Transport for LondonPay as you go
Pay as you go has several advantages over paper tickets:
- Oyster single fares are generally cheaper
- Credit can be used as you need it and doesn't expire
- Daily price capping automatically calculates the cheapest fare for all the journeys you make in a single day
Our aim is to ensure that Oyster always charges the lowest fare. Where it doesn't, we will refund the difference.
Learn more about:
Using pay as you go
You must touch your Oyster card on a yellow card reader at a station, tram stop or on the bus when making a journey. The reader checks that there is enough pay as you go credit on the card (or that there is a valid ticket).
If there is enough:
- On the Tube and London Overground: the gates open
- On buses and tram/DLR validators: the card reader shows a green light to confirm your Oyster card has been accepted
If there is no valid ticket or not enough credit to pay as you go, you can't travel. The following will happen:
- On the Tube and London Overground: a 'seek assistance' message will be displayed and the gates will not open.
- On buses and tram/DLR validators: a red light will show on the card reader
Pay as you go on buses and trams
On buses and trams you must touch in at the start of each journey.
Pay as you go is valid across the entire London bus and tram networks, including most sections outside Greater London.
You can't use pay as you go on some bus routes that operate mainly outside the Greater London area and on certain special bus services and trips.
Pay as you go on Tube, DLR, London Overground services
On the Tube, DLR, London Overground and some National Rail services, you must always touch in at the start of the journey and touch out at the end. If you do not, you may be charged a maximum cash fare.
- At stations where there are no ticket gates, you must use the validators provided
- If the ticket gates at stations are already open, you must still touch your Oyster card on a yellow card reader
If you do not touch in at the start of a journey, you may pay more than you need or be liable to a Penalty fare or prosecution.
Oyster route validators
For some journeys, more than one route option is available. For example, if you're going across London you may have the option of avoiding Zone 1.
We've installed Oyster route validators at the following London Underground and London Overground stations so that the fare charged will more accurately reflect the number of zones you travel through.
| Blackhorse road | Gospel Oak | |
| Gunnersbury | Highbury & Islington | |
| Kensington (Olympia) | Rayners Lane | |
| Stratford | West Brompton | |
| Willesden Junction |
Oyster route validators have a pink card reader. If you are using pay as you go for any part of your journey, you can use an Oyster route validator to show that you have travelled on a particular route.
When you touch your Oyster card on a pink card reader it ensures that the Oyster single fare charged is calculated via that route, rather than a potentially more expensive route. If you do not use the Oyster Route Validator, you will not be charged the appropriate fare for the route taken.
You must still touch in on a yellow card reader at the start of your journey and touch out at the end to ensure you pay the appropriate Oyster single fare and avoid paying a maximum cash fare. You can't touch in on a pink card reader to record the start or end of a journey.
To see whether the journey you want to make has an alternate route, please visit Single Fares Finder
Auto top-up
Auto top-up ensures you never run out of pay as you go credit by automatically topping up your Oyster card whenever your balance falls below £5.
Maximum cash fares
When you touch in at the start of a Tube/DLR/London Overground/National Rail journey, a charge of up to £6.50 is deducted from your pay as you go credit.
When you touch out at the end of your journey, the charge is adjusted so that you only pay the appropriate Oyster single fare.
If you fail to touch in and out correctly, you will be charged up to £6.50 for a Tube/DLR/London Overground journey. This charge will not count towards any cap the customer may reach that day.
Maximum journey times
When you use Oyster to pay as you go, the amount of time you are allowed to spend making a single, pay as you go, point to point, journey on Tube, DLR or London Overground services is limited.
Every journey has its own maximum journey time, regardless of the route taken. This is linked to the day, time of day travelled and the number of zone boundaries crossed.
The maximum journey time can vary between 70 minutes (travelling in one zone on Monday - Friday between 04:30 and 19:00) and 4 hours (travelling across 14 zones - eg Amersham to Epping - on a Sunday or Bank Holiday).
The table below shows the general rules applied for maximum journey times.
| Mon-Fri 04:30-19:00 | Mon-Fri from 19:00 all day Sat | Sunday | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Within 1 zone | 70 | 77 | 84 |
| across 2 zones | 80 | 88 | 96 |
| across 3 zones | 90 | 99 | 108 |
| across 4 zones | 100 | 110 | 120 |
| across 5 zones | 110 | 121 | 132 |
| across 6 zones | 120 | 132 | 144 |
| across 7 zones | 130 | 143 | 156 |
| across 8 zones | 140 | 154 | 168 |
| across 9 zones | 150 | 165 | 180 |
| across 10 zones | 160 | 176 | 192 |
| across 11 zones | 170 | 187 | 204 |
| across 12 zones | 180 | 198 | 216 |
| across 13 zones | 190 | 209 | 228 |
| across 14 zones | 200 | 220 | 240 |
If you exceed the maximum journey time, you will be charged for an unfinished journey (up to £6.50) when you finally touch out, and for an un-started journey (also up to £6.50).
