Public transport in Munich

Overview

Munich's public transport is one integrated network: a single ticket is valid across every mode, so you can switch between metro, suburban train, tram and bus without buying anything extra. The system is coordinated by the Münchner Verkehrs- und Tarifverbund (MVV; Munich Transport and Tariff Association), while the city's own services — above all the U-Bahn — are run by the municipally owned Münchner Verkehrsgesellschaft (MVG).

For a visitor, riding end to end is simple. Work out which zones your journey crosses, buy the matching ticket from a machine or an app, validate it if it is not already stamped, then follow the signs: a white "U" on a blue background marks the U-Bahn (metro), and a white "S" on a green background marks the S-Bahn (suburban rail). Trams and buses fill in the gaps. You must validate your ticket before you travel, although the machine may do so automatically. A single trip is valid for one hour but not for return journeys, even if you found the place closed and turned straight back.

The U-Bahn opened on 19 October 1971 and is interconnected with the S-Bahn; together they form the major component of local public transport in the city. In 2024 the U-Bahn alone carried 452 million passengers.

The network

Munich's network has four core modes: the U-Bahn (metro), the S-Bahn (suburban rail), trams and buses. The U-Bahn serves the city itself, while the S-Bahn reaches out into the surrounding towns and suburbs. All S-Bahn lines run east–west through Hauptbahnhof, the Altstadt and Ostbahnhof before fanning out, and the central tunnel they share — the Stammstrecke — suffers from line congestion; a second tunnel is under construction, with some upheaval along its route.

The U-Bahn (U-Bahn München) consists of eight lines, serving 96 stations (100 when interchange stations with separate levels are counted twice) over 95 kilometres (59 mi) of track. Trains run at up to 80 km/h (50 mph), the fastest speed of any German U-Bahn. Service stops overnight, from 01:00 to 04:00 on weekdays and 02:00 to 04:00 on weekends, except on occasions such as New Year's Eve — though since January 2025 U-Bahn trains run at night on weekends and before public holidays, and night bus and tram lines operate throughout the week.

U1 (green) — 12.2 km (7.6 mi), 15 stations, from Olympia-Einkaufszentrum in Moosach to Mangfallplatz in the south.
U2 (red) — 24.4 km (15.2 mi), 27 stations, from Feldmoching in the north to Messestadt Ost.
U3 (orange) — 21.2 km (13.2 mi), 25 stations, the original Olympic line, from Moosach to Fürstenried West.
U4 and U5 — share tracks in the city centre; U5 comes above ground at Neuperlach Süd.
U6 — the only line that leaves Munich, running north to Garching; it is above ground between Studentenstadt and Garching, with short tunnels at Garching and Garching-Forschungszentrum.

Three line pairs share tracks in the city centre with coordinated timetables: U1 and U2, U3 and U6, and U4 and U5. In the peak hours trains run every 5 minutes, and as often as every 2 minutes where lines overlap; off-peak they run every 10 minutes; early mornings and late evenings every 20 minutes or more, though overlapping lines often reduce waiting times.

Most stations have two tracks with an island platform. Some are larger: Scheidplatz and Innsbrucker Ring have four tracks with two island platforms for cross-platform interchange, while Hauptbahnhof (U1/U2) and Münchner Freiheit (U3/U6) have four tracks on one level. At Hauptbahnhof, lines U4 and U5 use a separate station at a higher level, giving a total of six tracks. Sendlinger Tor, Odeonsplatz and Olympia-Einkaufszentrum also have two levels, connected by escalators and lifts.

The S-Bahn is the mode that brings you from the airport to the city centre. Trams circle the inner city and are the way to reach Nymphenburg Palace; they are also a good option east of the river, where Max-Weber-Platz is a secondary hub. Two tram routes are especially useful to visitors: Tram 19, running since 1908, every ten minutes between Pasing station and Berg am Laim station and passing Karlsplatz-Stachus, Nationaltheater and Maximilianeum; and Tram 16, running east–west from Effnerplatz to Stachus (with its western terminus at Romanplatz, near Nymphenburg Palace and canal), passing the Mae West sculpture, Bayerisches Nationalmuseum, Haus der Kunst, Maxmonument, Isartor and Sendlinger Tor through Bogenhausen, Lehel and Glockenbachviertel. Buses connect the spaces between rail and tram routes, so they are more useful in the outer suburbs; most visitors won't need them.

Tickets & fares

Fares are uniform across tram, S-Bahn, U-Bahn and bus within the MVV network. The area is divided into Zone M (the entire Munich city area plus some neighbouring municipalities) and zones 1–12 in the surrounding area. Virtually every attraction in the city lies within Zone M, but Munich Airport sits in zone 5, so a trip from the airport into the centre needs a zone M–5 ticket. A zone checker (ZonenCheck) and network and fare plans are available to help you work out which zones you need.

All prices below are approximate and change, so check current fares before you travel.

