Do You Need Cash for Seoul Transport? (2026)

Checked Sept 29, 2026

Chart of where cash matters on Seoul transport in September 2026: topping up T-money is cash only in 1,000 won steps; subway gates take no cash; new ticket kiosks take cash or cards; old ticket machines take notes from 1,000 to 50,000 won and 50, 100 and 500 won coins; most city buses take 1,500 won cash but without a transfer discount; 183 cash-free bus routes take no cash; taxis take cash or cards — Where cash still matters on Seoul buses and subway, September 2026. Chart: Before You Go Korea

A little. You can't pay cash at a Seoul subway gate, and you can get around without cash if you use a Climate Card pass bought with a foreign card, or T-money on your phone. But topping up a plastic T-money card is still cash only, at stations and at convenience stores.

Most city buses still take cash, 1,500 won for an adult, but 183 routes are cash-free and cash loses the transfer discount. Bring some won, mostly in 1,000 and 10,000 won notes.

Does cash work? It's the first of five things I check before every trip abroad, a habit from years of living abroad. Here is where cash still counts on Seoul's buses and subway, and where it doesn't.

SubwayNo cash at the gate · cash buys tickets at machines

T-money top-upCash only, 1,000 won steps (stations and convenience stores)

Bus1,500 won cash on most routes · not on 183 cash-free routes

Cash catchNo bus–subway transfer discount when you pay cash

Card insteadForeign cards buy tickets and Climate Card passes at new kiosks, Lines 1–8

TaxiCash or card

Jump to: Subway · Buses · Which machines take notes · Top up without cash? · Convenience stores · Taxis · How much to carry · FAQ

Can I pay cash on the Seoul subway?

Not at the gate. The gates only read cards. With cash you have two choices at a ticket machine:

Buy a single-journey ticket (1회용 교통카드): 1,650 won for an adult trip up to 10 km, plus a 500 won deposit you get back after the ride.
Top up a T-money card and tap that. The adult T-money fare is 1,550 won, 100 won less than a single ticket.

You don't strictly need cash for the subway anymore. Since March 17, 2026, the 440 new kiosks on Lines 1 to 8 take foreign cards for single tickets and Climate Card tourist passes, with a fee of about 3.7%.

Can I pay cash on a Seoul bus?

On most routes, yes. The adult cash fare is the same as the card fare: 1,500 won on blue and green buses, 1,400 on yellow circular buses, 3,000 on red express buses, 2,500 on night buses and 1,200 on village buses. Teenagers pay a bit more in cash than by card on some buses.

Two catches:

Cash-free buses. Seoul lists 183 routes as 현금 없는 버스 ("cash-free bus"), as of January 2026. That is close to half of the city's roughly 390 routes. They take cards and mobile T-money only.
No transfer discount. Seoul's bus–subway transfer discount works only with a transit card. Pay cash and your next ride is a full new fare.

If you board a cash-free bus with no card, the city's guidance from 2023 was a payment slip for a later bank transfer, or a QR code to set up mobile T-money. Neither is easy for a visitor. Carry a card.

A notice headed 현금없는버스 안내드립니다 (cashless bus notice) on the window of a Seoul bus, next to a red handrail — A 현금없는버스 (cash-free bus) notice inside a Seoul bus, Sept 2026. Photo: Before You Go Korea

T-money card reader next to the front door of a Seoul bus, with a small ad screen and a reader pad labelled Tmoney and Place your card or mobile — The card reader by the front door of a Seoul bus, Sept 29, 2026. Photo: Before You Go Korea

Which ticket machines take notes?

Older Seoul subway ticket machine with a bill slot labelled 1000, 5000, 10000 and 50000 won, a bill return slot below it, a coin slot for 50, 100 and 500 won coins and a red Call for the Assistant button — The old machine's bill slot, marked for 1,000 to 50,000 won notes, Sept 29, 2026. Photo: Before You Go Korea

Both kinds of station machine take won notes and coins.

When I photographed an older ticket machine on Sept 29, 2026, its bill slot was marked for 1,000, 5,000, 10,000 and 50,000 won notes. Its coin slot takes 50, 100 and 500 won coins. A panel limits one go to 15 notes.

There is a catch with big notes. A label under that machine's bill slot says a 50,000 won note is accepted only when the change is 10,900 won or less. A single ticket is 2,150 won with the deposit, so a 50,000 won note won't buy one there. Break big notes at a convenience store first.

The new kiosks have a bill slot and a coin slot too, next to the card reader. They are the only machines where a foreign card works.

Can I top up T-money without cash?

Not a plastic card at a machine. Seoul's FAQ says card payment at station machines covers single tickets, commuter passes and the Climate Card short-term pass. Prepaid cards are topped up with cash, in 1,000 won steps.

