How Moscow Metro works

The Moscow Metro is open daily from early morning until late at night. Trains do not run only a few hours a day due to routine maintenance work at stations and in tunnels.

The length of train intervals varies depending on the day of the week and the time of day. During peak hours, the frequency of trains’ running does not exceed 90 seconds on some lines.

The detailed schedule of stations is available on signboards at the lobbies’ entrances and in the Moscow Metro mobile application. The app is available in Russian and English.

The Moscow monorail transport system is part of the Moscow Metro. The monorail route extends from Timiryazevskaya station to Ulitsa Sergeya Eyzenshteyna station. The monorail trains schedule is available on the Moscow Transport portal (in Russian).

The Moscow Metro map is displayed in the lobbies and at metro stations, railway and bus stations, and in the Moscow Metro app. In it, using an interactive map you can navigate around and calculate your trip time.

The metro fares are different. The most expensive one trip costs when buying one-time travel cards. If you plan to be a frequent metro user, it is better to buy a Troika universal card. You can use it for including in it a travel card without a travel limit (for example, for one day or for 30 days) or for 60 trips (in this case, each trip is cheaper). 

In addition, the Troika card can be topped up for any amount up to 3,000 rubles and pay for one-time trips on public transport cheaper than with a ticket for one or two trips. This is called a Koshelyok (Wallet) ticket. The card is valid at least five years from the last replenishment or payment.

Information about the fares is available on the Moscow Transport portal. And in the Moscow Metro app there is a fares calculator that helps choose the appropriate fare.

The Troika card can be purchased at the ticket offices and new ticket vending machines of the metro, at the Moscow Central Circle (MCC) and Moscow Central Diameters (MCD) ticket offices and suburban railway ticket offices marked with information stickers.

Please note: when buying a card, a security deposit of 50 rubles is paid. The deposit can be refunded when the card is returned to the cashier office.

You can top up the Wallet ticket of the Troika card:

• in the ticket offices and ticket machines of the metro and at the stations of the Moscow Central Circle (MCC) and Moscow Central Diameters (MCD), at commuter rail stations, in Mosgortrans automated kiosks, in Aeroexpress ticket machines and ticket offices; 
• online on the Moscow Transport portal; 
• using the Moscow Metro, Moscow Transport mobile apps;
• via SMS or in the partners' mobile apps (for more information, please visit the Moscow Transport website).

Please note: if you have replenished the Troika card remotely, before paying for the fare, the data on the replenishment must be added on the card using the yellow information terminal — they are located in each lobby of the Moscow Metro.

You can record the Unified ticket and the 90 Minutes ticket on the Troika card at metro ticket offices and Mosgortrans automated kiosks, and subscriber tickets for commuter trains — at ticket offices of commuter rail stations and passenger railway stations in Moscow and the Moscow region, and in ticket machines located at railway stations and marked with information signboards.

You can find out about the types of travel tickets and the price of travel, get explanations about the rules of using the metro and baggage transportation at Live Communication information counters that operate daily from 08:00 to 20:00.

Employees behind the counter can also arrange the assistance of the Passenger Mobility Center inspectors, if necessary.

Employees of the Live Communication information counters speak Russian and English.

Live Communication information counters are installed at the following stations:

• Avtozavodskaya (ticket hall, exit 1);
• Aleksandrovskiy Sad (ticket hall, exit 8);
• Arbatskaya (inside the turnstiles access zone, exit 7 — to Arbat street);
• Barrikadnaya (inside the turnstiles access zone, exit 2);
• Belorusskaya (ticket hall, exit 1 — to Belorusskaya Railway Station);
• Vystavochnaya (ticket hall, exit 2);
• Delovoy Tsentr (ticket hall, exits 1-4);
• Kievskaya (ticket hall, exit 5 — to Kievsky Railway Station);
• Kitay-Gorod (inside the turnstiles access zone, exits 8-14);
• Komsomolskaya (inside the turnstiles access zone, exit 1 — to Leningradsky and Yaroslavsky Railway Stations);
• Kuznetskiy Most (ticket hall, exit 1);
• Kurskaya (metro station entrance hall);
• Marksistskaya (inside the turnstiles access zone, exits 5-6);
• Nizhegorodskaya (in the connection hall between metro stations and MCC);
• Paveletskaya (ticket hall, exit 3 — to Paveletsky Railway Station);
• Park Kultury (ticket hall, exit 1);
• Ploschad Revolyutsii (inside the turnstiles access zone, exit 10 — to the Revolution Square);
• Pushkinskaya (ticket hall, exits 1-8);
• Sretenskiy Bulvar (inside the turnstiles access zone, exits 1-8);
• Taganskaya (ticket hall, exits 1);
• Shelepikha (inside the turnstiles access zone, exits 1-3).

