Short answer
Shanghai has the largest urban rail network in the world by track length — well over 500 stations across roughly 20 numbered lines plus the Pujiang Line, with the Maglev and the Airport Link running as separate services. Every sign, map and announcement is bilingual, and screen doors line every platform. If you can ride one metro, you can ride this one.
Three ways to pay. The simplest is a contactless bank card tapped at a gate marked Tap to Ride — Visa, Mastercard, American Express, JCB and UnionPay are all listed as eligible. The most common is a transit QR code inside Alipay or WeChat Pay, scanned on entry and exit. The dependable fallback is a single-journey ticket from a machine, or from the service centre if the machine rejects your card.
Fares are distance-based and cheap: ¥3 for up to 6 km, then ¥1 for each further 10 km. Most central journeys land at ¥3–5, and Pudong Airport into the centre at roughly ¥7–8. What catches visitors out is not the fare — it is the last train, which can leave your station hours before midnight.
Paying: the four methods compared
| Method | Setup needed | Best for | Where it fails |
|---|---|---|---|
| Contactless bank card (tap at the gate) | None | Short trips, solo travellers, the first ride after landing | Issuer blocks contactless, or the chip is unsupported |
| Alipay / WeChat transit code | Passport verification plus a linked card | Repeated rides; also works on buses and ferries | Wrong city, wrong QR code, or identity review unfinished |
| Single-journey ticket | None | Families, dead phones, immediate fallback | Queue at a big station; machine may reject foreign cards |
| Metro Daduhui app / Public Transport Card | App install, or a card purchase and deposit | Longer stays and one card for everything | More setup than a two-day visit needs |
Setting up an Alipay or WeChat transit code
This is how most locals ride, and increasingly how visitors do. The setup is the only fiddly part.
- Install and register before you flySign up with your phone number and an SMS code while you still have reliable app-store access at home.
- Verify your identity with your passportName, passport details and a photo of the passport page when asked. This unlocks transport features.
- Link a foreign cardAdd it in the wallet section and confirm through your bank. Watch your own bank's foreign transaction fees.
- Open the transport code, not the payment codeIn Alipay, open Transport and set the city to Shanghai. In WeChat, use the ride-code mini-program; it is a different code from your blue payment QR.
- Scan on entry and again on exitHold the code in the scanner window and walk through; the fare is deducted automatically.
One code per person. Open it before you reach the gate: underground your phone may have no data, and a screenshot of a live transport code is not a valid ticket.
Fares and the discounts you get by accident
The formula is published: ¥3 covers the first 6 km, then ¥1 per additional 10 km, charged on the shortest route between your stations. The Airport Link Line is priced separately, from ¥4 up to ¥26 for the full airport-to-airport run.
| Journey | Typical fare | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Short central hop (2–4 stations) | ¥3 | The base fare; most sight-to-sight trips land here |
| Across the centre (People's Square to Xujiahui) | ¥3–5 | Distance-based |
| Hongqiao Airport or railway station to the centre | Roughly ¥4–5 | Metro Lines 2 and 10 |
| Pudong Airport to People's Square | Roughly ¥7–8 | Line 2, direct but slow |
| Airport Link Line, Hongqiao to Pudong | ¥4 to ¥26 | Separate fare system; full run is ¥26 |
Two discounts apply to almost everyone. Using the same card or the same transport code, you get ¥1 off when you enter a metro station within 120 minutes of a bus ride. After ¥70 of cumulative metro spending in a month, eligible cards and codes get 10% off subsequent rides, foreign users of the integrated transport code get the same discounts as residents.
One rule for the fallback option: a single-journey ticket is valid only on the day of purchase, is collected at the exit gate, and cannot be used for out-of-station transfers.
The lines you will actually use
You do not need to learn 20 lines. Almost every visitor runs on three of them.
| Line | Key stops for visitors |
|---|---|
| Line 2 — the east–west spine, and the busiest line in the system | Pudong Airport · Lujiazui · East Nanjing Road (the Bund) · People's Square · Jing'an Temple · Hongqiao Airport · Hongqiao Railway Station |
| Line 10 — the sightseeing line for the old city and the old concession | Yuyuan Garden · East Nanjing Road · Xintiandi · South Shaanxi Road · Hongqiao Airport T1 and T2 |
| Line 1 — north–south through the centre | People's Square · South Shaanxi Road · Xujiahui · Shanghai Railway Station |
| Line 11 — the only rail link to Disneyland | Disney Resort |
| Line 17 — the water-town line, meeting Line 2 at Hongqiao Railway Station | Zhujiajiao · Oriental Land |
Line 2 needs one warning: not every eastbound train runs the whole way to Pudong Airport. Some terminate at Guanglan Road, where you cross the platform to the next train, and late-evening services may turn back there. If your flight is early, check the destination shown on the train.
