 2027 and is replacing subway gates after that.

Long-distance trains: KORAIL Pass

The KORAIL Pass gives foreign visitors unlimited KTX and other KORAIL trains on 2, 3, 4 or 5 days of your choice. Adult prices are ₩131,000, ₩186,000, ₩234,000 and ₩275,000. It doesn’t cover city subways or buses, so you’ll still want a T-money card.

Planning your days? Load a sample itinerary into the trip planner, or estimate your total transport spend with the budget calculator.