First-time guide to the London Underground

The Tube can look intimidating from the outside — eleven lines, hundreds of stations, escalators that go on forever. In practice it's one of the easiest big-city metros in the world to use, once you know five or six basic things. This guide is the five or six things.

1. You don't need a ticket

The simplest way to use the Tube is to tap in and out with a contactless bank card or a phone. Apple Pay, Google Pay, Visa, Mastercard, Amex — they all work directly at the gates. You don't need to buy a ticket, you don't need to top up, you don't need an Oyster card unless you specifically want one.

Just tap your card on the yellow reader at the gate when you enter, and tap the same card at the yellow reader when you leave. TfL calculates the fare automatically and charges your card overnight. Daily and weekly fare caps apply automatically — you cannot accidentally overpay across a day or a week.

If you'd rather use a physical Oyster card (perhaps to keep travel and bank transactions separate), they're available from any station ticket machine. They work in exactly the same way at the gates.

2. The map is not geographically accurate

The famous Tube map, designed by Harry Beck in 1931, is a schematic — it shows the lines and how they connect, not where they actually are above ground. Two stations next to each other on the map can be a 15-minute walk apart in reality (the classic example: Bank and Monument, which are connected as a single station). Two stations far apart on the map can be five minutes apart at street level.

For walking decisions, use a real map (Google Maps, Citymapper, or TfL's WalkLondon map). For Tube decisions, the schematic map is exactly what you want.

3. Pick the right line, then the right platform

Each line has a name and a colour (Northern is black, Central is red, Piccadilly is dark blue, and so on). Inside a station, signs in the line's colour will direct you to the platforms.

Almost all platforms are labelled "Northbound", "Southbound", "Eastbound" or "Westbound" — the direction the train is going. Big stations have indicators showing what the next train is, where it terminates, and how long until it arrives. If a train terminates short of your destination (or runs to a different branch entirely), wait for the next one.

Some lines have multiple branches (Northern, District, Piccadilly, Metropolitan, Central). On these, always check the destination on the front of the train and on the platform indicator before boarding.

4. Etiquette: stand on the right

The single most important rule on the Tube: on escalators, stand on the right; walk on the left. If you want to take the escalator without moving, stand on the right. If you want to walk up or down, walk on the left.

This is taken very seriously by Londoners — blocking the left side of an escalator is the fastest way to mark yourself as someone who doesn't use the Tube often. Don't worry about offending anyone; just remember the right.

A few other small habits that make journeys smoother for everyone:

• Let people off first. Wait next to the doors, not in front of them.
• Move down inside the carriage. Stations get full because everyone clusters near the doors.
• Take your backpack off in busy carriages. Hold it at your feet so it doesn't take up the space of a person.
• Move away from the platform edge. Stay behind the yellow line until the train has fully stopped.

5. Zone 1 is central London

TfL's fare system uses zones — concentric rings around central London, numbered 1 to 9. Zone 1 is the very centre (the City and the West End). Most tourist destinations are in Zones 1 and 2. The outer zones are mostly residential suburbs.

Fares are calculated based on the zones you travel through. A single Zone 1 journey is £3.00 off-peak and £3.10 peak (current from 1 March 2026). A day's travel within Zones 1–2 is capped at £8.90, no matter how many journeys you make — so you can never accidentally overspend.

Children under 11 travel free with an adult. Children 11–15 can get reduced fares with a Zip Oyster Card. Visitors with disabilities can apply for various concessions.

6. Lines have personalities

It helps to know the rough character of a few key lines:

• Central — the long red one. West End and the City, very busy, runs hot in summer.
• Northern — the black one with two central branches (Bank and Charing Cross). Always check which branch.
• Piccadilly — the dark blue one to Heathrow. Useful for the West End and Hyde Park.
• Victoria — the light blue one. Single line, no branches, very frequent, very reliable.
• Jubilee — the silver one. Westminster, Waterloo, London Bridge, Canary Wharf — many of the photogenic destinations.
• Elizabeth line — the purple one, opened in 2022. Fast, full-size trains, fully step-free.
• District — the green one. South-west London, the south side of central London, lots of branches.
• Circle, Hammersmith & City, Metropolitan — share track with each other and the District. Useful for crossing central London without paying for an extra zone.

7. Live status is your friend

Tube status changes throughout the day. Before a journey, check whether the line you need is running normally — disruption is more common than you might expect. The whole point of this site is to show you that information at a glance, without making you wade through anything.

8. A few classic mistakes to avoid

• Don't use Heathrow Express by accident. Heathrow Express is a separate, expensive train. The Tube and Elizabeth line both serve Heathrow at a fraction of the cost.
• Don't board the wrong branch of a multi-branch line. Northern, District, Piccadilly, Metropolitan and Central all have branches. Check the front of the train.
• Don't follow signs to a different line's "Hammersmith". Hammersmith is two stations (District/Piccadilly on one side, H&C terminus on the other). Same name, different platforms.
• Don't forget to tap out. If you forget to touch out, you'll be charged the maximum fare for that zone (around £8.50). The gates may be open at quiet outer stations — tap your card anyway.

9. Step-free, accessibility, families

Not every Tube station is step-free, but the situation has improved dramatically and continues to improve. The Elizabeth line and the DLR are fully step-free at every station. Many newly-rebuilt Tube stations are now step-free (Bond Street, Tottenham Court Road, Bank, Whitechapel). Older deep-tube stations often have step-free access to the ticket hall but not to the platform.

For families with buggies, the easiest route is usually via the Elizabeth line, DLR or Overground, all of which have level boarding throughout.

10. Don't worry about the rest

You'll pick up the rest from observation — which side of the door to stand on, which way to walk through interchanges, when to take the escalator versus the lift. London's transport network is dense, complicated, frequent, and forgiving. If you make a mistake, you can usually correct it within five minutes.

More guides

Line guides