How to pay for the T

The MBTA takes both tap-to-pay and the CharlieCard. Which to use depends on how often you ride.

For occasional riders: tap to pay.

Hold your phone (Apple Pay, Google Pay) or a contactless card on the reader at any fare gate or bus farebox. You pay per ride: $2.40 subway, $1.70 local bus.

For regular riders: do the math on a pass.

A Monthly LinkPass on a CharlieCard is $90 for unlimited subway and local bus. A subway round trip every workday costs about $4.80 a day, so the pass comes out ahead once you ride about 19 days a month. If you only take the bus, the Monthly Local Bus Pass is $55, which beats paying per ride at about 17 round trips a month.

Pass options on a CharlieCard

• 1-Day Pass: $11, unlimited subway and bus for 24 hours.
• 7-Day Pass: $22.50, unlimited for 7 days.
• Monthly LinkPass: $90, unlimited subway and bus for the calendar month.
• Monthly Local Bus Pass: $55, bus only.

Get a CharlieCard from a subway station fare machine and load it with cash or a card.

Transfers

Within 2 hours, you can change between buses, the subway and the ferry as many times as you need and pay only the highest fare on the trip. Going from a bus to the subway costs the $0.70 difference; subway to bus is free. Use the same card or phone the whole way. Transfers don't work with cash or a paper CharlieTicket.

For the Commuter Rail, use the mTicket app.

Buy your ticket in the app before boarding and show it to the conductor. Tap-to-pay isn't accepted on the Commuter Rail yet. Fares run $2.40 to $13.25 by zone.

Reduced fares

Children 11 and under ride free. Reduced fares are available for riders 65 and older, riders with disabilities, middle and high school students, and income-eligible adults. Details at mbta.com/fares.

The bottom line

If you ride a few times a week, just tap. If you ride the subway round trip almost every workday, a monthly pass saves a little and means you never think about the fare.