Getting through a station, step by step
- Security screening on entryBags go through an X-ray and you walk through a metal detector, mandatory at every station, for everyone. Water bottles may be tested.
- Find your line and directionDirection is shown by the terminus station, not by compass direction. Match the terminus to your route before going down to the platform.
- Tap or scan at the gateOne clean tap or scan, then walk through. Watch which gates take contactless cards versus QR codes, not every gate does both.
- Board and watch the screensTrains run every few minutes on the core lines, and displays give the next station in Chinese and English.
- Exit with the same methodScan out or tap the same card. A single ticket is collected here. If the gate refuses, a service centre can inspect the journey state.
- Get the exit number rightThe biggest time-saver in Shanghai. Big stations have ten or more exits, and the wrong one adds a long walk above ground.
Exits, transfers and the last-train trap
People's Square is the classic exit problem: exits point in every direction, and the wrong one costs ten minutes underground plus a walk back. Navigation apps that show exit letters are worth more than any map, Citymapper and the offline MetroMan-style apps both do this, and Apple Maps works in mainland China without a VPN.
Most line-to-line transfers happen inside the paid area and cost nothing extra. Leaving a station and re-entering is a new journey and a new fare, and a single ticket will not cover an out-of-station transfer.
The last train is the mistake that ruins evenings. The last train through your station can be well before the line's own closing time, and the last service in one direction may pass your platform an hour earlier than the last service in the other. Do not extrapolate from a general "the metro runs until about 23:00" figure.
- Check the first/last train board in the concourse, which lists times per station and per direction, and keep a taxi or DiDi as backup for anything past about 22:00.
- Extended-hours trains are not normal service. Some late services on Friday and Saturday skip stations or terminate short of the usual terminus, so read the destination board.
Airport and Maglev connections in brief
- Line 2 reaches Pudong Airport and Hongqiao Airport T2 directly, cheap, slow, and often crowded with luggage.
- The Maglev is a separate high-speed service between Pudong Airport and Longyang Road, where you change to Lines 2, 7, 16 or 18.
- The Airport Link Line is suburban rail, running between Hongqiao T2 and Pudong T1&T2 in about 40 minutes. It does not serve the city centre.
Etiquette and the small stuff
Let people off before you get on, and stand to the side of the door. Rush hour on the core lines is genuinely crowded, and boarding with a large suitcase at 08:30 is an ordeal, travel mid-morning with luggage. Eating and drinking on trains is not the done thing, and your bag is X-rayed at every entry.
Frequently asked questions
Can I use my foreign credit card on the Shanghai metro?
Often, yes. Eligible contactless Visa, Mastercard, American Express, JCB and UnionPay cards can be tapped at gates marked Tap to Ride, and service centres accept international cards for tickets. Acceptance still depends on your card and issuer, so keep a fallback.
Do I need Alipay to ride the metro?
No. You can tap a contactless bank card, buy a single-journey ticket from a machine, or buy from a service centre. Alipay or WeChat just makes repeated rides faster.
How much is a metro ride in Shanghai?
Fares are distance-based: ¥3 for up to 6 km, then ¥1 for every additional 10 km on the shortest route. Most central journeys cost ¥3–5, and Pudong Airport to the centre is roughly ¥7–8.
Does the metro run to both airports?
Yes. Line 2 serves Pudong Airport and Hongqiao Airport T2, and Line 10 serves both Hongqiao terminals. The Maglev connects Pudong Airport to Longyang Road, and the separate Airport Link Line runs between Hongqiao T2 and Pudong T1&T2.
What time does the Shanghai metro close?
It varies by line, station and direction, and the last train through your station can be much earlier than the line's closing time. Check the first/last train board in the station.
Can two people use one Alipay transit code?
No. Each passenger needs a separate ticket, code, card or device, the gate reads a single entry per scan.
What if my phone has no signal underground?
Open the transport code before you go down to the platform, where you still have data. If it will not refresh at the gate, switch to a contactless card or buy a single ticket.
Do I need a VPN for maps in Shanghai?
For Google Maps, generally yes; it is blocked in mainland China. Apple Maps works without a VPN, and offline metro apps with English maps are the most reliable option for line and exit information.
Related reading
The fare formula (¥3 for the first 6 km, ¥1 per additional 10 km), the accepted contactless card list, the single-journey ticket rules, the ¥1 bus-transfer discount and the 10% monthly discount all follow the Shanghai Municipal Government's official English guidance on taking the metro. Airport Link Line pricing and journey times follow the same source and the Hongqiao business district authority's launch announcements. Last-train times, fares and payment acceptance change, confirm in the station or on the official operator site.