On London buses you pay with contactless bank cards, Oyster cards, or prepaid travel passes; drivers do not accept cash fares.
Landing in London and hopping on a red bus feels easy, but figuring out how to pay can catch visitors off guard. The network is completely cashless, so you need the right card or pass ready before you step on board. Once you know the options, paying for London buses turns into a simple tap and ride.
This guide breaks down every practical way to pay for London buses, what it costs, and how to avoid extra charges. By the end you will know exactly which card or ticket suits your trip, so you spend less time worrying at the bus stop and more time enjoying the city.
How Do You Pay For London Buses?
On a typical day you pay for London buses in one of a few ways: contactless bank card or phone, standard Oyster card, Visitor Oyster card, Travelcard or Bus & Tram Pass, or a concessionary pass. You tap your card or device on the yellow reader when you board, wait for the green light and beep, then find a seat. There is no need to tap out when you leave the bus.
Cash has not been accepted on London buses since 2014, so coins and notes will not work at all. The good news is that the same flat fare and daily cap apply across the city, and the system automatically gives you the lowest pay as you go price when you use one card or device for all your trips.
| Payment Option | How It Works On Buses | Best For |
|---|---|---|
| Contactless Bank Card | Tap your debit or credit card on the yellow reader when you board; the fare is charged to your bank account with daily and weekly caps. | Most adults who already have a contactless card |
| Phone Or Smartwatch Wallet | Use Apple Pay, Google Pay or similar on your device; tap in the same way as a card and keep using the same device for caps to work. | Travellers who prefer to pay with their phone or watch |
| Standard Oyster Card | Preload money, then tap when you board; fares and caps match contactless, and you can add season tickets to the card. | Regular visitors, people without a contactless bank card |
| Visitor Oyster Card | Prepaid Oyster card bought before you arrive; used in the same way on buses, plus discounts at some attractions and shops. | Short city breaks where you want a ready to use card |
| Travelcard Or Bus & Tram Pass | Flat price ticket for unlimited travel during a set period; loaded onto an Oyster card or issued as a paper Bus & Tram Pass. | Stays of several days or weeks with heavy daily travel |
| Concessionary Pass | Freedom Pass, 60+ Oyster or English National bus pass; simply tap on the reader, and the ride is free. | Eligible older or disabled riders and English pass holders |
| Child Zip Oyster Or Young Visitor Discount | Children tap a photocard or discounted Oyster; pay reduced fares or ride free depending on age and pass type. | Families with children who will ride buses often |
Every one of these options uses the same flat adult pay as you go fare of £1.75 per bus or tram ride, with a daily cap of £5.25 that gives you unlimited bus and tram trips once reached. The Hopper fare also lets you make unlimited additional bus and tram trips within one hour of your first paid tap.
Contactless Cards And Devices On London Buses
For many visitors the easiest answer to How Do You Pay For London Buses? is simply to use a contactless bank card. If your debit or credit card shows the contactless symbol, you can tap it directly on the yellow reader when you board. The system charges you once a day, applies the Hopper fare, and stops charging once you hit the daily or weekly cap for buses and trams.
You can also load your card into a phone or smartwatch wallet and pay with that instead. Pick one card or device and stick with it for all your rides, because the caps only work when the system sees the same payment method each time. Do not tap in with your plastic card and then with your phone on the next bus, or you will pay two separate sets of fares.
Most overseas contactless cards work on London buses, though your bank may add its own currency or foreign transaction fees. If those fees are high, an Oyster card may be cheaper, since you can load sterling in one go and then travel cashless inside the city.
Oyster Cards And Visitor Oyster Cards
An Oyster card is a blue smart card from Transport for London that holds pay as you go credit and Travelcards or Bus & Tram Passes. You tap it on the yellow reader when you board a bus, just as you would with a contactless bank card. The adult bus fare and caps are the same whether you tap contactless or Oyster.
You can buy an Oyster card at Underground stations, some rail stations, visitor centres and thousands of small newsagents across the city. You pay a small refundable deposit, then add pay as you go credit or a season ticket. Credit never expires, so the card works well for repeat visits.
The Visitor Oyster card is ordered before your trip and posted to you, so you arrive ready to travel. On buses it behaves just like a standard Oyster, using the same £1.75 fare and daily cap. Transport for London explains the current adult bus fare, cap and Hopper rules on its official bus and tram fares page, which is worth checking for updates before you travel.
Oyster is also helpful when you travel with children. Under 11s ride free on buses with a fare paying adult, while older children can get a Zip Oyster photocard or a Young Visitor discount added to an Oyster card for reduced fares. Those discounts do not apply when a child taps an ordinary bank card, so families who ride often tend to lean toward Oyster.
Travelcards, Bus & Tram Passes, And Capping
Instead of paying for each bus ride separately, you can pay up front with a Travelcard or Bus & Tram Pass. A One Day Bus & Tram Pass costs £6.00 and gives unlimited bus and tram travel for a day, while a 7 Day Bus & Tram Pass costs £24.70 and gives seven days of use on those modes.
If you only ride buses and trams, the pay as you go caps often give the same value without needing to choose a pass in advance. Adult pay as you go on buses has a daily cap of £5.25 and a weekly cap of £24.70, which match or undercut the cost of the equivalent passes. Transport for London explains how daily and weekly capping works across the network on its detailed fare capping guidance.
For short trips with mixed travel, pay as you go with caps is usually simpler, because the system checks your taps and stops charging when you reach the right limit. If you know you will take many bus rides every day for a full week or longer, a Bus & Tram Pass loaded onto an Oyster card can still be a good set and forget option.
