London is divided into 1–9 zones*, but most of it fits into zones 1–6. Central London is zone 1, zone 2 is the ring around zone 1, zone 3 is the ring around 2 and so on.
*zones 7,8 and 9 cover a small area just outside North West London including Watford, Croxley Green, Rickmansworth, Amersham or Chalfont & Latimer.
It’s important to be aware of London’s transport zones and to find out what zone a station is in. Ticket prices for One Day, Weekly or Monthly Travelcards or the money deducted from a Pay as you go Oyster card or contactless card can vary considerably according to how many zones you travel through.
The zones do not apply to bus travel. You can travel by bus all over London (zones 1–6) with any Travelcard.
First time visitor to London? See our guide to London’s transport tickets
London zone map
You can see the zones on a tube map, coloured in either white or grey.
- View a standard PDF version of the tube map
- If you stay in a part of London that is not on the tube network, see the National Rail services map (pdf) to find the zone for your closest train station.
What London transport zones do I need?
Find the closest underground or train station to your accommodation. Then find the zone of the station you want to travel to. If you’re visitingLondon for sightseeing or to shop this will probably be zone 1.
When you know the zones you need to pay for, what you do depends on the type of ticket/pass you buy:
Weekly or monthly Travelcards
You buy a Travelcard that covers all the zones between where you stay and where you want to visit/your regular final destination. For example:
- if you stay in Shepherd’s Bush (zone 2) and plan to visit central London (zone 1), you need a zone 1-2 Travelcard.
- If you stay in Wimbledon (zone 3) and travel to/from central London, you need a zone 1-3 Travelcard.
Pay as you go Oyster card
If you use a Pay as you go Oyster card, top-up your card with enough money to either pay for a single journey for the zones you travel through or add enough money to cover the cost of the ‘daily cap’ if you want unlimited travel for the day.
Contactless
With a contactless card, you do not have to worry about the zones as the system will calculate the fare for you the next day. Remember to always touch in and out on the tube or local trains (with the same card!) to ensure you are charged the correct amount.
How to pay for transport outside your normal transport zone
There may be occasions when you need to travel outside the zones on your weekly or monthly Travelcard.
The procedure is slightly different if you have a Travelcard loaded on an Oyster card, or a paper Travelcard:
Travelcards on an Oyster card
Ifyou already have a weekly Travelcard for certain zones and want to visit a place outside that zone, top-up your Oyster card with some Pay as you go money to cover the cost of travelling between the last zone on your Travelcard and the zone you want to visit.
For example, if you have a zone 1-2 weekly Travelcard and you want to visit Richmond in zone 4, you need to add extra money to your Oyster to cover the fare for zones 3 and 4.
See Oyster single fares to find a fare. You can add extra money to your Oyster card at a tube station ticket machine.
Paper Travelcards
If you have a paper version of the Travelcard, you need to buy an extension ticket from the underground station ticket machine.
Stations in two zones
Some stations are on the border of two zones. These stations have a white box around their name on the tube map. Tickets to these stations are slightly different.
For example:
- Earl’s Court tube station is in zone 1/2. If you stay in Earl’s Court and take the tube to any other station in zone 1 (central London), you pay the zone 1 single fare with a pay as you go Oyster or contactless card.
- If you travel from Earl’s Court to Heathrow (zone 6), the single fare is charged from zone 2 to zone 6, not from zone 1-6.
- ABBA Arena is in zone 2/3. From zone 1, you pay the zone 1-2 fare. If you are staying in outer London and are travelling to the stadium without travelling through central London (zone 1), you pay the the fare to zone 3.
How to save money on travel to central London from zones 2-6
A major benefit of the Travelcard is that it’s valid on the buses for the whole of London, regardless of the zones you buy.
If you stay in zones 2-6 and want to travel to zone 1 (central London) a good money-saving tip is to buy a weekly or monthly Travelcard excluding zone 1, but including zone 2. You can then take the tube/train to the zone 2 station close to zone 1 and then use the bus to travel to and around zone 1.
This only works with a weekly or monthly Travelcard, but you will save a money.
- If you stay in zone 5, a zone 1-5 weekly Travelcard is£73.00.
- A zone 2-5 weekly Travelcard is £42.50, saving you £30.50 a week
- A zone 1-5 monthly Travelcard is£280.40
- A zone 2-5 monthly Travelcard is£163.20 a saving of £111.70 a month
Popular places to visit outside central London (Zone 1)
Tourist attractions
Chiswick House – zone 2 (Turnham Green)
Cutty Sark – zone 2
Dulwich Picture Gallery – zone 2
Ham House – zone 4
Hampton Court Palace – zone 6
Kenwood House – zone 2 (Archway)
Kew Gardens – zone 3
National Maritime Museum – zone 2
Osterley House – zone 4
RAF Museum Hendon – zone 4
William Morris Gallery – zone 3
Shopping
Westfield London (Shepherd’s Bush/White City) – zone 2
Westfield Stratford – zone 2/3
Camden Market – zone 2
Sport and music venues
The O2 – zone 2/3
Twickenham Rugby Stadium – zone 5
Wembley Stadium – zone 4
Emirates Stadium – zone 2
ABBA Arena – zone 2/3 (See stations in two zones above)
Areas
Greenwich – zone 2
Richmond – zone 4
Wimbledon – zone 3
Related pages
- Oyster cards
- Contactless cards
Last updated: 23 February 2024