The historic centre of Stockholm is easy to explore on foot in a morning. However, the famous Gamla Stan is not the only thing Stockholm has to offer, so especially during your winter stay, you'll want to make use of public transport.
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Stockholm has a metro, buses, trams, local trains, buses and boats. All transport in and around Stockholm is provided by the transport company SL.
For specific information on prices, timetables and connections, visit: www.sl.se.
Public transport tickets
To get around Stockholm, you only need one SL fare, which you can use on the metro, city trains, trams, buses and public ferries. It's not only valid on special tourist boats.
Fares
You can buy several types of tickets. Within the time validity of each ticket you can make as many transfers as you like between all means of transport.
| Ticket type | Validity | Price (adults) | Price (over 65 and under 20) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Single journey | 75 minutes | 42 sek | 26 sek |
| One day | 24 hours | 175 sek | 110 sek |
| 3-day | 72 hours | 350 sek | 220 sek |
| 7-day | From 0:00 on the first day to 4:30 on the second day after the 7-day period |
455 sek | 290 sek |
How to buy a ticket?
You can buy tickets in three ways.
SL mobile app
The cheapest and easiest way is to install the SL mobile app. No complicated registration is required.
Once you've purchased your ticket, you'll need to activate it with one click and keep your phone handy while travelling. The ticket is displayed in the form of a QR code, which you have to scan at the turnstile when entering the metro or at the reader inside the bus.
The QR code is only ever scanned on boarding.
Smart Card
You can also use a physical ticket in the form of a card. You can reload different tickets on this card. However, only one ticket can be on the card at a time.
Like your phone when using the mobile app, you must always hold the card against the turnstile when entering the metro or boarding a bus/tram.
The disadvantage of the card is the additional fee 20 sek for issuing it.
The SL Smart Card can only be purchased at the counters in each metro station or at Pressbyrån newsagents. Ticket machines are not available anywhere.
Paying with your own contactless card
In Stockholm, you can also pay fares with your own card, in the same way as the SL Smart Card. The card is always attached to the turnstile in the metro or to a reader on the bus or tram.
However, you can only use your own card to pay a single fare for 75 minutes at 42 sek.
In Stockholm, unfortunately, all-day limits do not work with this form of payment as they do in many other cities. If you travel a lot, you can pay considerably more per day than 175 sek, which is the price for a day ticket purchased on the mobile app or Smart Card.
Where do I pay for tickets?
The above fares are valid on all SL means of transport in the entire Stockholm district.
There are no zones in the city and therefore you can travel outside Stockholm itself on one ticket, as the Stockholm district is much larger.
You can use the tickets for:
- Metro
- Blue and red buses SL
- Trams
- Suburban trains "Pendeltåg"
- Saltsjöbanan and Roslagsbanan trains
- SL ferries (lines 80, 82, 83, 89)
Tickets are not valid on the following lines:
- Long-distance and regional trains SJ, Mälartåg and MTRX
- Tourist boats
In which cities/neighbourhoods are the tickets valid?
You can use unlimited fares throughout the entire Stockholm district, so for example, you can go to the ports of Nynäshamn or Kappelskär, Södertälje, Norrtälje, Sigtuna, Solna, Täby, Märsta, Ekerö and many more on one ticket.
Tickets are also valid for travel to Bromma BMA airport (all services) and also Arlanda ARN (but only on buses 583 and 597 from Märsta station).
You can also use the tickets to travel to some of the nearest municipalities outside the county, such as Bålsta or Gnesta.
Where are tickets no longer valid?
Some SL train and bus lines also go outside Stockholm, and there you have to buy an additional ticket from the last stop in the Stockholm district.
For example, you cannot travel to the following cities with a ticket.
Tickets are not valid for travel to Skavsta NYO or Västerås VST.
Connection search engines
What are the best websites to find connections between stops in Stockholm?
The best way to find all the connections for metro, local trains, trams and boats on lines 80 to 89 is to use the transport company's official website.
You can find connections for private ferries directly on their website, see the links below in the "Boats and ferries" section.
