Compared across countries
Do you need a ticket for every ride?
For a trip that crosses borders — the same question, answered country by country.
The pattern
One card carries a whole country in four of the six. Bangkok is split between two operators whose cards do not open each other, and the United States has no national card at all — but it is also the one place you may not need one, since the larger city systems now read the contactless bank card already in your pocket.
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United States
With the contactless card or phone already in your hand, in the larger systems — there is no national transit card because every city runs its own. New York reads your own bank card at the gate and stops charging once you have ridden enough in a week.
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Japan
No. One rechargeable IC card taps you through almost every train, subway and bus in the country.
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China
No. A QR code in a payment app covers every line, and contactless bank cards work at the gates too.
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Thailand
On the BTS, a Rabbit card ends the queueing. But Bangkok's rail is two separate systems, and the underground MRT is not covered by it.
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South Korea
No. One rechargeable transit card covers subway, buses and taxis, and any convenience store sells and tops one up.
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Taiwan
No. One EasyCard from any convenience store covers the metro, buses, trains and even the high speed rail — and pays at the shops in between.
United States
Japan
China
Thailand
South Korea
Taiwan