Zurich Card 2026: Price, Free Museums, Airport and Is It Worth It?

The Zurich Card is Zurich’s city pass: for 24 or 72 hours it covers trams, buses, trains, boats and cable cars in the city and the surrounding zones, including the ride from Zurich Airport, the Uetliberg and short lake cruises, plus free entry to more than 20 museums such as the Kunsthaus collection, the National Museum and the FIFA Museum. It costs CHF 29 for 24 hours and CHF 56 for 72 hours (about US$35 and US$68), children CHF 19 and CHF 37, until new prices start on December 13, 2026. It is worth it as soon as you visit one or two paid museums; for transport alone a normal ZVV day ticket is cheaper, and with a Swiss Travel Pass you usually do not need it at all. We have not used the Zurich Card ourselves: our trip went by car from southern Germany straight to the Bernese Oberland. This guide is built on the official prices of Zürich Tourism and the Zurich transport network ZVV, checked in October 2026. It belongs to our overview of Swiss rail passes.

What the Zurich Card covers

The Zurich Card combines a public transport ticket for the city and its surroundings with free museum entry and discounts. For 24 or 72 hours from the start time you choose, you ride trams, buses, S-Bahn trains, boats, funiculars and cable cars in second class and walk into most museums without a ticket.

It is sold by Zürich Tourism together with ZVV, the Zurich transport network. The transport part is valid in seven ZVV zones: 110 (the city), 111, 121 (the airport), 140, 150, 154 and 155. That covers the airport, the Uetliberg, the shores of Lake Zurich close to the city and the short cruises of the lake shipping company. It does not cover day trips further out, such as the Rhine Falls or Rapperswil.

The card is a city tool, not a rail pass. It does not get you to Lucerne or Interlaken. For that, see the national and regional passes in our rail pass overview.

Prices 2026 and the December change

The Zurich Card costs CHF 29 for 24 hours and CHF 56 for 72 hours for adults, and CHF 19 or CHF 37 for children from 6 to 15. Children under 6 travel free. Zürich Tourism announces new prices from December 13, 2026, and the price depends on the start date you select, not on the day you buy.

The 72-hour card is the better deal per day, and it is cheaper than two 24-hour cards. Child prices apply up to the day before the 16th birthday. There is no discount for Half Fare Card holders; Zürich Tourism answers that question with a plain no. The Zurich Card Bike adds 24 or 72 hours of PubliBike rental, classic or e-bike, and is only sold in the Zürich City Guide App.

If you travel after December 13, 2026, check the new price when you book. At the time of writing, the new amounts were not yet published.

Transport: airport, Uetliberg, lake

The Zurich Card covers the train from Zurich Airport to the main station, all trams and buses in the city, the S10 up the Uetliberg, the mini and short lake cruises and the Limmat river cruise. First class needs an upgrade, and trips outside the seven zones need a zone extension.

To put the transport part into numbers, these are the current ZVV fares in second class:

The city zone 110 counts as two zones in the ZVV tariff, which is why the airport trip is a 3-zone ticket. The long lake cruise to Rapperswil is not part of the Zurich Card; it requires an all-zones ticket and runs beyond the card’s zones.

So for transport only, a 24-hour ZVV ticket for CHF 14.40 beats the Zurich Card for CHF 29. The card earns its money with the museums.

PDF · 18 pages

Free PDF guide

Planning the Bernese Oberland? Don't go without this.

Our free guide, made from our own week there: the 11 places really worth your time, a ready-made 3-day route, and the pass trick that cuts the Schilthorn from CHF 115 to CHF 45.70.

• The 11 best places on one hand-drawn map, all within an hour of Interlaken
• A 3-day route that puts the Schilthorn on your clearest morning
• The ticket mistake that costs many visitors over CHF 100
• When to reach the famous Iseltwald pier before the crowds
• Every link with a QR code: use it on your phone or print it

Your free Bernese Oberland Guide

Website

Your email address

Yes, send me the free guide

Yes, I would like to receive the Swiss Detours newsletter with travel tips and offers by email. I can unsubscribe at any time. Details in the privacy policy.

100% free · PDF straight to your inbox · Unsubscribe in one click

Free museums

With the Zurich Card you get free entry to more than 20 museums and sights, including the Kunsthaus collection, the National Museum, the FIFA Museum, the Museum Rietberg, the Museum für Gestaltung, the Fraumünster church and the Karlsturm tower of the Grossmünster.

The list on zuerich.com in October 2026 includes: Cabaret Voltaire, Zunftstadt Zürich, Kunsthaus Zürich (collection), Kunsthalle Zürich, National Museum Zurich, Mühlerama, Museum für Gestaltung, Museum Haus Konstruktiv, Pavillon Le Corbusier, Swiss Finance Museum, Museum Strauhof, Tram Museum Zurich, Beyer Clock and Watch Museum, North America Native Museum, Museum Rietberg, Kulturama, Musée Visionnaire, FIFA Museum, Fraumünster, Karlsturm Grossmünster and the Swiss Heritage Center at Villa Patumbah.

