Using public transport is an affordable way to travel around Singapore. Singapore’s public transport system consists of 9 metro (MRT, LRT) routes and many public bus routes. Explore a detailed guide to Singapore metro tickets, EZ Link Card, Singapore Tourist Pass, and contactless bank card, and discover Singapore MRT fare and MRT card price.
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Singapore Metro Tickets
As a tourist, you previously could choose one of three types of Singapore metro tickets:
- Standard Ticket - for a single or return trip
- EZ-Link Card - for multiple trips
- Singapore Tourist Pass - for unlimited travel
You can enjoy 500 GB of data and public transport with just one SIM by getting this 2-in-1 tourist SIM and EZ-Link travel card, including 3 SGD EZ-Link stored value for train/bus rides.
However, after the introduction of contactless bank cards as a type of Singapore MRT ticket, from 10 March 2022, the Standard Single & Return Trip Ticket is no longer available for traveling on the Singapore metro. Therefore, the only reasonable choice of ticket for a single trip on Singapore MRT now is a contactless card or mobile wallet.
On Singapore buses, you can still buy a single trip ticket by paying cash on board, so you might consider taking a bus instead of Singapore metro if you don't have a suitable card and are looking to take just a single trip. However, such Singapore bus tickets are 0.70-1.00 SGD more expensive than Singapore MRT card fares.
Singapore MRT Ticket Options
Let's check in detail what Singapore MRT ticket options are available and which Singapore MRT ticket type is the best for your travel plans, as all Singapore public transport tickets have their own advantages and disadvantages.
Singapore Metro Standard Tickets
As it was mentioned before, the standard ticket that was valid for a single or return trip on Singapore metro (MRT and LRT trains) and could be purchased from the General Ticketing Machines (GTM) by paying cash is no longer available from 10 March 2022.
A standard ticket for a single trip on a public bus in Singapore can still be bought on board. From 27 December 2025, Singapore basic bus tickets for a single trip cost from 2.10 to 3.20 SGD, depending on the distance. Singapore Express bus services are more expensive and cost from 3.30 to 4.10 SGD when purchased in cash on board the bus.
Singapore EZ-Link Card
The Singapore EZ-Link Card can be used for multiple trips on metro (MRT and LRT trains) and public buses.
The price of this Singapore MRT card is 10 SGD per card - 5 SGD is a non-refundable cost of the card, which is valid for 5 years, and 5 SGD can be used for paying the fare while traveling.
Only cash payments are accepted when purchasing an EZ-Link Card at the Singapore MRT station ticket office. If you will be buying an EZ-Link Card at Changi Airport MRT Station, make sure to double-check the change given, as we were scammed the last time when we were buying our Singapore MRT card there.
Actually, you can buy a Singapore EZ-Link Card without using cash and risking being scammed at the train station ticket office. The Singapore EZ-Link Card can be bought online here: Singapore EZ-Link Card.
To add more value for traveling, you can later top up your EZ-Link Card by cash or a credit/debit card.
If you will be traveling to Singapore from Bangkok, you can book online a Singapore NETS FlashPay Travel Card, which is a public transportation card allowing you to get around Singapore effortlessly, just like EZ-Link. You will pick up your card (pre-loaded with value) before you arrive in Singapore and skip the lines at the train stations.
Singapore Tourist Pass
The Singapore Tourist Pass is a special card that offers unlimited travel on Singapore public transport (basic public bus, MRT, and LRT train services) that is valid for the duration of one, two, three, four, or five days.
The 1-day Singapore Tourist Pass is valid from the first usage of the card till midnight. Usage of the 2-day, 3-day, 4-day, or 5-day Singapore Tourist Pass metro tickets must be on consecutive days. The duration and validity of the pass are based on the operating hours of the public transport system.
Unlimited travel is only applicable for public bus and train services. The pass excludes rides on premium services such as Sentosa Express, RWS8, Fast Forward, Night Rider, and Nite Owl buses.
The Singapore Tourist Pass price is as follows:
- 1-day pass – 17 SGD
- 2-day pass – 24 SGD
- 3-day pass – 29 SGD
- 4-day pass – 37 SGD
- 5-day pass – 45 SGD
You can discover even more of Singapore with the Singapore Tourist Pass Plus, which includes not only unlimited travel on Singapore's bus, MRT, and LRT train services for three consecutive days but also bundles to enjoy great savings while maximizing your travel experience. Detailed inclusion of the current package can be found here: Singapore Tourist Pass Plus.
Contactless Bank Card / Mobile Wallet
You can now also use your contactless bank card or mobile wallet as a Singapore metro ticket with the use of SimplyGo.
SimplyGo, launched in April 2019, lets you pay Singapore MRT fare by scanning a contactless card, mobile phone, or smartwatch. The fare is deducted automatically from the linked mobile wallet or contactless bank cards.
For Singapore metro fare payments, you can use a contactless bank card (Mastercard, NETS, and VISA) or a Mastercard/Visa card added to the mobile wallet (Apple Pay, Fitbit Pay, Garmin Pay, Google Pay, and Samsung Pay), eliminating the need for top-ups or carrying a separate travel card. No registration or application is required as bus and train fares are processed and charged to the bank account or credit/debit card bill directly. However, not all credit or debit cards might be accepted by the system.
