Kyiv Metro

While not as vast as metro systems in other capital cities like Paris or London, the Kyiv metro is fast and efficient if you want to get anywhere that is serviced by the three lines. It's 30 UAH a trip and trains run every 3 or 4 minutes at peak periods, slowing down to 6 to 8 minutes at off-peak times, from around 6am until 11pm. Once you have reached your final station, take a bus, tram or marshrutka to your final destination.

How to Use & Pay

You can identify a metro station by the big green M above entrances. There are two sets of doors at each station, one for entering and one for exiting which are often in English and in red for no entry and green for "please come in".

The green plastic tokens went in 2019 and the last ticket offices closed in April 2026, so the metro is now cashless at the gate. There are a few options for paying:

• Contactless bank card/Google Pay/Apple Pay - Touch your card or phone on the reader on the turnstile.
• QR ticket - Buy one in the Kyiv Digital (Київ Цифровий) app, or from a self-service terminal in the station if you want to pay cash, and scan it at the gate.
• Kyiv Smart Card - A reloadable card to save money on trips if you pre-purchase. Look for the turnstile with the Kyiv Smart Card Logo and big blue arrow on the floor.

Metro Lines

There are currently 3 metro lines in the city, and the green line is being extended north-west from Syrets towards Vynohradar:

• M1 - Akademmistechko to Lisova
• M2 - Heroiv Dnipra to Teremky
• M3 - Syrets to Chervony Khutir

All these lines intersect in a triangle in the centre of the city between 6 transfer stations. Because all transfers are focussed at only a few stations in the same area it can get very busy in the rush hour. A fourth line, the Podilsko-Vyhurivska line out to Troieshchyna, is planned to relieve some of this congestion and these choke points, but only preparatory work has been done and the city's own plan, approved in March 2026, doesn't expect the first section open until 2033. The green line extension is closer, but its first new station, Mostytska, isn't expected to open before 2027.

Interesting Facts about Kyiv Metro

1. Arsenalna is the world's deepest metro station at 105.5 metres below ground. It takes around 4 minutes to get down or up on two separate escalators.
2. Most of the central stations are built very deep and have heavy doors so they can be used as bunkers in the event of a national emergency, and since 2022 that's exactly what they've been used for. During an air raid alert the underground stations stay open as shelters, but the open-air sections are another matter. Kyiv now has two alert levels: since September 2026 the green line keeps running over the river during a yellow alert, the drone warning, and stops only for a red one, while the red line's surface section and its bridge over the Dnipro stop for either, so expect a cross-river journey on the red line to be cut short.
3. There are two ghost stations on the network which only exist as empty shells and have never been opened to the public. If you look out of the window as you pass by them you can often see their unfinished concrete platforms:
   • Lvivska Brama on the M3 line between Lukianivska and Zoloti Vorota
   • Telychka on the M3 line between Vydubychi and Slavutych
4. Zoloti Vorota is named one of the most impressive metro stations in the world by the Daily Telegraph. Look up when you are there to see why.
5. There are two different routes between Khreshchatyk and Maidan Nezalezhnosti stations. One takes 30 seconds up the escalators at the end of the platform. Another is much longer at 3 minutes' walk and both take you to the same place. Sometimes you have no choice as usually one is used for each way during rush hour, but you can avoid the long route at other times!