How to ride public transportation in Paris

Paris runs on one of the densest transit networks in the world — a Métro station within a few minutes’ walk of almost anywhere in the city, plus a web of regional trains that reach both airports and the suburbs. It’s also mid-overhaul: paper tickets are on the way out, tap-to-pay with a bank card is just beginning to roll out, and a major extension just put Orly Airport on the Métro map. Here’s how it actually works right now.

The basics

Three names matter. RATP runs the Métro (16 lines, including the driverless Line 14), most buses and trams, the Montmartre funicular, and — jointly with SNCF — the RER A and B express lines. SNCF Transilien runs the rest of the RER (C, D, E) and the Transilien commuter trains out into the suburbs. Over both of them sits Île-de-France Mobilités (IDFM), the regional authority that sets fares and routes and coordinates the whole system, including the private bus operators further out in the suburbs.

For a visitor, the everyday network is:

• Métro — 16 numbered lines crisscrossing the city, running underground almost everywhere.
• RER — five express lines (A–E) that cross Paris and reach well beyond it, including both airports.
• Tramway — a growing network of surface tram lines, mostly ringing the outer city.
• Bus — a dense city and suburban network, plus Noctilien night buses once the Métro stops.

How to pay

Paper tickets are effectively gone. Everything now runs through a small set of digital tools:

1. Navigo Easy — a reusable plastic card (€2) that you tap at any turnstile or validator. Load it with individual tickets or with Navigo Liberté+, a pay-as-you-go option — it’s the only way to transfer between the Métro/RER and buses/trams on a single fare.
2. Your phone — Apple Wallet and Samsung Wallet both hold a dematerialized Navigo pass (Google Wallet is coming); buy and manage it through the Bonjour RATP or Île-de-France Mobilités app.
3. Tap your bank card directly — new, and still limited. As of now it only works at the Line 14 exit at Orly Airport (since June 30, 2026) and the Montmartre funicular (since July 8, 2026). It’s handy in a pinch — no app, no queue — but it costs more (see Fares below) and doesn’t include transfers. Île-de-France Mobilités plans to extend it to Line 1 in July 2027, then several more lines through 2030.
4. On the bus, if you board without a ticket, a growing number of buses across Paris and its inner suburbs now have an onboard card-payment terminal for an emergency ticket — no more hunting for change.

Fares

Current (2026) fares:

Tapping a bank card directly costs a bit more and skips transfers entirely: €3.35 for a Métro/Train/RER journey, €2.55 for bus/tram, and €14.80 for an airport connection.

If you’re staying a few days and riding a lot, Navigo Semaine (valid Monday–Sunday) usually beats paying per ride. For a single airport trip or the occasional ride, Navigo Easy loaded with individual tickets is simplest.

Getting from the airport

Paris has two main airports, and each now has a fast rail link — though right now (through August 16, 2026) the CDG one is running a reduced schedule (see the alert above).

From Charles de Gaulle (CDG):

• RER B is the direct train, serving both CDG 1 and CDG 2 stations, with connections to central hubs like Gare du Nord and Châtelet–Les Halles. It normally takes about 30 minutes to central Paris, running every 10–20 minutes on weekdays — though frequency is reduced to roughly every 7 minutes through August 16, 2026 while summer works are underway.
• RoissyBus runs between CDG and Opéra (11 rue Scribe) every 15–20 minutes, from 5:15am–12:30am (from CDG) or 6am–12:30am (from Paris).
• Local buses 350 (to/from Porte de la Chapelle) and 351 (to/from Nation) also connect CDG to the city.
• Fare: the €14 Ticket Aéroports (€7 reduced) covers the trip.

From Orly (ORY):

• Métro Line 14 now runs straight to Orly Airport — extended in June 2024, it puts Orly under 25 minutes from Châtelet, running about every 6–15 minutes between 5:30am and 12:30am. This is the newest and easiest option, and Orly’s Line 14 exit is also where you can tap a bank card directly if you didn’t buy a ticket in advance.
• RER B + Orlyval: take RER B to Antony, then the automated Orlyval shuttle the rest of the way (every 5–7 minutes, 6am–11:35pm).
• Bus 183 (from Rungis) and Tram T7 (from Villejuif–Louis Aragon) also reach Orly.
• Fare: the same €14 Ticket Aéroports (€7 reduced).

Apps to download

• Bonjour RATP — the official app: real-time departures, trip planning, and a place to buy or load your Navigo.
• Île-de-France Mobilités — the regional authority’s own app, covering every operator across the whole region, not just RATP.
• Citymapper — a local favorite for step-by-step directions and live disruption alerts.

When it runs

• Métro: about 5:30am to 1:15am on weekdays, and until roughly 2:15am on Friday and Saturday nights and before public holidays.
• RER: roughly 5:30am to 1:20am, every day.
• Noctilien night buses take over once the Métro stops: 47 routes running between 12:30am and 5:30am, reaching every RER station.

Accessibility

RATP and Île-de-France Mobilités publish a station-by-station map showing which stations have a genuine step-free route from street to platform — it isn’t all of them, so it’s worth checking before you rely on it. On the RER B, every station is accessible except La Croix de Berny.

Etiquette & local quirks

• Keep your ticket until you’re out. Unlike honor-system cities, Paris uses turnstiles — tap in every time, and on RER/train platforms be ready to tap or insert your ticket again to exit.
• The Montmartre funicular up to Sacré-Cœur is a fun shortcut up the hill, run by RATP alongside the Métro.
• Paper tickets are increasingly rare — arriving without a phone wallet or a Navigo Easy card set up in advance means relying on station machines (which take cards) or, now, the new bank-card readers at select spots.
• Stand on the right on escalators, let riders off before boarding, and keep bags off empty seats during rush hour.

Good to know

• Riding without a valid, tapped ticket is enforced — inspectors do check, and fines apply — so always tap in, even if a gate happens to be open.
• The network is mid-transition. Between the phase-out of paper tickets, the new bank-card pilots, and station upgrades, signage and machines you find in one station may differ from the next; the Bonjour RATP app is the most reliable single source for what’s currently true.
• Check for summer works before you travel. Major infrastructure projects are concentrated in July–August, and can affect entire RER lines for weeks at a time — see the alert above for what’s happening right now.