Ways To Pay For London Buses Without Cash
Since 6 July 2014, London buses have been entirely cash free. That change removes delays near the driver and keeps boarding quick, but it does mean you need a plan before you reach the stop. Here are the main choices and how they feel in day to day use.
When A Contactless Bank Card Works Best
If you already carry a contactless debit or credit card that does not charge steep foreign fees, this tends to be the cleanest method. You simply tap your card or phone as soon as you step on the bus. There is no need to queue at a machine, pick a ticket, or guess how many rides you will take that day.
Because the adult pay as you go fare and caps are the same for contactless and Oyster, there is no price advantage either way for a solo adult. The balance tips slightly toward contactless for short stays, because you do not pay an Oyster card deposit or worry about refunding unused credit at the end of the trip.
When An Oyster Card Gives You More Control
Some riders prefer to keep travel spending separate from their main bank card. With Oyster you add a set amount of money and tap until it runs down, which can feel easier to track if you are on a strict budget or sharing costs within a group. You can top up at ticket machines, shops and online, and you choose whether to add pay as you go credit, a Travelcard, or both.
Oyster also matters when you use discounts that only live on a smart card, such as railcard linked discounts or child and student photocards. In those situations, paying with a bank card would ignore the discount and charge the full adult fare, while the Oyster based product will charge the reduced price automatically.
Families, Groups, And Visitor Scenarios
Short City Break For One Or Two Adults
For a solo visitor staying three or four days, a contactless card or phone is usually the easiest way to pay for London buses and other Transport for London services. You get caps without paperwork and can leave the city with nothing extra to refund.
Family Trips With Children
For a family with older children, Oyster often brings better control and lower costs. Children under 11 travel free on buses with a fare paying adult, so they do not need a ticket. Children aged 11 to 15 can receive a Young Visitor discount on an Oyster card, cutting the pay as you go bus fare in half for up to two weeks, which adds up quickly when you ride several times a day.
Groups Travelling Together
Groups that travel together but pay separately should avoid passing one card down the line at the bus door. Each person needs their own contactless card or their own Oyster card. Sharing one card for several taps will cause warning beeps and delays at the reader, and may lead to heavy charges if the system reads it as split trips.
Common Mistakes When Paying On London Buses
Even confident travellers can run into small snags with London bus payments. The most common problem is card clash, when you accidentally present more than one card near the reader. The system may pick up the wrong one, charge the wrong person, or fail to register any tap at all. Always take one card or device out of your wallet and present only that to the reader.
Another regular headache is running out of Oyster credit just before a bus ride. There is a small safety net on Oyster that lets you make one extra bus trip even when your balance has dropped slightly below zero, but you must top up again before you can use the card on a later day. Topping up when you pass a station or newsagent keeps that stress away.
Foreign bank cards can also decline unexpectedly. Some banks block small transport charges or hold extra security checks. If you plan to rely on a contactless card from outside the UK, it is wise to carry a backup, such as a second card or an Oyster card with some stored credit, so one card problem does not strand you far from your hotel.
London Bus Fares And Caps At A Glance
To make sense of the costs when you pay for London buses, it helps to compare a few common adult options side by side. Prices here reflect current Transport for London figures and may change over time, so always check the latest tables before you travel.
| Ticket Or Payment Type | Adult Single Bus Fare | Bus & Tram Daily Cap Or Pass |
|---|---|---|
| Contactless Pay As You Go | £1.75 per ride | Daily cap £5.25; weekly cap £24.70 |
| Oyster Pay As You Go | £1.75 per ride | Daily cap £5.25; weekly cap £24.70 |
| One Day Bus & Tram Pass | Unlimited rides | £6.00 for a day of bus and tram travel |
| 7 Day Bus & Tram Pass | Unlimited rides | £24.70 for seven days of bus and tram travel |
| Young Visitor Discount On Oyster | Half adult bus fare | Daily and weekly caps at half the adult level |
| Concessionary Passes | Free bus rides | No payment needed on eligible trips |
Because bus fares are flat across London, you do not pay more for a longer ride or for night buses. That simplicity, combined with caps and the Hopper fare, makes the bus network one of the cheapest ways to move around the city, especially for visitors who plan their payment method in advance.
Step By Step: Paying For Your First London Bus Ride
When you stand at the stop for the first time, a quick checklist keeps everything stress free. These steps assume you already picked a card or pass and added enough credit if needed.
1. Pick Your Card Or Pass
Decide whether you will tap a contactless bank card or device, an Oyster card, or a concessionary or student pass. Keep that card or device in an easy to reach pocket so you are not scrambling when the bus arrives.
2. Check The Bus Number And Direction
London routes often run in both directions along the same road. Check the front and side displays and make sure the route number and end point match the trip you planned. The stop name printed on the shelter or post helps confirm you are standing on the correct side of the street.
3. Board At The Front Door
On most routes you board next to the driver, where the yellow card reader sits. Hold your card or device flat against the reader until you see a green light and hear a beep. If you see a red light or hear a different tone, read the message on the small screen, then try again or use a different card.
4. Move Inside And Watch For Your Stop
Once your tap works, move down the aisle so other riders can board. Watch the stop displays and listen for announcements, then press the red stop button in good time. You do not need to tap again when you step off the bus.
With that pattern in mind, the question How Do You Pay For London Buses? stops feeling like a puzzle. Pick the card or pass that fits your stay, tap once at the reader, let the Hopper fare and caps tidy up the maths in the background, and you can ride those red buses with confidence.