Current connections and departure times for all transport (including private ferries) in Stockholm are also well provided by google.com/maps.
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Metro
The metro in Stockholm has three main lines, which split into further branches at the ends.
The Stockholm metro is not only a means of transport, but also one of the main tourist attractions thanks to the extremely interesting design of the stations.
For detailed information on how to use tickets on the metro, where to find maps of the lines or where the most beautiful stations are, see the separate chapter Metro in Stockholm.
Pendeltåg trains and the local railway
Fast transport across the centre from north to south and to Stockholm's suburbs is provided by city and suburban trains.
SL public transport tickets are valid on the following trains for their entire length:
- Pendeltåg - lines 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 48
- For line 40 in its northern part, it is valid only after the station "Upplands Väsby". Further on to Arlanda C, Knivsta and Uppsala C stations you have to buy additional tickets.
- Local rail Roslagsbanan - lines 27, 28, 29
- Local railway Saltsjöbanan - lines 25, 26
We don't recommend using the trains too much to get around the centre, as Pendeltåg station is deep underground and it's faster to take the regular metro. On the other hand, if you are heading to the outskirts of Stockholm, trains are definitely the best option.
The frequency on the main lines is between 8 and 15 minutes and on the outskirts it is a maximum of 30 minutes.
Trains usually run from about 5:30 to 0:00, and until 1:00 on the main routes.
Detailed train and local rail timetables can be found on the website: sl.linjetidtabeller.se.
How to use tickets?
If you travel on Pendeltåg trains, you enter each station through turnstiles just like on the metro. To open the turnstile, you need to attach a QR code from your mobile ticket, your own payment card or SL Smart Card.
There are no turnstiles on the Roslagsbanan and Saltsjöbanan local lines. There are readers on the platforms where you activate single tickets (for Smart Card or paying with your own contactless card). If you have a single-use ticket via the mobile app, just activate it via the app and you don't need to load the QR code anywhere.
If you have day tickets or multi-day tickets, you don't need to attach them to the reader and just show them to the checker inside the train.
Trams
Stockholm currently has 5 tram lines that are not interconnected. However, they all belong to the public transport system and you can use regular tickets on all lines.
- Line 7 "Spårväg City" - takes you from Centralen Central Station to the popular island of Djurgården in 8 minutes, trams run every 8-10 minutes
- Line 12 "Nockebybanan" - this line goes to the residential area of Nockeby and is not very well used from a tourist point of view
- Line 21 "Lidingöbanan" - this line runs from Ropsten metro station to Lidingö island, where there are intermingled residential areas, nice new housing estates with parks and promenades around the sea
- Line 30 "Tvärbanan" - the longest route running from Solna station around the western edge of Stockholm and south to Globen
- Line 31 "Tvärbanan" - connects the main route of line 30 with Bromma airport
The trams run from about 5:30 to 0:30, with service starting between 6:00 and 6:30 on weekends.
Timetables for all tram lines can be found at this link: sl.linjetidtabeller.se.
How to use tickets?
Always attach your SL Smart Card or your own contactless card to the reader at the tram stop.
If you use the mobile app, you activate the ticket by clicking on it in the app and you no longer attach the QR code to any reader.
Transport maps
The metro, trains and trams are the clearest and most used means of transport in Stockholm, so we have prepared a special map of all lines.
Complete maps, including all bus lines, are available only on the Swedish language version of the official website: sl.se/reseplanering/kartor.
Boats and ferries
Boat transport in Stockholm is not only very popular with tourists, but also a practical mode of transport for locals. It often cuts the journey between the islands and across the bays considerably, and the boats offer beautiful views of the city and, further away from the centre, the Nordic countryside.
Public ferries SL
The local transport company operates several boat lines, on which regular public transport tickets apply throughout.
The most used routes run right in the centre of Stockholm.
- Line 80 - runs from Nybroplan pier to Djurgården island and then continues through several stops to Ropsten metro station. This route is very busy and runs every 15 minutes. From Ropsten station, selected services continue further north-east.
