Frequently Asked Questions
Fare Cap
All you have to do is tap! There is no sign-up, registration, or app required. Simply tap and go with the same contactless credit or debit card, smart device, or OMNY card. It’s like a 7-Day Unlimited MetroCard without the upfront cost. Start any day and $34 (or $17 for Reduced-Fare customers) is the most you’ll pay. Once you’ve hit 12 paid trips in a 7-day period, the rest of your rides of the same week will automatically be free. You must use the same payment method for each individual trip to reach the cap.
No, the cap only applies to a single payment method. You must use the same contactless credit or debit card, smart device, or OMNY card for each trip. In other words, each payment method builds toward its own unique cap.
The same free transfer rules that apply to MetroCard also apply to OMNY. You must use the same payment method for each leg of the trip to get a free transfer. Each paid trip with OMNY counts once toward the weekly fare cap. Note that each paid trip with OMNY counts only once toward the 7-day fare cap, even if a free transfer was taken as part of the trip.
Important: Transfers are valid within two hours of the initial fare payment.
Each card linked to the digital wallet on your smart device would build toward its own unique cap, so be sure to select the same card for each trip in order to reach the cap and begin getting free rides. You can set your preferred card as the default payment method in your digital wallet.
Joint bank cards, even if they have the same card number, will be recognized as different cards and will build towards their own separate fare caps.
Note to MTA Reduced-Fare customers: if you elect to put the half fare benefit on a joint card account, only the card used by the Reduced-Fare customer will work with OMNY (at half fare), while the other will be blocked from OMNY usage.
If you believe you have been overcharged, please contact OMNY Customer Service at 877-789-6669 during the hours of 8 am to 8 pm Monday - Friday, and 8 am to 5 pm Saturday - Sunday.
Only your first tap on the subway and local bus will count toward reaching the 7-day fare cap, or, if you’ve already reached the cap, only the first tap will be free. You can still pay for up to three others in your party with the same card or device, but each subsequent tap would be charged the full fare and would not apply to your 7-day fare cap. Express bus rides do not count toward the 7-day fare cap.
Note: If you are using a new payment method, you will not be able to make multiple taps when you use that payment method for the first time.
The best way to track your progress toward reaching the 7-day fare cap is with a secure and free OMNY account. Simply link the payment card you are using to travel with OMNY to your OMNY account, and information about your progress will appear automatically. Register for an OMNY account here.
Currently, the fare cap only applies to subway and local bus trips. However, if you take a trip on a subway or local bus ($2.90) and transfer to an Express Bus ($4.10 step-up fare), the fare paid for the subway or local bus will count toward the 7-day fare cap.
Yes! MTA Reduced-Fare customers who have switched from MetroCard to OMNY will automatically benefit from the 7-day fare cap. Take 12 trips at $1.45 per trip in 7 days and ride free for the rest of the week. Visit our How OMNY Works page for information on how to make the switch from Reduced-Fare MetroCard to OMNY.
Yes. All you have to do is tap! Trips taken on the Roosevelt Island Tram count toward the fare cap just like MTA subway and bus trips.
No. The fare cap only applies to subway and local bus trips.