Subway Map

Transit card guide

Tokyo runs on Suica or Pasmo, two IC cards from different companies that work identically everywhere in the city, so it genuinely doesn't matter which one you end up with. Tourist versions — Welcome Suica and Pasmo Passport — skip the refundable deposit but forfeit any leftover balance once the card expires after about a month, while a standard card carries a small deposit refundable at its own issuer's counters (Suica at JR East, Pasmo at its own operator), minus a modest handling fee taken from the balance. Because the city's lines are split across JR, Tokyo Metro, Toei, and several private railways, a one-day pass usually only pays off if you're sticking to a single operator for many rides; for typical sightseeing that hops between operators, just tapping an IC card per ride tends to be simpler and often cheaper. It's worth knowing these cards also work in cities like Osaka and Fukuoka thanks to nationwide interoperability — but that doesn't mean one continuous trip across regions, since you generally still exit and re-enter where one region's network ends and another's begins.