To buy a BTS ticket in Bangkok, choose between a single-journey card from the ticket machines, a One-Day Pass from the ticket office, or a stored-value Rabbit card that you top up and tap. For a short stay with only a few trips, single-journey cards are simplest. If you will ride the Skytrain every day, a Rabbit card saves you queuing at machines. One thing to know before you arrive: BTS's own ticketing information does not list contactless bank cards, so plan to pay by cash, QR code or Rabbit card rather than tapping a credit card.
This guide is about the BTS Skytrain, the elevated rail network, not the band. Here is how each ticket works, based on BTS and Rabbit's official information.
BTS ticket types at a glance
BTS lists two families of tickets on its ticketing page:
- BTS thin cards: the Single Journey Card and the One-Day Pass.
- Rabbit cards: the Adult, Student and Senior Rabbit cards, plus Rabbit cards linked to Rabbit Wallet or LINE Pay.
All three types, the single-journey card, the One-Day Pass and the Rabbit card, open the gates at every station. Fares are by distance, and the BTS website has a route and fare search if you want to check the cost of a trip before you travel.
How to buy a single-journey ticket
Single-journey cards are sold from ticket machines in every station. BTS runs two kinds:
- Ticket Vending Machines (TVM): touch-screen machines that accept 1, 2, 5 and 10 baht coins, 20, 50, 100 and 500 baht notes, and QR-code payment.
- Ticket Issuing Machines (TIM): older machines that take 1, 2, 5 and 10 baht coins only.
On a touch-screen machine:
- Choose your destination station on the screen. You can change it before you pay.
- Choose how many tickets you want. You can buy up to 10 in one transaction, which helps if you are traveling as a group.
- Pay with coins, notes or a QR code, and take your card.
- Use the card at the gate to enter, keep it with you, and use it again at the exit gate at your destination.
If a machine will not take your note or you need help, every station has a ticket office. Its staff issue single-journey cards and One-Day Passes, top up Rabbit cards and check a card if it will not work at the gate.
The One-Day Pass
The One-Day Pass is the BTS day ticket, a thin card issued at station ticket offices rather than from the machines. It is worth asking about on a day when you plan to hop between several stops, for example Siam for SEA LIFE Bangkok Ocean World, National Stadium for Jim Thompson House Museum and Chong Nonsi for the Mahanakhon SkyWalk. Ask at the ticket office for the current price and conditions, and compare them with the single fares for your planned trips.
How to get a Rabbit card
The Rabbit card is the stored-value card for the BTS. According to Rabbit, a Standard Rabbit Card costs 200 baht at any BTS ticket office: a 100-baht issuing fee plus 100 baht of stored value. There is no annual fee.
- Top up at any BTS ticket office, or at other shops that show the Rabbit top-up sign, with cash in multiples of 100 baht, up to a maximum balance of 4,000 baht.
- Use it by tapping it on the reader at the gate as you enter and leave; the fare is deducted by distance.
- Beyond the BTS, Rabbit says the card also works on the BTS Gold Line, the MRT Yellow and Pink lines, the BRT bus, the Chao Phraya Tourist Boat (blue flag) and the Chao Phraya Express Boat (orange, yellow, yellow-green and red flags).
- Refunds: you can return a Standard Rabbit Card at a BTS ticket office for a refund of the card deposit and remaining value. Rabbit says totals of 250 baht or less are refunded on the spot; larger amounts take up to 15 days.
Registration is optional, but only registered cards can be suspended and refunded if they are lost or stolen, so it is worth doing for a long stay.
Can I use a contactless credit card on the BTS?
Not according to BTS's published information. Its ticketing page lists single-journey cards, One-Day Passes and Rabbit cards as the ticket types, and its machines take cash and QR codes. The MRT, run by a different operator, Bangkok Expressway and Metro (BEM), does list EMV contactless as a ticket type on its website, so check the MRT's own information if you want to tap a bank card on its lines. Keep a Rabbit card or cash for the BTS.
Tips for a smooth trip
- Service hours: BTS lists service from 5 a.m. to 1 a.m. The last train from Siam to all stations leaves at 12:02 a.m.
- Carry small notes and coins. Machines take notes up to 500 baht, and the coin-only machines are no use without change.
- Traveling with luggage or a wheelchair? Use the wide automatic gates, which BTS makes 90 cm wide for passengers with disabilities or bags.
- Keep your ticket until you exit. You need it to leave the paid area.
The Skytrain is the easiest way to reach many of the city's big sights, including Chatuchak Weekend Market from Mo Chit and the Bangkok Art and Culture Centre at National Stadium. For a base on the line, browse our Bangkok hotels.
Sources: BTS Skytrain, ticketing system, BTS timetable, BTS Skytrain, Rabbit, about Rabbit Card, Rabbit, public transport, Rabbit, customer support, MRT (BEM). Checked September 26, 2026.
Use a touch-screen ticket machine in the station: choose your destination, choose the number of tickets (up to 10), and pay with coins, notes or a QR code. Ticket offices in every station also issue tickets and top up Rabbit cards.
The touch-screen machines take 1, 2, 5 and 10 baht coins, 20, 50, 100 and 500 baht notes, and QR-code payment. The older ticket issuing machines take coins only.
BTS does not list contactless bank cards among its ticket types. Its tickets are the single-journey card, the One-Day Pass and the Rabbit card. The MRT, a separate network, does list EMV contactless.
A Standard Rabbit Card costs 200 baht at BTS ticket offices, made up of a 100-baht issuing fee and 100 baht of stored value, with no annual fee. You top it up in multiples of 100 baht, up to 4,000 baht.
Yes. Return a Standard Rabbit Card at a BTS ticket office for the deposit and remaining value. Totals of 250 baht or less are refunded on the spot; larger amounts are processed within 15 days. The physical card must be returned.
Rabbit lists the MRT Yellow and Pink lines, the BTS Gold Line, the BRT and the Chao Phraya Express and Tourist boats among the services where it can be used.
BTS lists service hours of 5 a.m. to 1 a.m. The last train from Siam to all stations leaves at 12:02 a.m., and the last to the ends of the lines at 12:15 a.m.
