Barcelona is a bustling and modern city, which offers several services both for tourists and locals. Have a look at our guide to discover the well developed public transport in Barcelona - and don’t miss our tips to get the most out of the facilities in Barcelona, while exploring all the corners!
We’re quite sure that those who decide to live in Barcelona will be happy to know that this place has such good transportation service: many bus and metro lines cover the whole city centre and the suburbs. Some of these services work from the very early morning and stop at midnight, but the city always offers other alternative options to reach the place you need in a safe way. Furthermore, you have to know that the public transport in Barcelona is affordable, clean, fast and well maintained. With 146 km, the network of the underground in Barcelona holds 12 metro lines and 180 metro stations; together with more than 1000 buses, trams and Renfe trains, they are a real benefit for citizens and international visitors here.
Read our tips to discover more about the public transport in Barcelona, the different ticket options and fares.
Ticket and prices for the public transport in Barcelona
When it comes to buying a ticket at the vending machines, you’ll find many options and it could not be that easy to pick the right one, since you won’t know the neighbourhoods in Barcelona and the transportation services that the city offers.
As a first matter, you need to know that you can get all over the zones inside the city with the same TMB ticket for the public transport in Barcelona (valid both for metro and bus).
There also are other available transportations, such as tram, Renfe and suburban trains, Teleférico and cable car, but these last ones are rather used to reach further distances.
Now, how to pick the right ticket? The choice depends on the area of the accommodation you’re staying in and, most of all, the length of your stay in Barcelona: so you can decide to buy mid and long-term tickets or short-term options.
In fact, we suggest taking a couple days to decide if you really need to use the public transport in Barcelona or if most of your itineraries are walkable: if you live in the centre of the city and your university or workplace also are located there, you might not need a monthly card.
When it comes to setting your budget, make sure to collect the main information about the cost of living in Barcelona in order to plan your stay, expenses and get the most out of your Spanish experience!
Monthly transportation card in Barcelona
If you’re moving to Barcelona for more than 1 month and you’ll need to use on a daily basis the public transport service, our tip is to get a monthly transport pass, called T-Usual: it is a holder-specific travel card valid for 30 days on all operators in the Integrated Fare System. Its price starts from 40€ a month, but it may rise depending on the zones included.
There’s also a version for young and students, called T-Jove Trimestral Joven, valid for 90 days for users under 25 of age, with a starting price of 80€ for one zone.
Single ticket and T-Día
The single ticket costs € 2.15 and is only valid for a one-way journey (bus or metro); it also doesn’t include any transfers between the different types of transportation. You can purchase a one-way ticket directly from the bus driver or in any of the metro stations.
We suggest this option for those who are only visiting the city for a very short time or if they don't need to use public transport in Barcelona every day.
The T-Dia ticket is a personal travel card that gives customers unlimited access to all the types of transportations in Barcelona, to use within the day starting from its validation (until the end of the service, not valid 24 hours).
T-Casual: 10 trips ticket
An even better option: you can purchase the multi card T-Casual; it is a 10 trips ticket for the public transport in Barcelona (metro and the buses) that you can use whenever you want to!
It also allows transfers from a means of transport to another, but only in a limited frame of time. Prices may vary depending on the zones and the time frame of validity of each ticket.
Hola BCN: travel pass for tourists in Barcelona
Tourists want to get the most out of their stay in Barcelona and explore every corner in the easiest way! Therefore, if you are staying for 2, 3, 4 or 5 days, our tip is to get the Barcelona travel pass for tourists, called Hola BCN, which includes unlimited access to the public transport services in the city centre and also metro journeys between the Airport and the centre of Barcelona.
Barcelona Card
Another touristy option is the Barcelona Card, which gives you unlimited journeys on the main means of transport, many discounts and also free access to several cultural attractions and museums in the city.
Where to purchase tickets for public transport in Barcelona?
You can purchase most of the tickets in any metro stations, either in the ticket office or in the vending machines. If you’re taking the bus, no worries, you can also buy your single ticket from the bus driver, from the tourist info points in Barcelona and in the TMB customer support offices.
You can check out on the TMB official website all the types of tickets and fares, individual ones and group pass, available in Barcelona.
For any other questions don’t hesitate to reach out! We’re here to provide not only accommodations, but also to assist you before and during your entire stay in Barcelona!
