Contactless payment on Brussels public transport: The smart choice for urban travelers

We constantly get diverse questions about Brussels and one that many people often want to know about is: what are the best ways to move around the city? Tourists, regular visitors as well as Brussels newcomers usually enquire about easiest ways to buy tickets so that they can smoothly use public transport during their stay.

Apart from standard tickets and MOBIB cards (for seasonal tickets & other type of recharges) there is another practical way to pay for your ride when using bus, tram or a metro in Brussels. Local public transport operator STIB / MIVB offers a contactless payment system which enables a convenient way of paying for the ride, without the need to purchase a ticket.

Your bank card is your STIB ticket, the best way to pay for the ride directly, cashless.

Whether you’re a local, tourist or you have friends & family visiting Brussels, using contactless payment can significantly enhance the experience of moving around the city. Here are a few important things to know when using this method:

You can use a bank card (debit or credit) as your STIB ticket, paying for your ride directly, cashless. This can be done with your card, smartphone or smartwatch, depending where your card is stored.

The cost of the trip is 2.30 euros with a maximum (capping) of 8.40 euros/day. This means a ride is cheaper than the paper ticket and since there is a maximum fare of 8.40 euros per day, all rides after this rate are free.

Important to know, an amount of €8.40 is temporarily blocked, but only trips which are actually made will be debited, so no worries if you see a higher amount at first. Additionally, users can see the history of their STIB validations if they create an account on stib.brussels website.

Quickly hop on and off various modes of public transport without the stress of purchasing tickets or dealing with cash.

It is also worth noting that potential STIB control can only check if you paid for the ride and cannot get access to your bank account data. One bank card can be used to pay the fare for one person so each passenger needs to have a card. This payment system can be used only on the STIB network (bus, tram or metro).

Here are some of the main reasons why we love using this system whenever we hop on a bus, tram or a metro in Brussels:

1. Effortless and speedy

Contactless payments make the boarding process effortless allowing travelers to simply tap their card, smartphone, or smartwatch at the machine reader (see photos above). This eliminates the need for purchasing tickets at vending machines or STIB selling points and eliminates waiting in line or losing time during rush hours. The system makes navigating the city easy, quick and effortless.

2. Hassle-free experience

Contactless payments reduce the need to handle cash or physical tickets which contributes to a hassle-free travel experience. Contactless payment also makes it easier to track and control the daily travel costs as you can always have an overview of the travel expenses.

3. Easy travel to/from Brussels airport

Speaking from personal experience of our team members, using contactless payment on the bus from Brussels Airport to the city is the easiest and cheapest way of paying for the ride. For this route, there is a special Airport2City rate which for contactless payment ticket costs € 7,90. Finally, instead of waiting in line and spending time to buy a ticket on the vending machines, one can simply enter the airport bus and use the bank card to purchase a ticket by taping on the machine.

Good facts: A ride with cashless payment is cheaper (€2.40) than a paper ticket. Also, there is a maximum fare of €8.40 per day which means all rides after this rate are free on that day.

Whether you’re an individual who wants to explore different Brussels neighbourhoods or you have a business trip to the EU Quarter, the ease of “tap & ride” system will make your travel experience smooth.

*This content is published in partnership with STIB / MIVB. The article is updated on 29 March 2025.