2026 fares and caps
| Price | |
|---|---|
| Zone 1 Tube single | £3.10 peak, £3.00 off-peak |
| Zones 1–2 daily cap | £8.90 |
| Zones 1–2 weekly cap (Monday–Sunday) | £44.70 |
| Zones 1–6 daily cap | £16.30 |
| Bus or tram single | £1.75 (£1.85 from 1 November 2026) |
| Bus and tram daily cap | £5.25 (£5.55 from 1 November 2026) |
| Oyster card fee | £10.50, non-refundable |
Caps are frozen until March 2027. Weekly caps run Monday to Sunday, not any seven days.
Contactless bank card or phone
There is nothing to buy or top up, and both daily and weekly caps apply automatically. The only catch is your bank: some overseas cards charge a foreign transaction fee on every tap, which can add up.
When an Oyster card is worth it
- Your bank card charges foreign transaction fees.
- You want a prepaid balance to control spending, for example for a child aged 11–15 on a Young Visitor discount.
- You have a National Railcard: it can be added to an Oyster card at a Tube station for a third off off-peak fares, but not to a contactless card.
The card fee rose to £10.50 in March 2026 and is not refundable, so for a short stay contactless is usually cheaper.
Tapping rules
- Tube, DLR, Overground, Elizabeth line and trains: tap in and out, even if the gates are open.
- Buses and trams: tap in only. The bus Hopper fare gives unlimited bus and tram journeys within an hour of your first tap.
- Tap only one card on the reader to avoid 'card clash'.
- Not tapping out can cost a maximum fare of up to £9.90.
Airports
- Heathrow: pay-as-you-go works on the Piccadilly line, Elizabeth line and Heathrow Express (Heathrow Express is not capped).
- Gatwick: contactless and Oyster work on Southern, Thameslink and Gatwick Express.
- Stansted: contactless (not Oyster) has worked since March 2026, including on the Stansted Express.
- Luton: contactless works to Luton Airport Parkway and on the DART shuttle; Oyster does not work on the DART.
- London City: Oyster and contactless work on the DLR.
Fares and times checked September 2026. Prices change, so confirm with the operator before you travel.