If you want to get around NYC quickly and efficiently, the subway is the best method! This NYC Subway Guide will take you step-by-step through the whole process. And in no time, you will understand how to ride the NYC Subway thanks me, your personal New York Subway Trip Planner. Start communing like a pro!
NYC Subway Guide
By now, I think you know how much I love NYC! Whether strolling down Madison Avenue, or spending the afternoon at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, getting from Point A to Point B is so much easier by riding the subway.
A frequent question I get from readers is, “How long is the cab ride from Point A to Point B.” Great question!!! Riding in taxis is a common way to get around, that’s for sure. But the traffic…Lordy. A good traffic jam can really mess up your plans and rob you of precious time better spent soaking up NYC. Plus taxis can cost a lot of money as the meter clicks away!
So why not ride the Subway? This NYC Subway Guide will help even the most timid visitor to New York, learn how to ride the NYC Subway like a pro!
How to Ride the NYC Subway
- NYC is organized in a very North-South and East-West grid at the street level, and the Subway is no different. Just imagine that as street traffic is (slowly) moving people around on the surface, the same thing is happening underground. Typically, you are never more than two or three blocks away from a Subway stop.
- The first thing you want to know is: where am I, where do I want to go, and which line is closest to me: the green line, the orange line, the yellow line, the red line, etc. Find a street level entrance, gather ye courage (kidding….it’s not scary), and head on down.
- Be sure to note if you are going Downtown or Uptown. The entrances are typically on the opposite sides of the street, and are clearly marked.
The Metro Card Vending Machine
- You need to purchase a Metro Card. Sometimes, depending on the size of the station, there’s a MTA employee in a booth who can not only sell you a card, but can also give you a free paper map. If the booth is unattended, not to worry, there’s always automated machines.
- Simply follow the easy to understand steps on the screen to purchase your Metro Card. If you are there for a weekend, I’d suggest a $20 card. Each ride within Manhattan is $2.75, so you can get approximately eight rides out of one Metro Card. It’s easy to add money to it later on if needed. If you are venturing to Brooklyn or Queens, the rides cost a little more.
- Metro Card firmly in hand, proceed to the platform entrance, swipe your card, and go through the turnstile. There’s a magnetic strip on the bottom of the Metro Card and arrows telling which way to swipe. Don’t freak out if your swipe is not successful the first time. There’s true skill and finesse involved, and after your first few times, you’ll be swiping like a real New Yorker.

The Metro Card Vending Machine

The MTA Metro Card Vending Machine
How to Ride the NYC Subway
- Now you are on the platform, waiting for your train. There’s illuminated signs hanging above your head telling you how long you have to wait…2 minutes, 3 minutes. No biggie. I enjoy looking at the unique tile work in each station!
- The train pulls up, and you get on! Voila! Find a seat, or find a place to stand depending on how crowded the train is. Do some people watching! Don’t stare. It’s rude. Do hold on if you are standing up. The trains go fast, and might stop abruptly, and you do not want to go flying into someone!!!
- Inside the train, sometimes there’s a working illuminated sign above your head showing which stop is coming next. No sign, no worries! The conductor always tells which stop is coming next. However, 9 times out of 10 the voice sounds like the Teacher in the Peanuts cartoons, so don’t panic. Have a rough idea of how many stops until you get off. You can also look out the windows as you pull into a station to see where you are.
- Train arrives at your destination, you follow the crowd to the exit. You ascend from the depths, and have saved yourself a TON of time stuck in traffic!

Handy wall-mounted maps make it easy to study the lines while you wait for your train.
NYC Subway Map App
- There is a GREAT app to have on your phone that very clearly shows all the Subway lines. I use it ALL the time. It’s called NYC Subway and the icon is a white train on a red circle. It’s like a NYC Subway Guide in miniature.
Additional NYC Subway Guide Tips:
- For some reason, tourists are always so worried about acting like a tourist. News Flash: we are. We are never going to be Native New Yorkers. No matter how many times you have been to the Big Apple, you are always going to be a tourist. So get over yourself, and don’t worry about making a mistake. If you miss your stop…get off on the next one. You can take the Subway back, or jump a cab…all easily correctable.
- Situational awareness is very important. I have never felt unsafe riding the Subway, but I use common sense. I don’t stand on the edge of the platform. If someone near me feels creepy, I move away. I carry small purses, and keep them in front of me while on the subway. I don’t make myself a target. Late at night, we always take a cab. Just be smart.
- There are trains that are EXPRESS…meaning they don’t stop at every single stop. I have only made that mistake once….and it was not big deal. I rode the train right back, and started over. If you are unsure, the illuminated signs on the platform tell you if a train is E (express) or L (local). You can always ask a fellow passenger.
- A great way to get tweens or teenagers involved and actually talking to you is to let them help map out your Subway rides! They love the challenge, and it gives them an opportunity to lead, when usually the adults do all the leading!
- There can be lots of steps going into and out of Subway stations. Upside: you are working off that delicious bagel and cream cheese, so carry on soldier!
Now that you know how to ride the NYC Subway, Enjoy those hours ( and money) you save by riding the Subway!!!!
Tags: Business Travel | MTA | New York | New York City | NYC | NYC Subway | NYC Subway Map App | Subway | Travel with Kids
We love the NYC subway!!! Often a much quicker way to get from place to place. But it doesn’t seem to be as user friendly as subways in other huge cities, even with everything written in English. That hasn’t stopped us from using it though — just more mistakes on our part with having to get off and find the right train. Always an adventure although if kids are hot and tired from walking they sometimes don’t appreciate the “adventure” of accidentally getting on the wrong train. LOL
Ha! I get it! It can get a little steamy down there in the summer, that’s for sure!!!!
Excellent travel tips about the NYC subway. I feel like I can conquer it now.
xoxo – Tanya
Yay! We will test you! xoxo
the NYC subway is awesome! you have to make time to stop by Grand Central station !!! we took it from grand central over to a neighborhood restaurant Sevilla before hitting the Nut Cracker at Lincoln Center and were able to easily walk from Sevilla to theater and caught subway back to Waldorf (2016) . Also took it over to the Brooklyn Bridge and ate at original Grimaldis.
Great minds think alike sister!!! I will be doing a post soon on Grand Central Station….it’s SUCH a cool place!!!!!
Great post. And the subway is absolutely the best way to get around NYC.
You taught me how!!!!
Suggest you also get app called “exit strategy”; it tells you which car to stand in to be closest to your actual exit. Some stations have more than one exit.
YES! I remember your telling me about that app when we were last together in NYC! GREAT suggestion!!!! Thank you Susan!!!!
I loved teaching my kids to ride the subway!
You might recommend app called exit strategy.. tells you exactly which car to get in to be closest to exit you want!
GREAT suggestion! I have seen you use this App before! Thank you for reminding me!
We lived in NYC for 6 years and I have never seen such great subway instructions. And you are right! Don’t even try to take a taxi! Good job, as always.
Awwwww….thank you so much Linda! It’s easy once you get the hang of it!!!
Nickey and I always use the subway! It is so much faster and the only way to go! Especially during peak traffic times. We never use a taxi as it is so much faster to go this way! Good article Mary!
I totally agree!!!!
Great tips Mary. Craig and I are also constant users of the NYC subway. I really really like the app Citymapper. Our son told us about it and it tells you exactly what subways to take to get from where you are to where you want to go, what part of the train to sit in, and which exit to take when you exit the subway station. Even walking instructions after you exit the subway. Has saved us on emergency occasions, when certain trains were stopped due to weather or maintenance…. or this week the blackout/power outage in Times Square!
GREAT suggestion Deborah! Thank you!!!!