For most adults on a short London visit, a contactless bank card or phone is the simplest way to pay for everyday transport. Use the Tube or Elizabeth line for longer journeys, buses for useful direct connections, and walk between nearby sights. Airport travel needs a separate decision: the train you choose changes the fare, the destination and whether normal London caps apply.
Prices and payment rules checked on 3 October 2026. All prices below are adult fares in pounds sterling unless stated otherwise. Bus and tram fares change on 1 November 2026.
Which transport should you choose?
Tube: the most useful starting point for trips across central London. Compare the whole journey, including the walk to the station and any changes. For two nearby stops, walking can be simpler than going underground.
Elizabeth line: useful for longer east–west journeys and Heathrow, with direct stops including Paddington, Bond Street, Tottenham Court Road, Farringdon and Liverpool Street. All its stations have step-free access from street to platform. Airport fares are higher than ordinary central-London fares; a purple line on the map does not mean every journey costs the same.
Bus: good when one route takes you close to both ends of your journey. The fare does not increase with the number of London fare zones crossed. Traffic makes it less predictable for a timed booking, but the low daily cap can make a bus-only day economical.
DLR and London Overground: use them when they fit your destination, especially for Docklands, Greenwich and journeys outside the centre. Their eligible journeys join the same London pay-as-you-go caps as the Tube.
Use TfL’s journey planner to compare routes for the actual departure time.
Contactless or Oyster?
Contactless avoids buying and topping up a separate travel card. Many overseas bank cards work, but acceptance and foreign-transaction charges depend on the issuer. Check those charges rather than assuming that switching to Oyster removes every banking cost. TfL explains accepted payment methods.
A standard Oyster card currently costs £10 before travel credit is added. It is useful if your bank card is unsuitable, you want a separate travel balance or you qualify for an Oyster-based discount. Visitor Oyster is a different product ordered before travel: its card fee is £10.50, plus postage and the travel credit you choose. Buying one is optional. Compare TfL’s visitor payment options and Visitor Oyster details.
Each paying passenger needs a separate card or device. Keep using the same one throughout each journey and across the day or week. A phone, watch and physical bank card are treated separately even when linked to the same account. Mixing them can split your cap or create incomplete journeys.
Touch in and out on rail services, even when barriers are open. On buses and trams, touch in only. These taps establish the fare; a missing tap can produce a maximum charge outside daily capping. See TfL’s tapping rules.
Fares and caps that matter on a short visit
A cap is a limit on eligible pay-as-you-go charges, not a ticket you buy first. You pay for the journeys you make until you reach the relevant limit.
The current adult daily caps are:
- Zones 1–2: £8.90
- Zones 1–3: £10.50
- Zones 1–4: £12.80
- Zones 1–5: £15.30
- Zones 1–6: £16.30
These apply to eligible Tube, DLR, Elizabeth line, Overground and National Rail travel, with bus and tram journeys included in the mixed-mode cap. Heathrow Express, Gatwick Express, River Bus, the cable car and Southeastern high-speed between St Pancras and Stratford International are outside these ordinary caps. See the 2026 cap table and TfL’s exclusions.
The fare day runs from 04:30 to 04:29 the following morning. Weekly capping runs Monday to Sunday, rather than for any seven days after arrival. The Zones 1–2 weekly cap is £44.70. For a heavily travelled week that straddles two Monday–Sunday periods, compare a seven-day Travelcard; for a short visit, pay as you go usually avoids paying for unused travel. How capping works.
Bus-only travel: through 31 October 2026, the adult fare is £1.75, the daily cap £5.25 and the Monday–Sunday cap £24.70. From 1 November, these become £1.85, £5.55 and £26.10 respectively. The Hopper rule allows unlimited bus and tram journeys started within one hour of the first tap, using the same card or device. It does not give free Tube journeys. Current and announced bus fares.
For an ordinary Zone 1 Tube journey, the adult single is £3.10 peak or £3 off-peak following the 1 March 2026 change. Peak times are generally weekdays 06:30–09:30 and 16:00–19:00, excluding public holidays, based on the time you touch in. Travel into Zone 1 from outside it is normally off-peak during the evening peak. Heathrow has a separate rule below. Check the exact stations and route in the single fare finder.
Zones and transfers
Rail fares depend on the zones and route travelled, not just the straight-line distance. A hotel outside the centre can mean a higher daily cap. On routes avoiding Zone 1, use a pink interchange reader where provided so TfL can identify the route; this is additional to your yellow-reader entry and exit taps.
A change of train is not automatically a new fare, but bus Hopper rules do not apply to rail. Some designated station-to-station walks count as an interchange within a permitted time; a sightseeing break can turn the trip into separate journeys. For an unusual connection, check TfL’s interchange guidance and the fare finder.
