How to Ride the Seoul Subway

Seoul Subway Last Train Times · Incheon Airport to Seoul by Subway (AREX) · How to Ride the Seoul Subway

1. Get a transit card

Buy a rechargeable T-money card at convenience stores (GS25, CU, 7-Eleven and others) or at station machines, and top it up at station machines or convenience stores – many machines take cash only. The same card works on buses and most taxis. You can also buy a single-journey ticket at the machines; it has a small deposit you get back at the refund machine after your trip.

2. Tap in and tap out

Touch your card on the gate reader when you enter and when you leave. The fare depends on distance, so tapping out matters.

3. Find the right direction

Signs show the line color and number, the next station and the end of the line. At some stations each direction has its own entrance, so check the sign before you go through the gate. On this site every arrival shows its direction and destination, like "toward Gangnam".

4. Transfers

Changing between subway lines inside a station is part of your trip – just follow the colored line signs. Changing to a bus soon after leaving the subway is also discounted when you use the same card.

5. Watch out for express trains

Some lines, including Line 1, Line 9, Suin-Bundang Line, Gyeongui-Jungang Line, run express trains that skip stations. Seoul Subway Live marks every express train so you don't board one that won't stop at your station.

6. Rush hour and last trains

Trains are most crowded around 7–9 a.m. and 6–8 p.m. on weekdays. Most lines stop around midnight – see the last train times.

7. Good to know

• Seats at the ends of each car are priority seats for elderly and disabled passengers; pink seats are for pregnant women.
• Station names are announced and shown in Korean and English, and every station has a number.
• Free Wi-Fi is available on most trains and in stations.

Ready to go? Search any station to see live arrivals.