Single ticket — one-way journey; transfers and interruptions are permitted, return journeys are not. Maximum journey time is 1–5 hours depending on the route (Tram 19 and 16 journeys are covered by a single ticket valid 2 hours). A single trip in the M city-centre zone costs about €4.20 for an adult; children aged 6–14 pay about €1.90 for anywhere in the system, and accompanied under-6s ride free.
Strip card (Streifenkarte) — ten strips, cheaper than single tickets and shareable between several people or journeys. Adults validate two strips, children and young people one. A strip card costs around €17.
Single Day Ticket — valid for one person aged 15+, unlimited travel in the selected zone from validation until 06:00 the next day; from January 2026 children aged 6–14 travel free with it. Around €9.70.
Children's Day Ticket — valid for one child aged 6–14, unlimited travel across the entire MVV area (zone M–12).
Group Day Ticket — valid for up to 5 people; children aged 6–14 count as half, so up to ten children can travel on one ticket, and teachers count as children on school trips up to and including year 9. Prices start at around €29.90.
3-day ticket — unlimited travel from validation until 06:00 on the fourth day, single-person use, covering only the Inner District (urban Munich); around €16.80.
Airport-City-Day-Ticket — a day ticket covering airport and city (zone M–5), in single and group versions (2–5 people), with children 6–14 counting as half. It can be bought at the airport by credit card and comes already validated.
IsarCard — weekly and monthly passes on the MVV network; a seven-day pass for central Munich costs around €22.40 and a full-month pass around €68.40.
Deutschlandticket — valid on all public transport in Munich and on local and regional transport throughout Germany; it must be applied for via the MVGO app and cancelled by the 10th calendar day of the month or it auto-renews.
Munich Card (München Card) — the official city guest card; it includes an MVV day ticket in a selected area plus up to 70% discounts at museums, sights, tours, shopping and catering. It comes as a single, children's or group card (2–5 people, with two children aged 6–14 counting as one person) and in zones M or M–6 (including the airport), for 1–5 days.
MVVswipe — a digital pay-as-you-go function in the MVV and MVGO apps: swipe on boarding and alighting and pay only for the route travelled, and it never costs more than a day pass.

You can buy tickets at ticket machines in stations or online and through the apps. As a rule of thumb, a day ticket is worthwhile if you plan more than two journeys within a zone in a day. If you want to bring a bike, a Radl-Ticket is valid across the entire MVV network, but bikes are not permitted on the U-Bahn or S-Bahn during rush hour — Monday to Friday (except public holidays) from 6–9 am and 4–6 pm (except school holidays). Bike hire is available through the MyRadl city bike-sharing scheme, run by the City of Munich with the transport association and network municipalities, with around 1,000 stations and over 6,700 bikes and e-bikes, hired via three apps and returnable to any MyRadl station.

From the airport

Munich Airport (MUC) lies about 30 km northeast of the city centre, near Freising, and has two terminals connected by a walkway: Lufthansa and its partners use Terminal 2, while others including budget airlines use Terminal 1. The airport is efficient, modern and spacious, with the usual facilities.

The public-transport option into town is the S-Bahn: S1 or S8 trains take 40–50 minutes to the city centre, running every 15 minutes during the day and at reduced frequency all night. You need a 5-zone ticket for this journey, which costs about €14.30. An Airport-City-Day-Ticket covering the airport and the city (zone M–5) is also available, in single and group versions, and can be bought at the airport by credit card already validated. If you would rather take a taxi, fares are fixed: in 2022 you paid €106 to or from Hauptbahnhof and €94 to or from the Messe.

Be aware that Memmingen Airport (FMM), which Ryanair markets as "Munich West", is 110 km west of the city — the "west" part is accurate. A shuttle bus runs from that airport to Memmingen bus and railway station, and Ryanair sometimes runs a direct bus to Munich connecting with their flights; the hourly train from Memmingen takes 60–90 minutes. Frankfurt Airport may be a better choice for intercontinental routes, with direct trains to Munich taking 3 hours 30 minutes.

Etiquette & customs

Munich's system is busy and orderly, and a few local habits will make your journeys smoother.

Validate before you board. You must validate your ticket before you travel, though the machine may do so automatically. Travelling without a valid, validated ticket risks a fine.
Stand on the right on escalators. Escalators and lifts connect the multi-level stations, and the convention is to stand on the right so others can pass on the left.
Let passengers off first. Queuing and waiting for alighting passengers before you board is standard practice, especially at busy interchanges such as Hauptbahnhof, Sendlinger Tor and Odeonsplatz.
Keep priority seating free. Seats marked for those with reduced mobility, the elderly and passengers with children are expected to be given up when needed.
Keep noise down. Munich's carriages are generally quiet; keep phone calls and music brief and at low volume.
Eating and drinking. A quick snack or drink on the move is common, but avoid messy or strongly smelling food, and never leave litter behind.
Rush hour. Peak hours are when trains run every 5 minutes, or as often as every 2 minutes where lines overlap. Expect crowded carriages and stand clear of the doors; if you are travelling with luggage, avoid these times where you can.
Bikes. Remember that bikes are not permitted on the U-Bahn or S-Bahn during rush hour — Monday to Friday (except public holidays) from 6–9 am and 4–6 pm (except school holidays).

Official links

Survival terms

U-Bahn (U-Bahn) — subway/metro
S-Bahn (S-Bahn) — suburban rail
Fahrkarte (Fahrkarte) — ticket
Linie (Linie) — line
Eingang (Eingang) — entrance
Ausgang (Ausgang) — exit
Umsteigen (Umsteigen) — transfer
Einzelfahrkarte (Einzelfahrkarte) — single fare
Tageskarte (Tageskarte) — day pass

Before you set off, download the MVV or MVGO app so you can check live departures, buy a ticket and swipe on and off without hunting for coins at a machine.