Suica, PASMO and IC Cards Explained: Which to Get (2026)
iPhone? Add Suica to Apple Wallet. Android? Buy a Welcome Suica or TOURIST PASMO at the airport. Deposits, refunds, the Shinkansen and tap-to-pay gates.
On an iPhone, add a Suica to Apple Wallet before you fly: no deposit, top it up from the Wallet app, and tap your phone at the gates. On Android, or if you'd rather carry a card, buy a Welcome Suica or a TOURIST PASMO at Narita or Haneda when you land. Neither needs a deposit and both last 28 days, but you top them up with cash and the balance is never refunded, so spend it down. Landing at Kansai Airport? Buy an ICOCA: ¥2,000 gets you ¥1,500 of fares plus a ¥500 refundable deposit.
All of them work the same way: tap in, tap out, and the fare comes off the balance, on trains, subways and buses in every big city and at konbini and vending machines. No more figuring out ticket prices or fumbling with coins. Once you have one, you'll use it dozens of times a day without thinking about it.
Which IC Card Should You Get?
| Card | Deposit | Valid for | Refund |
|---|---|---|---|
| Suica in Apple Wallet | None | 10 years after last use | Only to a Japanese bank account |
| Welcome Suica Mobile (iPhone app) | None | 180 days | None |
| Welcome Suica or TOURIST PASMO | None | 28 days | None |
| Regular Suica card | ¥500 | 10 years after last use | Deposit and balance, minus ¥220 |
Our pick for iPhone users is a Suica in Apple Wallet. It costs nothing to set up, you'll never accidentally leave it in a hotel room, and the balance is still there on your next trip. JR East refunds a phone Suica only to a bank account in Japan, so treat the money as spent and run the balance down before you fly home.
Without an iPhone, a 28-day tourist card beats the regular card for a normal trip. There's no deposit to reclaim and no refund queue on your last morning; JR East even suggests keeping your Welcome Suica as a memento. Take a regular Suica or PASMO (both ¥500 deposit) only if you're staying longer than 28 days or coming back.
Suica, PASMO or ICOCA? Almost no difference. JR East issues Suica, Tokyo's private railways and subways issue PASMO, and JR West issues ICOCA, but each works on the others' networks. Buy whichever your arrival station sells.
How to Get Suica on Your Phone (iPhone and Android)
Open Wallet, tap the + button, choose Transit Card, then Suica, pick an amount and pay with a card already in Apple Pay. Apple's requirements are an iPhone 8 or later (or an Apple Watch Series 3 or later), an Apple Account with two-factor authentication and an eligible payment card. Being in Japan isn't on the list. PASMO and ICOCA can be added the same way.
Top up in the Wallet app, not the Suica app. JR East's own Suica app won't register cards issued outside Japan. If Apple Pay turns your card down for Suica, try ICOCA: JR West says visitors can add an ICOCA on Apple Pay from their own country and fund it with Visa, Mastercard, JCB or American Express, and it works on Tokyo's trains exactly like Suica.
Welcome Suica Mobile: JR East's App for Visitors
Welcome Suica Mobile issues a Suica that lasts 180 days, with no deposit and no refund, topped up through Apple Pay. It also books JR East Shinkansen and Narita Express seats in English, sells Green Car tickets and offers a Greater Tokyo day pass. It needs an iPhone XR or later on iOS 17.2 or newer, with location services on.
The catch is timing: JR East lists only six countries where you can issue the card before arriving (South Korea, Taiwan, Malaysia, Singapore, Australia and Vietnam). Everyone else sets it up after landing. Unless you want the booking extras, the Wallet Suica is simpler and doesn't expire after six months.
What About Android?
Mobile Suica on Android needs Osaifu-Keitai, and JR East's compatibility list (September 2026) names only Japanese-market models: the Galaxy S26 appears as SM-S942Z, Q and C, not the international version. Welcome Suica Mobile is iPhone only. With an Android phone bought abroad, pick up a card at the airport; it takes two minutes at a machine and works identically. Google Pay still gets you through the contactless gates on Tokyo's subways (see below).
Where to Buy Welcome Suica, TOURIST PASMO and ICOCA
- Narita Airport: Welcome Suica from the vending machines and JR EAST Travel Service Centers in the Terminal 1 and Terminal 2·3 stations. TOURIST PASMO (¥2,000 only) from the Skyliner & Keisei Information Centers in the Terminal 1 and Terminal 2 stations.
- Haneda Airport: Welcome Suica at the Tokyo Monorail's Terminal 3 station, from machines or the travel service center. TOURIST PASMO from Keikyu's ticket machines for travelers at the Terminal 1·2 and Terminal 3 stations, which take credit cards, or the Keikyu Tourist Information Center at Terminal 3.