Some of them sell souvenirs with symbols of the Moscow Metro.

Also, emergency call terminals (SOS) are installed at each metro station. They operate in 2 modes: Emergency Call (SOS) and Information. If you need to get assistance about the work of the metro, press the Information button. In case of an emergency, press the SOS button and loudly tell the operator about the emergency.

If you need assistance for travel on metro, MCC or MCD, you can use the services of the Passenger Mobility Center (PMC) of the Moscow Metro.

PMC employees provide assistance to people with limited mobility: those with hearing, vision, and musculoskeletal disorders, the elderly, large families, parents with children under seven years of age, and others, as well as organized groups of passengers, including children (children under 11 years old).

Support services are provided daily from 05:30 to 01:00.

To get travel assistance on the metro, MCC or MCD you need to apply at least 24 hours before your planned trip (for organized groups applications should be submitted at least 10 days in advance).

You can submit applications:

• in the Moscow Metro mobile app; 
• on the site;
• by calling the Moscow Metro PMC hotline: 8 (495) 622-73-41 or +7 (800) 250-73-41;
• by sending SMS to +7 (926) 250-47-80.

Hotline operators speak Russian and English.

The Moscow Central Circle is the second interchange loop of the metro. High-speed electric trains Lastochka run along the circle. During peak hours, trains run every four minutes, otherwise — at eight minutes intervals.

You can pay the MCC travel fares by any city ticket at the metro fare. You can also enjoy all the benefits of social cards.

Transport hub are arranged at the MCC stations that connect the metro, the railway and land transport. Interchange from the metro to the MCC and back (at the station of one transport hub) is free within 90 minutes from the first entering.

Moscow Central Diameters (MCD) are railway routes that run across entire Moscow and connect it to suburb. MCDs operate from early morning till late at night. Modern trains including Aeroexpress, Lastochka and Ivolga run MCDs’ routes.

The diameters are divided into the tariff zones: Central, Suburb and Far. The cost of MCD travel within the Central zone is 46 rubles by the Wallet tariff of the Troika card (the same as travel on metro, the MCC and other types of public transport), and in the Suburb zone — 60 rubles. The cost of a trip in the Far zone consists of the price of a ticket for a train to reach MCD (29 rubles for each zone to reach MCD) and 60 rubles.

You can pay the MCD travel fare by the Troika card by bank cards using PayPass or PayWave or by a regular train ticket. Find more information about the MCDs fares and payment methods, on the MCD website or on the carrier's website (in Russian).

MCD stations provide interchange to Metro, MCC and Moscow land transport.

To pay the travel fare, tap your card or smartphone to a turnstile or validator at the entrance and exit from the MCD stations, otherwise you will not be able to go outside and interchange to metro or MCC for free. If you do not tap your Troika card on the card reader a second time, it will be blocked. You can unlock the card at ticket offices and ticket machines of the Central Suburban Passenger Company for an additional fee.

Yes. Free Wi-Fi is available on metro, MCC and MCD trains. Learn about how to connect to Wi-Fi network from the guide.

Yes. Taking pictures in the Moscow Metro is allowed, but if you want to do it using a tripod, additional light or other equipment, you will need written permission. 

When taking photos, do not stay on passengers’ way, do not cross the border line on the platform, and do not use a flash when shooting trains to prevent driver’s blinding.

Yes. For more information about tours to the Moscow Metro stations, please visit the official website of the Moscow Metro (in Russian).

You can ask your questions by calling the round-the-clock hotline of the Moscow Tourist Information Support Center: +7 (495) 122-01-11 (for mobile and local phones).

The call is paid in accordance with the pricing of the subscriber's operator. Call center operators speak both Russian and English.