OV-chipkaart in Amsterdam — How to Get One and Use It

Honest answer first: you probably don't need to buy an OV-chipkaart at all anymore. The easiest way to pay for public transport in Amsterdam — and across the whole of the Netherlands — is now to tap your own contactless bank card or phone at the reader, the same way you pay in a shop. This is the national OVpay system, and it works on NS trains, the metro, trams, and buses. The old OV-chipkaart is being phased out: you can no longer buy an anonymous one, and the whole system is due to end by 2027.

Whatever you tap, one rule never changes: you must check in when you start a journey and check out when you finish. Cash is not accepted on any Dutch public transport.

The easiest way now: tap your own bank card (OVpay)

Since 2023 the Netherlands has run a national contactless system called OVpay. You hold your contactless debit card, credit card, or phone (Apple Pay, Google Pay) against the reader to check in, and tap the same card again to check out. That's it — no card to buy, no top-up, no registration.

• It works everywhere: NS trains nationwide, plus the Amsterdam metro, trams, and buses, and regional transport across the country.
• Foreign cards work too — Maestro, V PAY, Mastercard and Visa contactless cards are all accepted, so you can travel from your first day without a Dutch bank account.
• All your fares for a day are added up and charged as a single payment the next day, so your bank statement stays tidy.
• You can see your journeys and what they cost in the OVpay app or at ovpay.nl.

The one thing to get right: use the same card to check in and out. Tap in with your phone and out with a plastic card and the system can't match the journey — and an unclosed journey is charged at the maximum fare.

The OV-chipkaart is being retired

The blue OV-chipkaart served the Netherlands for nearly twenty years, but it is on its way out.

• Anonymous OV-chipkaarts are no longer sold — sales stopped on 1 July 2026.
• Existing cards still work for now, and you can keep using any balance on them, but the whole system is being wound down and is expected to end by 2027.
• Because it is being retired, there is little reason for a new arrival to buy into it. Tap a bank card instead, or get an OV-pas (below) if you want a dedicated card.

If you want a dedicated travel card: the OV-pas

Some people would rather not tap a bank card directly — for example if you want to keep travel spending separate, or you need season tickets, off-peak discounts, or a student travel product. For that, the OV-chipkaart's official successor is the OV-pas.

You order an OV-pas online and use it exactly like the old card: check in and out at the readers. Travel products and subscriptions that used to live on the OV-chipkaart are moving onto the OV-pas and OVpay. For most people arriving in Amsterdam, though, tapping a bank card is simpler and needs no application — consider the OV-pas only once you know you want a season ticket or a specific discount.

How to check in and out — the most important thing

You must check in AND check out on every journey, whatever you travel with. This is how the system knows your route and charges the right fare.

• Check in: tap your card or phone on the reader as you board (tram, bus) or enter the platform (metro, train). The reader beeps and flashes green.
• Check out: tap the same card again when you exit. Another beep, another green flash.

Forgetting to check out is the most common and expensive mistake. If you don't check out, the system charges you the maximum fare for that journey — on an NS train that can be €20 or more. Check your journeys in the OVpay app (or your NS account) if you think one didn't close properly; you can request a refund for a genuinely forgotten check-out.

Season tickets and commuter discounts

If you travel the same route every day, a season ticket is cheaper than paying per trip. These are moving onto OVpay and the OV-pas:

• Within Amsterdam (GVB): unlimited tram, bus, and metro season tickets run roughly €85–100/month depending on the zones. Arrange these through GVB.
• NS trains: NS offers off-peak discount subscriptions (dal-abonnement) and fixed-route season tickets (traject-abonnement). Check current pricing at ns.nl.

For occasional trips, you don't need any of this — just tap your bank card and go.