- Central Tokyo: Welcome Suica at the JR EAST Travel Service Centers in Tokyo, Shibuya, Shinjuku, Ikebukuro and Ueno stations, plus Takanawa Gateway and JAPAN RAIL CAFÉ TOKYO. Yokohama and Sendai stations sell it too.
- Kansai Airport: ICOCA from JR West's ticket machines (cash only) or the ticket office, which also sells a design reserved for foreign visitors for ¥2,000, deposit included (bring your passport). Every ICOCA carries the ¥500 deposit, so ¥2,000 leaves ¥1,500 to spend.
A Welcome Suica comes loaded with ¥1,000 to ¥10,000, all of it spendable, one per person. Keep the reference paper you get with it: the 28-day validity (counting the day of purchase) is printed there, and the "GOOD THRU" date on the back is not the expiry. TOURIST PASMO, launched in May 2026, works the same way and replaces the PASMO PASSPORT, which sold out in 2024.
Regular Suica and PASMO cards are back at station ticket machines too, after a chip shortage stopped sales from mid-2023 until March 1, 2025.
Topping Up Your Card
Topping up is called "charge" on Japanese machines and signs.
- Station ticket machines with the IC card mark: insert the card, choose Charge, pick an amount from ¥500 to ¥10,000 and pay in cash. Physical cards can't be topped up with a credit card.
- Convenience stores: tell the cashier you'd like to charge your Suica, hand over the card and pay cash. The Seven Bank ATMs in 7-Eleven stores top up cards as well.
- Phone cards: top up any time in the Wallet app (or in Welcome Suica Mobile) with a card in Apple Pay. Station charge machines take phones too: lay yours on the tray.
Every card tops out at a ¥20,000 balance. Tokyo Metro rides cost ¥178 to ¥324 by IC card, so ¥2,000 to ¥3,000 covers a busy day of trains plus a few konbini snacks. The ticket gate shows your remaining balance as you pass through.
Where You Can Use an IC Card in Japan
The ten main cards are accepted on each other's networks, so one card covers the trains, subways, monorails and most buses of every big city:
That includes Okinawa: the Naha Yui Rail monorail takes Suica and the other nine, though it doesn't sell them. Away from the rails, the same balance pays at convenience stores, vending machines, station shops and coin lockers, many restaurants, airport shops and taxis. Look for the IC mark or the card logos at the till.
Can You Use Suica on the Shinkansen?
Not by tapping alone, except on JR East's lines after a free one-time registration.
- JR East Shinkansen, non-reserved: register your card for Touch de Go! Shinkansen once, by pressing its button on the charge screen of a JR East ticket machine, and you can tap straight into the non-reserved cars, with the fare taken from your balance. It covers same-day, one-way trips such as Tokyo to Sendai or Niigata, but not trips across Morioka. Welcome Suica Mobile has it built in.
- JR East Shinkansen, reserved: book an e-ticket on JR-EAST Train Reservation and link it to your IC card, one card per traveller.
- Tokaido and Sanyo Shinkansen (Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka, Hiroshima): book on SmartEX and link the booking to your IC card. A card with no booking won't open the gate.
JR limited expresses such as the Narita Express work the same way: your card pays the basic fare, but you need a limited express ticket on top. Our Shinkansen booking guide walks through both apps. Riding on a JR Pass? Still get an IC card, because the pass doesn't cover the subways or private railways.
Can You Tap a Credit Card Instead?
On most of Tokyo's non-JR lines, yes, since March 25, 2026. Contactless Visa, Mastercard, JCB, American Express, Diners Club, Discover and UnionPay cards, and phones with those cards in Apple Pay or Google Pay, open the wide gates of 11 operators: Tokyo Metro, Toei, Tokyu, Odakyu, Odakyu Hakone, Keio, Keikyu, Seibu, Tobu, Sotetsu and the Minatomirai Line. A few Seibu, Tobu and Odakyu Hakone stations aren't covered. In Osaka, every Osaka Metro line takes contactless cards, and Osaka City Buses have since November 2025.
It's a good backup, not a replacement for an IC card:
- No JR: JR East lines, the Yamanote included, don't take it, and you can't ride on from a subway into JR on it.
- Paper-ticket fares, adults only: you pay the ticket fare (¥180 rather than ¥178 for the shortest Tokyo Metro ride), and children pay the adult fare.
- One card per person: enter and exit with the same card or phone, at the wide gate by the station's information counter.
Do IC Cards Save Money?