The cash-free options are all on a phone or a different product:

iPhone: the Mobile T-money app (모바일티머니) lets visitors top up with a foreign Mastercard, American Express, UnionPay or JCB, then add the card to Apple Wallet. Visa isn't on the app's list.
Android: T-money's KOREA TOUR CARD app takes foreign cards, with a 3.2% fee and a 50,000 won monthly limit.
No top-up at all: buy a Climate Card tourist pass with a foreign card at a new kiosk. It covers unlimited rides in Seoul for 1 to 7 days.

WOWPASS is a mixed case. Its November 2025 guide describes topping up the T-money side in the app from your WOWPASS balance. Its FAQ page still says you can't, and that you top up with cash. I couldn't test it.

Do convenience stores take cash for T-money?

Yes, and in practice only cash. GS25, CU, 7-Eleven and emart24 sell T-money cards and top them up at the counter. Hand over the card and the notes and say "티머니 충전해 주세요" (T-money chung-jeon hae ju-se-yo, "top up my T-money, please"). Travel guides updated in 2026 all report that stores won't take a card for the top-up.

Stores also refund small leftover balances before you fly home, for a 500 won fee. The limit depends on the chain: up to 20,000 won at most stores and 30,000 won at CU and emart24, according to WOWPASS's guide. Larger balances, up to 50,000 won, go to a subway station.

Do Seoul taxis take cash?

Yes. Taxis take won cash, T-money and cards. The taxi payment terminal made by T-money Mobility lists Visa, Mastercard, UnionPay, JCB and American Express. I covered taxis and apps in Can you use Uber in Korea?

How much cash should I carry?

Work it out from your rides. At 1,550 won per subway trip and 1,500 per bus, four trips a day cost about 6,000 to 6,500 won. So 10,000 won per busy day covers top-ups with room to spare. Carry it as 1,000 and 10,000 won notes, not 50,000s.

On a Climate Card pass, or with T-money in Apple Wallet, you can go close to zero. Keep a few thousand won for a cash-only bus stop or a card that gets declined.

FAQ

Can I use cash on the Seoul subway?

Not at the gate. Use cash at a station machine to buy a single ticket or to top up T-money.

Do Seoul buses take cash?

Most do, at 1,500 won for an adult. 183 routes are cash-free (January 2026), and cash gets no transfer discount.

Can I top up T-money with a credit card?

Not a plastic card at a station or store. On an iPhone, the Mobile T-money app takes foreign Mastercard, Amex, UnionPay and JCB. On Android, the KOREA TOUR CARD app takes foreign cards.

Can I use a 50,000 won note in the ticket machine?

Often not for a single ticket. The old machine I photographed takes a 50,000 won note only when the change is 10,900 won or less.

Things I could not confirm yet:

What happens today if you board a cash-free bus with no card. The city's guidance I found is from 2023.
Whether the new kiosks have the same 50,000 won note limit as the old machine I photographed.
Whether bus drivers give change for large notes. Pay close to the exact fare.
Convenience-store top-up and refund rules come from WOWPASS's guide and travel guides, not from a T-money page I could open.
Whether WOWPASS's in-app T-money top-up works for everyone. Its guide says yes, its FAQ says no.

Cash was always my first question abroad. In Seoul in 2026, the answer is: a little, mostly for topping up.

More on paying for Seoul transport

Sources

Seoul Metropolitan Government, which products take card payment and cash-only prepaid top-ups (Sept 1, 2026): news.seoul.go.kr
Seoul Metropolitan Government, foreign cards at 440 new machines: news.seoul.go.kr
Seoul Metropolitan Government, cash-free bus routes as of January 2026: news.seoul.go.kr
Seoul Economic TV on cash-free routes, 180 of 394 (Jan 15, 2026): sentv.co.kr
Seoul Metropolitan Government, cash-free buses and what to do without a card (2023): mediahub.seoul.go.kr
Seoul Price Information, bus fares by type, card and cash: sftc.seoul.go.kr and subway fares: sftc.seoul.go.kr
Seoul Metropolitan Government, transfer discount rules (Feb 2026): news.seoul.go.kr
Mobile T-money app, App Store release notes (foreign cards: Mar 18 and Jul 1, 2026): apps.apple.com
KOREA TOUR CARD Tmoney, Google Play listing: play.google.com
WOWPASS service guide (Nov 2025): wowpass-event.oopy.io and FAQ: wowpass.oopy.io
T-money Mobility, taxi payment terminal: tmoneymobility.co.kr
Photos of the old ticket machine and bus card reader: Before You Go Korea, Sept 29, 2026

— SeoulAslan

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