When using foreign-issued contactless cards, an administrative fee of 0.60 SGD per day of use is applied.
The last time we've successfully used our Wise Card to pay Singapore MRT fare for traveling from Changi Airport into the city was much cheaper than using the card issued by the bank in Europe or exchanging currency at the airport and topping up the EZ-Link Card. For this transaction we've got the mid-market exchange rate, and the conversion fee was just 0.01 EUR.
Singapore MRT Fare
The price of the trip with a Singapore MRT card depends on the distance and the time of tap-in. Singapore MRT fare from your current MRT station to any other station on the network is displayed on board "Fares".
From 27 December 2025, the Singapore MRT fare charged for a single trip paid by card is from 1.28 to 2.57 SGD. Standard Singapore MRT fare is discounted by 0.50 SGD if you tap in before 7:45 on weekday mornings (excluding public holidays). As there's no longer a standard single-trip Singapore metro ticket, which was more expensive than a card fare, now Singapore MRT fare is exactly the same for all types of travel cards used as a ticket.
A detailed list of current Singapore MRT and bus fares can be found here: Singapore Bus & Train Fares.
You can also use the official Singapore MRT fare calculator to find out the exact fare between the stations of Singapore MRT/LRT. Pay attention that the official fare calculator only calculates the standard Singapore transport card fare.
Using Singapore Metro Tickets
The main Singapore MRT card is the EZ-Link Card. As it was mentioned above, you can buy it at the MRT station ticket office (accepts cash only) or book it online here: Singapore EZ-Link Card.
This Singapore MRT card comes with some value that can be used for paying the fare, and later you can top up the EZ-Link Card with cash or a credit/debit card to add more value for traveling. To top up the card, you can use one of the Ticketing Service Kiosks.
Pay attention that currently Ticketing Service Kiosks do not sell tickets for Singapore metro and can only be used for adding value to the card or checking transaction history and other card information.
While most of the ticketing service machines accept card payments only, there's usually one that accepts cash (in most cases it's machine #1).
To access card information or to add value to the card, you need to place your card in the dedicated area of the machine.
The current value stored on the card will be displayed on the left. The minimum top-up value for Singapore MRT card is 10 SGD when using a NETS Card or credit/debit card.
If you would like to top up your Singapore MRT card with a smaller value, choose the cash payment option (note the small button "Cash" on the screen).
The minimum cash value that can be added to the card is 2 SGD. The machine accepts 2 SGD, 5 SGD, 10 SGD, and 50 SGD notes only and gives no change.
Once money is inserted, you need to confirm the amount inserted.
Once confirmed, the new value stored on your Singapore MRT card will be displayed on the screen.
Ensure to top up your EZ-Link Card if the stored value is below 3 SGD, as otherwise the gate will reject an entry.
You can always check the value stored on the Singapore EZ-Link card with the use of the Ticketing Service Kiosk. The value of the card is also displayed when you tap out exiting the MRT station.
Best Singapore MRT Card
How to know which of Singapore's metro tickets is the best one for you? Explore our MRT ticket tips below; they should be helpful.
Contactless Card / Mobile Wallet is the best choice if you:
- have a Singapore-issued bank card;
- are going to use public transport in Singapore for less than 9 days during 5 years, as the administration fee will be cheaper than buying any of the cards;
- want to avoid wasting time topping up the card at ticketing machines;
- are using a card from the bank that applies a good exchange rate for international transactions, as your card will be charged in Singapore dollars (for getting the best exchange rate, Wise Card is highly recommended).
EZ-Link card is the best choice if you:
- are going to use public transport for 9 or more days, as the price of this Singapore MRT card (5 SGD) in such a case will be lower than the administration fee of your foreign-issued card, which is 0.60 SGD per day of usage;
- will be staying in Singapore for more than 5 days;
- planning to come back to Singapore in 5 years and use the card again;
- are going to book it online and pick it up at the airport on arrival to avoid cash payments for the card.
The Singapore Tourist Pass is the best choice if you:
- will be staying in Singapore for 5 days or less;
- don’t have plans to come back to Singapore in 5 years;
- are going to use public transport very often – at least 7 times/1 day, 12 times/2 days, 17 times/3 days;
- are interested in additional advantages that come with the Singapore Tourist Pass Plus.
Tips
Book online a discounted Singapore SIM card and pick it up at the airport on arrival: [SALE] Singapore SIM Card (SG Pick Up). Otherwise, if your mobile phone is eSIM compatible, you can get eSIM Singapore by instant email delivery and use it right after landing in Singapore.
If you’re going to travel from Singapore Changi Airport to the city center by metro (MRT) and are not planning to use your contactless card or mobile wallet for the payment, you will have to get cash right at the airport as the EZ-Link card can be purchased by cash only. In such a case, you will have to use an ATM or find one of Changi Airport's money changers.
To lightly explore Singapore by public transportation, you can use Changi Airport luggage storage service and leave your baggage there or order baggage delivery from the airport to your Singapore hotel here: LuggAgent's same-day luggage delivery.