A little, in Tokyo, where IC fares are charged to the yen: JR Shinjuku to Shibuya is ¥199 by card against ¥200 for a ticket, and the Keikyu from Haneda to Shinagawa ¥327 against ¥330. On JR West there's no difference (Osaka to Kyoto is ¥580 either way). The real saving is time: no fare charts and no queue at the machine.
Travelling with Kids: Child IC Cards
On JR, children aged 6 to 11 (and 12-year-olds still in elementary school) pay half fare, and they need a child IC card to get it. Under-6s ride free, up to two per paying adult. The easiest child card is a Welcome Suica (Child): buy it from the airport machines (you enter the child's birth date) or at a JR EAST Travel Service Center, and have the child's passport ready. It works until March 31 after the child's 12th birthday. TOURIST PASMO has a child version too.
Getting Your Suica Deposit Back
Return a regular Suica at a JR East station before you leave. Narita's two airport stations are JR East stations; Haneda has none, so do it in the city if you fly from there. You get the ¥500 deposit plus your balance, minus a ¥220 fee. If less than ¥220 is left, JR East keeps the remainder as the fee and still returns the full ¥500, so spend the card down at a konbini first: snacks or drinks for the flight. A Suica from another issuer, such as the Tokyo Monorail, goes back to that company.
Next: the cheapest way into the city is in our Narita and Haneda airport guide, and the rest of the network is in how to get around Japan. Setting up your phone? Our essential apps list covers the rest, and the trip planner maps out your days.
Frequently Asked Questions
Should I get Suica, PASMO or ICOCA for Japan?
It makes almost no difference: the ten main Japanese IC cards, including Suica, PASMO and ICOCA, work on each other's trains, subways and buses. On an iPhone, add a Suica (or ICOCA) to Apple Wallet, with no deposit. Without an iPhone, buy a Welcome Suica or TOURIST PASMO at Narita or Haneda: no deposit, valid 28 days, but no refund. At Kansai Airport, buy an ICOCA for ¥2,000 including a ¥500 refundable deposit.
Can I add Suica to my iPhone before I travel to Japan?
Apple's requirements for adding a Suica to Apple Wallet are an iPhone 8 or later, an Apple Account with two-factor authentication and an eligible payment card; being in Japan isn't one of them. Top it up in the Wallet app, because JR East's Suica app won't register cards issued abroad. JR West explicitly lets visitors add an ICOCA on Apple Pay from home, funded by Visa, Mastercard, JCB or American Express. JR East's Welcome Suica Mobile app can be set up before arrival only from six countries, including Australia, Singapore and South Korea.
Can I use Suica on an Android phone bought outside Japan?
Almost certainly not. Mobile Suica on Android needs Osaifu-Keitai, and JR East's compatibility list only includes Japanese-market models, while Welcome Suica Mobile is iPhone only. Buy a Welcome Suica or TOURIST PASMO card at Narita or Haneda instead. Your phone can still pay fares with Google Pay at the contactless gates of Tokyo Metro, Toei and nine other Tokyo-area railways, though not on JR lines.
Where can I buy a Welcome Suica, and is it worth it?
Welcome Suica is sold from machines and JR EAST Travel Service Centers at the Narita Terminal 1 and 2·3 stations and Haneda's Tokyo Monorail Terminal 3 station, and at travel service centers in Tokyo, Shibuya, Shinjuku, Ikebukuro, Ueno, Yokohama and Sendai stations. It needs no deposit and lasts 28 days, but top-ups are cash only and the balance is never refunded. For trips under four weeks it beats a regular Suica, whose ¥500 deposit you'd have to reclaim at a JR East station.
Can I use a credit card instead of an IC card on Tokyo trains?
On many lines, yes. Since March 25, 2026, contactless Visa, Mastercard, JCB, American Express, Diners, Discover and UnionPay cards, and phones with them in Apple Pay or Google Pay, work at the wide gates of 11 operators, including Tokyo Metro, Toei, Tokyu, Odakyu, Keio and Keikyu. JR East lines such as the Yamanote don't accept them, you pay the paper-ticket fare (¥180 instead of ¥178), and children are charged the adult fare, so an IC card is still worth having.
Can I use Suica on the Shinkansen?
Only in two ways. On JR East's Shinkansen lines, such as Tokyo to Sendai or Niigata, register your card once for Touch de Go! Shinkansen at a JR East ticket machine and you can tap into the non-reserved cars, paying from your balance. For reserved seats, and on the Tokaido Shinkansen between Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka, book on JR-EAST Train Reservation or SmartEX and link the booking to your IC card. Tapping an unregistered card with no booking doesn't open the Shinkansen gate.
