Buy a physical prepaid T-money card at a convenience store and start with KRW 10,000 of travel credit per adult. After your final ride, ask a participating convenience store to refund the remaining balance, or spend a small amount on something you already need.
Budget for the card and the credit separately
Ordinary cards cost KRW 3,000–5,000; special designs can cost more. Look for the T-money logo at a convenience store, including those inside the airport. Ask the price, buy the card and add the travel credit as a separate amount.
Swipe sideways to see every column. Keyboard: focus the table, then use the left and right arrow keys.
| Starting budget | One adult | Two adults |
|---|---|---|
| Cards | KRW 3,000–5,000 | KRW 6,000–10,000 |
| Suggested first load | KRW 10,000 | KRW 20,000 |
| Total cash | KRW 13,000–15,000 | KRW 26,000–30,000 |
For example, a KRW 4,000 card and KRW 10,000 load cost KRW 14,000, with KRW 10,000 available for travel. Start small and reload as needed. That also limits how much you could lose with the card.
Ordinary adult use needs no app or registration. Buy one card per fare-paying traveller: subway passengers cannot share one card at the gates.
Child fares cover ages 6–12 and youth fares cover 13–18. Register the child’s date of birth at the convenience store before the first ride. Bring a passport to show their age if asked. For children under six, ask the transport operator whether a paid card is needed.
Top up with Korean-won cash
At a shop counter or subway reload machine, use Korean-won cash. The KTO payment guide excludes foreign-issued cards for these T-money purchases and reloads. Online and mobile reload options have separate payment arrangements.
At the counter, hand over your card and say the amount. Show 만 원 충전해 주세요 (“Please add ten thousand won”). To check an existing balance, show 잔액 확인해 주세요 (“Please check the balance”).
- At a station machine, select English where offered and choose transport-card reload.
- Put the card on the reader, choose the amount and insert cash.
- Keep the card in place until completion. Read the new balance and collect the card and change.
If a machine rejects the card or cash, ask station staff or try a participating shop. Check the balance before you enter the gates.
Tap in and out, including the last airport ride
Tap on boarding and leaving both Seoul buses and subways. Missing a bus exit tap can lose a transfer benefit and add a charge on the next ride. Our first subway ride guide covers platforms, transfers and exits.
The AREX All-stop Train accepts T-money; the reserved-seat Express needs a separate ticket. If you take the All-stop service to the airport, keep enough credit for it, tap out, then request the refund. Avoid adding a large amount on departure day.
Readable card: choose the counter by your balance
After your last ride, ask a shop to check the balance. These counter options are for a physical card that still reads normally. Keep an unreadable card for the separate damaged-card process below.
T-money’s convenience-store limits apply to the balance before the fee:
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| Remaining balance | Participating counter |
|---|---|
| Below KRW 20,000 | GS25, 7-Eleven, CU or emart24 |
| Exactly KRW 20,000 | 7-Eleven, CU or emart24 |
| Above KRW 20,000, up to KRW 30,000 | CU or emart24 |
Show 잔액 환불해 주세요 (“Please refund the remaining balance”). Budget for the standard KRW 500 store fee: KRW 8,500 returns KRW 8,000, while KRW 20,000 returns KRW 19,500. Exactly KRW 20,000 exceeds GS25’s limit. You keep the card; an ordinary balance refund does not include its purchase price.
For a balance of only a few hundred won, ask the cashier for the payout first and compare it with using the credit for a purchase you already need. If the branch does not handle refunds, try another participating shop within the same limit.
T-money’s terms allow a no-fee refund after you spend at least 80% of the balance held at the final top-up. Outside refund agents can still charge their contracted fee, so meeting the 80% condition does not automatically waive a store’s refund fee.
Readable card with more than KRW 30,000
For a balance above KRW 30,000 and up to KRW 50,000, Seoul’s guidebook lists subway information centres. Ask station staff for a participating desk. Confirm its fee, identification requirements, and refund amount and frequency limits before making a separate trip.
For more than KRW 50,000, KTO directs visitors to T-money Town near Seoul Station Exit 10. Before going, call 1644-0088, weekdays 09:00–18:00. Give your card type, balance and departure date, then confirm the required documents, fee and payout method. Our 1330 guide explains English help with that enquiry.
An ATM refund is another option if the bank confirms that it supports your T-money card and account. The issuer lists a maximum of KRW 500,000 and a standard KRW 500 fee, with payment into an account in your own name. If you only have an overseas account, confirm that it can receive this payment before choosing the ATM route.
Unreadable card: arrange the refund before you leave
The damaged-card mail process pays the balance into the account written on the refund form. Before mailing the card, confirm that T-money can pay into your account, especially if it is overseas. If you cannot confirm a receiving account, keep the card and ask 1644-0088 for an available refund route before departure.
Participating GS25, CU, 7-Eleven and emart24 branches provide mail-in refund envelopes. Complete the consent and signature fields. Allow mailing time, then up to 10 business days after T-money receives the request; a mailed refund is not a same-day departure solution.
Card-price reimbursement has a separate condition: the card must be defective without external damage and within two years of its first top-up. A card damaged by the user still uses the balance-refund process, but its purchase price is not reimbursed.
Lost card: contact the transport operator’s lost-property service. T-money warns that recovering a lost physical card’s balance is difficult. Keeping a modest balance limits what you could lose.
These steps cover ordinary physical prepaid T-money. Mobile T-money, Climate Card and WOWPASS’s separate shopping balance use different refund procedures.
Checked 10 November 2026.
