One price for every metro and RER ride in the region, on your phone or a €2 card. Here is which ticket to buy.
The short version
- A single metro, train or RER ride is €2.55 anywhere in the Île-de-France region except the airports. A bus or tram ride is €2.05. Full fares at iledefrance-mobilites.fr.
- Put tickets on your phone in the Île-de-France Mobilités app, or buy a €2 Navigo Easy card at any station machine and load rides onto it.
- Navigo Jour is €12.30 for a day of unlimited travel. It pays off at five metro rides.
- Navigo Semaine is €32.40 for a week of unlimited travel, airports included, and it runs Monday to Sunday, not seven days from when you buy it. It needs a Navigo Découverte card with a photo.
- The airports need the €14 airport ticket, or a Navigo Semaine. A regular €2.55 ticket won’t open the gates at CDG or Orly.
- Keep your ticket until you leave the station. Inspectors check on the platforms and in the corridors, and the fine is far more than the fare.
Which ticket
Four days or fewer, arriving midweek: single rides on your phone or a Navigo Easy card. Most visitors take four to six rides a day, and a day pass only wins on the heavy days.
A full week starting on a Monday or Tuesday: the Navigo Semaine. At €32.40 it covers every metro, RER, bus and tram ride in the region, plus the airport trip and day trips to Versailles, Disneyland and Fontainebleau, all of which cost extra on single tickets. It needs a Navigo Découverte card, sold at staffed station counters, and a small ID photo.
Arriving on a Thursday or later: the week pass is still for Monday to Sunday, so it’s rarely worth it. Use single rides and a Navigo Jour on your busiest day.
Navigo Liberté+ is the pay-as-you-go option, from €1.64 a ride and billed at the end of the month. Check whether it works for you in the app before you count on it.
How it works
Metro lines are numbered 1 to 14 and named by their two ends. Find your line, then the name of the last station in the direction you’re going; that name is on every sign and every train.
The RER is the regional express, lettered A to E. Inside Paris it works like a faster metro with fewer stops; outside it runs to Versailles (C), Disneyland (A) and the airports (B).
Changes are signposted Correspondance. Some, like Châtelet and Montparnasse, involve long walks through tunnels; the app’s route planner warns you.
Trains run from about 5:30 to around 1:15, later on Friday and Saturday nights. After that it’s the Noctilien night buses or a taxi. Or skip the planning: our private Paris in a Day is eight hours with a driver-guide, the car doing the getting around.
What goes wrong
The airport ticket is the one people get wrong. A €2.55 ticket won’t open the gates at CDG or Orly, and the €14 airport ticket can’t sit on a Navigo Easy card that already holds regular tickets. Keep them on separate cards, or one on the card and one on your phone.
Buying a week pass on a Friday is the other one. Navigo Semaine runs Monday to Sunday, so a Friday purchase covers three days.
A ticket that has been bent or kept next to a phone can stop working. If a gate refuses it, the staffed counter will swap it; don’t jump the gate, because inspectors fine on the spot.
If the metro isn’t the trip you want, our private Paris tour by car is four hours with a driver-guide from your hotel, any time of day or night.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much is a metro ticket in Paris?
€2.55 for a single metro, train or RER ride, valid anywhere in the region except the airports, with connections within the metro and RER. A bus or tram ride is €2.05.
Is the Navigo week pass worth it?
If you’re in Paris Monday to Sunday and taking the metro every day, yes: €32.40 for unlimited travel in the whole region, airports and Versailles included. Arriving on a Thursday, no, because the pass runs Monday to Sunday whatever day you buy it.
Can I use my phone for the metro?
Yes. Buy tickets and day passes in the Île-de-France Mobilités app and tap your phone at the gate. On some phones you can also put tickets in your wallet app.
Is the metro safe?
Yes. Watch for pickpockets on crowded trains, especially on line 1 and the RER B to the airport, and keep your phone in your pocket near the doors. Late at night, sit near other people or take a taxi.
How do I get from the airport?
The airports need the €14 airport ticket, not a regular one. Our CDG to Paris guide covers the RER B, taxi flat fares and the private transfer, and there is one for Orly too.
Our Most Popular Day Trips From Paris
Louvre, Montmartre and Notre Dame in eight hours with a private driver-guide.
Visit the historic abbey and environs. Marvel at this UNESCO World Heritage site.