Public transportation apps, curated for travelers visiting South Korea.
Naver Map is enough for route planning in Seoul, Busan, Daegu, Daejeon, Gwangju and other urban networks, so a separate subway diagram is optional rather than essential.
Plans subway, bus and walking connections with local stop details and current urban routes.
Turns a supported iPhone or Apple Watch into a nationwide Tmoney transit card with overseas Apple Pay top-ups.
The Android visitor version of mobile Tmoney for compatible NFC phones, with transit use and tourist benefits.
Public transport payment is a separate problem. An ordinary foreign contactless bank card still does not act as a universal tap-in card at subway gates or buses. Each passenger needs an accepted transit card or mobile transit balance and must tap both when boarding and, where required, when leaving. A physical Tmoney card remains the simplest universal fallback.
Buy one from a staffed convenience store or station, keep some won for top-ups and avoid loading more than you expect to use. MobileTmoney became genuinely visitor-ready on iPhone in 2026. Its current foreigner flow needs no sign-up, adds Tmoney to Apple Wallet and accepts supported overseas cards through Apple Pay. Current compatibility requires an iPhone XS or XR or newer with iOS 17.2 or later, or a supported Apple Watch.
Mastercard, American Express, UnionPay and JCB are listed in the August 2026 App Store version, but card, issuer and region support can still fail. Android visitors should use the separate KOREA TOUR CARD Tmoney app only on a compatible NFC Android device. Device and NFC behavior vary, so carry a physical card until the mobile card has completed a real trip. Seoul ticket machines began accepting international cards in March 2026 for short-term Climate Card passes and single-journey tickets.
That is a machine purchase, not direct bank-card tapping at every gate. Climate Card coverage and value are Seoul-specific, so compare it with pay-as-you-go Tmoney for the actual itinerary.
These apps need data
Guac eSIM covers South Korea with plans from $1.50 per GB. Install it before you land and activate instantly.
Naver Map is the top-rated transit app in South Korea. Plans subway, bus and walking connections with local stop details and current urban routes.
There are 3 transit apps available in South Korea as of 2026.
Set up payments, maps and transport before entering mainland China
Use Octopus to pay, Citymapper to travel, and MyObservatory for official weather warnings
Rail-first travel, flexible IC cards, official Shinkansen booking, and disaster alerts
Official bus tracking, metered taxis and typhoon alerts for Macau
Cash, a physical EasyCard and a few well-chosen apps cover most trips
