Getting around Budapest

Public transit in Budapest

Subway

The best way to plan your route and buy tickets is by downloading the official "BudapestGO" app. It offers a straightforward app-based way to purchase tickets and passes, and it lets you directly monitor buses and timelines in preparation for your journey. Combine it with Google Maps for best results.

The fastest and easiest way of public transport in Budapest is using the underground with the four existing lines, also known by their colours:

• M1 or the Yellow Line: between Mexikói út and Vörösmarty tér (this is continental Europe's oldest underground railroad, built in 1896 for the centennial anniversary of Budapest's founding)
• M2 or the Red Line: between Örs vezér tere and Déli pályaudvar
• M3 or the Blue Line: between Kőbánya-Kispest and Újpest-Központ
• M4 or the Green Line: between Keleti pályaudvar and Kőbánya-kispest

These metro lines are reliable and can take more people than buses or trams. The red, blue, and green lines connect you directly to each of the three main railway stations in Budapest. In case of breakdowns or renovations, a fleet of replacement buses serves as a reliable alternative – and if the disruption only affects a part of the line, you can still use normal subway cars on the rest of your trip.

Buses

As Budapest only has four subway lines, you probably have to take another form of public transport as well when travelling to work, school or for a meeting. You are most likely to find a bus stop close to your home, as Budapest has more than 200 bus routes covering most inner-city and suburban areas. To access the Liszt Ferenc International Airport, look for the 100E Airport Express shuttle. Most of the bus fleet in Budapest has been upgraded to modern vehicles with low floors and large inner spaces to make them more accessible for people with wheelchairs and mothers with prams.

A significant portion of the Budapest bus lines feature electric buses with overhead lines (or “trolleys”) – these are red rather than the traditional blue. There are 15 lines of them, starting from number 70 up to 83. The reason for this numbering comes from communism, as the first trolleybus line was opened in 1949 when Stalin celebrated his 70th birthday.

You can read about accessible services on the page on the Centre for Budapest Transport (BKK) website.

Trams

Trams are also widespread in Budapest, with the city's tramlines getting continuous upgrades to form an interconnected network on the Buda side. The tram fleet's age has a much wider range than that of the buses, with 1970s Ganz and KSCVS vehicles and 1980s T5C5s complementing the newer Spanish CAFs seen on Line 1 and lines on the Buda side, and Siemens Combinos travelling along Nagykörút (Great Boulevard) in the middle of Pest. Red trolleys are a mixture of trams and buses, as they use overhead wires but are not stuck to tramlines.

Suburban rails

If you live in an outer district or in a suburban area, you can use the green suburban rails, called HÉV, which are a fast and comfortable way of travelling. You can carry bikes on most of them, so they are preferred options if you are planning some cycling in the hills or green areas on the weekends. If you are travelling with these lines, remember to buy extra tickets if you are travelling outside of the city's border.

For other normal journeys, you can buy single tickets, a block of 10 tickets, or weekly/monthly passes. You can get them from ticket offices located at bigger underground and bus stations, or recently from ticket machines as well, and also through the aforementioned BudapestGO app. You can find out more about ticket prices here.

Other means of public transportation in Budapest

There are some unique means of public transport in Budapest, like the Funicular, which takes you up to Castle Hill from Clark Adam Square, the Chairlift, or boat lines, which all have special ticket prices. These ways of travel are used mostly by tourists or families on weekends. For taxi services, you can use local providers or apps like Bolt and Uber (which returned to Budapest in 2024).

And lastly, if you prefer to go by bike, you can use the cycle sharing network of MOL Bubi bikes, which can be hired and returned to hundreds of docking stations across the city with the use of the dedicated MOL Bubi app.