- Line 82 - a short line connecting Gamla Stan (Slussen harbour) with the islands of Djurgården and Skeppsholmen. It sails once every 15 minutes.
Timetables for all SL ferry lines can be found on the website: sl.linjetidtabeller.se.
Some wharves on the outskirts of Stockholm are equipped with special aids for hailing a boat. You have to flip a lever over a sign or perhaps a mirror well in advance (at least 2-3 minutes before the boat docks) so that the boat crew knows that someone wants to board.
When you board the ship, the attendant will use a portable reader to read your ticket or QR code from a mobile app. You can also buy a single ticket on board using a contactless card.
On ferries of lines 80, 82, 83, 84 and 89, regular tickets are valid, including day or multi-day tickets.
Private and tourist ferries
The public ferry network is also supplemented by private ferry companies with many routes.
However, regular public transport tickets do not apply on these, but you must pay a separate fare for the route. You can only ever pay by card at the operator and the price is calculated according to the distance.
Waxholmsbolaget
This company operates an extensive network of lines from the centre to all the inhabited islands east, north and south of Stockholm.
Fares are calculated according to distance. The lowest fare is 61 sek and the highest 186 sek. Day tickets are not sold here.
Ferries on specific lines usually run only 2-3 times a day, and many lines do not run at all during the winter.
- Map of lines: waxholmsbolaget.se/kartor
- Find connections : waxholmsbolaget.se
Stromma
Stromma operates exclusively tourist lines on several regular routes from central Stockholm.
- Klara Mälarstrand - Drottningholm
- 1-2 times a day (summer only)
- 225 sek one-way fare / 325 sek return
- stromma.com/drottningholm-palace
- Strandvägen - Vaxholm
- 1x daily in winter, up to 2x daily in summer
- 235 sek one-way fare / 380 sek return
- stromma.com/vaxholm
- Strandvägen - Vaxholm - Grinda - Sandhamn
- 1-2x daily, sailing only in summer
- 240 sek to Sandhamn (return not discounted)
- 175 sek to Vaxholm (slower boat than above)
- stromma.com/kastell
- Strandvägen - Nacka Strand - Fjäderholmarna
- 1x per hour (summer only)
- 195 sek return ticket
- stromma.com/fjaderholmarna
Zeam
This ferry only runs on a 3-minute long line and connects two busy quaysides.
Ferries depart once every 10 minutes from 7:00 to 20:40. On weekends they start at 9:00.
One trip costs 35 sek and public transport tickets are not valid here.
Detailed sailing schedule and current prices can be found on the website: zeam.se.
Buses
Buses play a role, especially in the outskirts of Stockholm, but many lines also go into the centre, where they cross metro and tram lines.
You will notice that some of the SL transport company buses are red and others are blue. However, the difference between blue and red buses is more marketing and has no consequences for passengers.
The blue buses usually run on frequent routes (on average once every 8 to 15 minutes), while the red buses run on regular routes that have intervals of 15-30 minutes).
Daily bus routes run between approximately 5:00 and 0:30.
All buses in Stockholm are boarded only through the front door.
Timetables for all bus lines can be found at this link: sl.linjetidtabeller.se.
How to use tickets?
You must use your ticket every time you board. There is a reader at the driver's desk where you scan the QR code from the mobile app or attach your own contactless card or SL Smart Card.
When you exit, you no longer load the card or QR code anywhere.
Night public transport
The metro, trains, trams and the vast majority of bus lines only run from about 5:00 to 1:30 a.m., with the last metro services leaving the city centre at about 1:00 a.m.
At night, from Friday to Saturday and Saturday to Sunday, the metro and some buses run 24 hours non-stop.
On other days, all-night bus routes 91 to 96 operate at a frequency of 30 minutes.
Taxi and mobile apps
There are many taxis and mobile apps in Stockholm.
Taxis are particularly useful at night when public transport is at a minimum, but can also be convenient if you're travelling with more than one person.
Regular taxis are usually about twice as expensive as taxis via the Bolt or Uber mobile apps, both of which operate here. The availability of cars via Uber and Bolt is very good in all parts of Stockholm.