Fukuoka Bus Pass vs IC Card: Which Is Cheaper?

In Fukuoka you end up taking buses far more than the subway. Fares go by distance, about 260 yen a ride, and there's no transfer discount, so on a day with four or five rides, the 24-hour bus pass (1,100 yen as of October 2026) pays for itself. For the subway, you can now just tap a contactless card at the gate.

I used a 24-hour bus pass from an app on one trip, and a one-day bus pass when I went with my mom in September 2026. Both times we were going to places away from Hakata Station, like Fukuoka Tower and Ohori Park. Fukuoka summers are so hot that we took the bus even for short hops, so the pass paid off fast.

Bus pass vs IC card vs contactless card

On city buses you tap once getting on and once getting off, and you're charged by distance. With a pass you don't have to think about any of that. If you'll ride the bus four or five times in a day, get the pass.

How to use the my route 24-hour bus pass

Last summer I bought the pass in the my route app. Install the app, open the tickets section from the home screen and pick the Fukuoka area. For city buses only, take the 1,100 yen pass at the top. If you're going to Dazaifu too, take the 2,000 yen one.

One person can buy several tickets for a group, and an adult ticket covered one child, so as a family we only needed adult tickets. When you register a credit card, you'll get a 10 yen charge notice, but it isn't actually billed.

The key thing is that the 24 hours start when you tap Use, not when you buy. Time it right and it covers two days. I had a Yufuin tour on day two, so I switched it on just before getting off the plane. Once it's active, the clock on screen ticks by the second, so a screenshot won't work. If you lose your connection, you can't bring the screen up, so make sure you have data.

One-day bus pass (Green Pass)

In September 2026 I booked a one-day bus pass in advance. It was about $7 per person, and you activate it from a link in the mobile voucher. The instructions said to activate it in front of staff, but that wasn't necessary. I just showed the screen to the driver when I got off.

The two passes work a little differently, and I found the my route pass, which runs for 24 hours instead of one calendar day, slightly better value.

How to ride a Fukuoka city bus

Board through the rear door and get off at the front. With an IC card, tap the reader by the rear door when you get on and the one by the front door when you get off. With cash, take a numbered ticket from the yellow machine by the rear door when it opens, then check the fare for your number on the screen next to the driver as you get off. The ticket machine only worked while the door was open.

Even with a pass, there was a notice asking you to take a numbered ticket when you board. Drivers don't give change, so you need to break bills at the changer up front first. It took me a moment, but everyone waited, so there was no need to rush. Some stops also show live arrival times.

Subway: just tap your card

I rarely took the subway except between the airport and Hakata or Tenjin. You used to have to buy a ticket from a machine, but now you can tap a contactless card right at the gate. However many rides you take in a day, you pay no more than 640 yen, the same as a subway day pass (as of October 2026). Just check that your card has the wave symbol.

From the airport to Hakata Station is two stops on the subway, so trains came more often than the bus, and a single ticket to either Hakata or Tenjin was 260 yen.

Fukuoka is a small city, but the sights are all a little way from the stations, so using the bus well made the days much easier. For days that suit a bus pass, see Fukuoka Tower: Daytime vs Sunset Views and Fukuoka with Kids.