How myki works in Melbourne

Card, phone or bank card

You can pay with a physical myki card (about $6 for a full fare card, $3 for a concession and $5 for a Youth myki), Mobile myki on Android, or a contactless Visa or Mastercard, phone or watch. Contactless fares are the same as myki fares. It works on metropolitan trains, trams and buses and at most V/Line train stations, and myki also works on buses in inner regional areas.

Whichever you use, tap on and off with the same card or device.

Tapping on and off

Tap on at the start of a trip, and tap off at the end, when you travel on:

• a train (including V/Line);
• any bus that accepts myki; or
• a tram trip that begins and ends in Zone 2.

For a tram trip that starts and ends in Zone 1 you tap on only, and you don’t need to tap off. If you don’t tap off when you should, you’re charged a default fare, which may not be the lowest for your trip. Tap on again when you change mode, such as train to tram.

If you change your mind at a train station, tapping off at the same station within 15 minutes means no charge. That doesn’t work on a tram or bus.

How fares work (half price until 1 January 2027)

Fares are by zone, and a two-hour fare covers you for two hours. Public transport in Victoria is half price until 1 January 2027, and these figures reflect that:

• Full fare, two hours: $2.85 for Zone 1+2, $1.80 for Zone 2.
• Weekday daily cap: $5.70 (concession $2.85).
• Weekend and public holiday daily cap: $4.00 (concession $2.00).

Once you hit the cap, travel is free for the rest of the day. A new day of myki fares starts at 3 am. After the half-price period ends, check Transport Victoria for the new fares.

Cheaper times

• After 6 pm: tap on after 6 pm and you can travel until 3 am the next day.
• Early bird: a metropolitan train journey is free if you tap on and off before 7 am on a weekday (there is a 15-minute buffer to 7.15 am).
• Weekends and public holidays: the lower daily cap above applies.

Under 18? It’s free

From 1 January 2026, young people under 18 can travel free on Victorian public transport with a Youth myki. Children aged 4 and under travel free and don’t need a myki. People aged 5 to 17 use a Youth myki, which works like any other myki for tapping on. If you tap on by mistake with a phone or bank card, wait about 30 seconds and tap off with the same device so you’re not charged.

Free Tram Zone

Trams in the Free Tram Zone, which covers the CBD and Docklands and includes the City Circle tram, are free. You don’t need a myki, and you shouldn’t tap on or off, when your tram trip starts and ends inside the zone. If your trip starts or ends outside it, use your myki as normal.

Tram stops have two numbers

Yarra Trams gives every tram stop a four-digit Tracker Stop ID, shown on a green sticker at the stop. It’s the number to use with Yarra Trams’ real-time service, which shows the next three trams due.

At night

On weekends, Night Network runs late-night metropolitan trains, trams and buses, and some regional coaches. Use your myki as normal, and you won’t be charged a second fare if you tap on before 3 am. Check the Night Network maps for the routes that run on the night you’re travelling.