Heathrow: three trains with different prices
Choose by your final London destination as well as the advertised train time.
- Piccadilly line: £5.90 for an adult pay-as-you-go journey between Heathrow and Zone 1, typically around 50 minutes to central London. Useful for a lower-cost direct trip to places such as South Kensington, Piccadilly Circus or King’s Cross. It counts towards the relevant London cap.
- Elizabeth line: £15.50 between Heathrow and Zone 1; TfL gives approximately 28 minutes between Heathrow and Paddington. Continuing directly to Bond Street, Tottenham Court Road or Farringdon may avoid a change. It also counts towards the relevant London cap.
- Heathrow Express: £26 for an adult pay-as-you-go single and 15 minutes between Terminals 2 & 3 and Paddington. It accepts contactless and Oyster, but the fare is excluded from London caps. Advance tickets can cost less; compare the full onward trip from Paddington.
The Tube and Elizabeth line charge peak fares on Heathrow journeys that start, finish or pass through Zone 1, including weekends. Their Heathrow trips fall within the Zones 1–6 cap: an adult using the Elizabeth line to Zone 1 and taking more eligible journeys within Zones 1–6 on the same fare day can reach £16.30 in total. This depends on using the same card or device throughout.
Train times exclude terminal walks, waiting and onward travel. Heathrow Express also has a different family rule: children aged 15 and under travel free in Standard Class with a paying adult, but still need tickets. Heathrow rail comparison, TfL Heathrow fares, Express pay-as-you-go fare and family conditions.
Other London airports
Gatwick: Southern serves Victoria; Thameslink serves London Bridge, Blackfriars, Farringdon and St Pancras; Gatwick Express runs non-stop to Victoria. London journeys accept contactless and Oyster, but Gatwick is outside the ordinary London zones. Check its specific fare and cap, rather than using the Zones 1–6 figure. Gatwick Express charges separately and does not contribute to that cap. The station is at South Terminal, linked to North Terminal by a free shuttle. Gatwick train options.
Stansted and Southend: contactless pay as you go became available at both airport rail stations on 8 March 2026. Oyster is not valid there. Stansted Express serves Liverpool Street and Tottenham Hale; Southend Airport trains serve Stratford and Liverpool Street. These are beyond-London fares, even though the same bank card works. Check advance, return, group or child tickets before assuming tapping is cheapest. If engineering works replace a Stansted Express train with a bus, the operator requires a ticket bought before travel rather than contactless tapping. National Rail’s contactless coverage and Stansted payment rules.
Luton: the mainline train reaches Luton Airport Parkway, then the DART connects to the terminal. Contactless works on both legs, with separate taps for the train and DART; Oyster is not accepted. A rail ticket to “Luton Airport” includes the DART, while “Luton Airport Parkway” does not. Check the complete journey price. Luton DART ticket rules and Thameslink’s payment guidance.
London City: its DLR station is in Zone 3, so an eligible journey into central London uses normal zonal fares and caps. TfL’s DLR map.
Children, late journeys and step-free routes
On the Tube, DLR, Overground and Elizabeth line, up to four children under 11 can travel free with an adult using pay as you go or a qualifying ticket. Under-11s also travel free on TfL buses and trams. National Rail and airport operators have their own eligibility details. For children aged 11–15, staff can add a Young Visitor discount to a standard or Visitor Oyster card, giving half adult pay-as-you-go fares for up to 14 days. The child must be present. Tapping a bank card charges adult fares. TfL’s family payment guidance.
Friday and Saturday overnight services cover selected sections of the Central, Jubilee, Northern, Piccadilly and Victoria lines, plus the Windrush line. They do not cover every branch. The Elizabeth line is not part of Night Tube, and Heathrow Terminal 4 has no Night Tube service. For another night or an early flight, compare the last train, night bus and taxi for that date. Night services.
For step-free travel, check both street-to-platform access and boarding the train. All Elizabeth line stations are step-free to platform level; some journeys need a boarding ramp. A step-free origin does not guarantee a step-free interchange or destination. Use TfL Go’s accessibility options and check lift availability shortly before leaving. TfL accessibility guidance.
When a taxi or river boat makes sense
A taxi can be worthwhile for a difficult final connection, luggage or a group sharing the cost. London’s licensed black taxis use regulated meters and accept card payments without a surcharge. Private-hire cars must be booked through a licensed operator; compare its fare estimate, vehicle size and airport charges. Black taxis are wheelchair accessible; request a suitable vehicle when booking private hire. TfL’s taxi guide.
Uber Boat by Thames Clippers can be a pleasant transport option between riverside destinations. Contactless and Oyster work, but River Bus charges are separate from Tube and bus caps. A sightseeing cruise may use different tickets altogether. Choose the pier pair and sailing first, then compare the fare and total time with rail. TfL’s river payment guidance.