What the big ones cost without the card: the FIFA Museum charges CHF 26 for adults, the Kunsthaus CHF 24 for the collection and small exhibitions (CHF 31 with a major exhibition, which the card does not cover in full), and the National Museum is sold from CHF 13 at Swiss Activities. Two of these on one day already cost more than the 24-hour card.

Two practical points: most Zurich museums are closed on Mondays, so do not start a 24-hour card on a Monday morning. And for some attractions the free entry or discount applies to adults only, so children may need a ticket.

Is it worth it? Three calculations

The Zurich Card pays off when you combine transport with at least one or two paid museums: on a typical arrival day it saves about CHF 30, over 72 hours about CHF 52. Without museums it loses against a ZVV day ticket.

Example 1: arrival day with two museums and a lake cruise (24 hours)

Example 2: transport only (24 hours)

Example 3: three days in Zurich (72 hours)

Transport fares are the official ZVV prices, museum prices from the FIFA Museum, the Kunsthaus and Swiss Activities, all checked in October 2026. We left out the Uetliberg and the Limmat cruise, which would make the card even better. On day 3 of example 3 you could also visit the Rietberg or the Museum für Gestaltung for free; we did not count them.

Who should buy it, and who should not

Buy the Zurich Card if you spend one to three days in Zurich and like museums. Skip it if you only use trams, if you already have a Swiss Travel Pass for those days, or if your Zurich day is mostly about shopping and the lake promenade on foot.

• Good fit: first-time visitors who arrive at Zurich Airport and explore the city before travelling on; museum lovers; families with children over 6 who want the Kunsthaus or FIFA Museum and a lake cruise.
• Poor fit: a stopover of a few hours; travellers who walk the old town and only ride two trams; anyone on a Swiss Travel Pass day.
• Clever use: if your Swiss Travel Pass starts later, spend the first city day with a Zurich Card and start the pass when you leave Zurich. That saves a pass day for the mountains.

Families should do the maths per person. Two adults and two children aged 8 and 12 pay CHF 96 for four 24-hour cards (2 × 29 plus 2 × 19). Without the cards, the same arrival day from example 1 costs the adults CHF 117.20, and the children ride trams at child fares and often get reduced museum entry anyway. Because some free entries apply to adults only, check the two or three museums you really want before you buy cards for the children too.

Late arrivals are a special case. If your flight lands in the evening, a 24-hour card started at 19:00 still covers the airport train, the next morning’s museums and the trams until 19:00 the following day. That makes one card do the work of two days, as long as you plan the museums for the morning.

Zurich Card and Swiss Travel Pass

On a day when your Swiss Travel Pass is valid, you do not need a Zurich Card: the pass covers the airport train, trams, buses and boats in Zurich and gives free entry to many Swiss museums. Only a few attractions that are not in the pass museum list would be extra.

The Swiss Travel Pass includes city transport in more than 90 towns and the Swiss Museum Pass list of more than 500 museums. Which Zurich museums are on that list is published by Swiss Travel System; check your favourites there before you add a Zurich Card. With a Half Fare Card, by contrast, you pay half fare on ZVV tickets and full price in museums, so the Zurich Card can still pay off. How the national passes compare is in our Swiss Travel Pass guide, and if you continue straight from the airport to the Bernese Oberland, read our guide from Zurich Airport to Interlaken and compare the regional Bernese Oberland Pass for the days there.

If your trip continues across the country after Zurich, the Swiss Travel Pass is often the one ticket you need; the price is the same everywhere, some shops add discount codes.

Honest downsides

The Zurich Card is a good deal for museum days, but it has limits: it does not reach popular day trips, it gives nothing for transport-only days, and a few attractions only give a discount.

• Limited zones. The Rhine Falls, Rapperswil, Winterthur or Baden are outside; you need an extension or another ticket.
• Weak for transport only. A 24-hour ZVV ticket costs half as much.
• Mondays. Most museums are closed, which halves the value of a Monday card.
• Not every exhibition. At the Kunsthaus the card covers the collection; major exhibitions cost extra.
• Price change in December. New prices from December 13, 2026 were not published when we checked.
• Second class only. An upgrade is extra.

How to buy and activate it

You can buy the Zurich Card online at zuerich.com or in the Zürich City Guide App, at ZVV and SBB ticket machines, at stations and the service desks at Zurich Airport, at the tourist information in the main station, at the ZSG boat office at Bürkliplatz and in many hotels. Swiss Activities sells it as a mobile ticket with free cancellation up to 24 hours before the start.

1. Choose the start date and time when you buy online; the card runs for 24 or 72 hours from then, no scan needed.
2. At a machine, validate the card before your first ride.
3. Start it when you land if you go into the city right away, so the airport ride is included.
4. Plan museums on Tuesday to Sunday.
5. Keep ID handy; inspectors may ask for it.

Zurich Card and Zurich tickets

Photo: Wikimedia Commons/KeanoManu

via Swiss Activities

Zurich Card 24 or 72 hours

Transport incl. airport and Uetliberg, free museums; mobile ticket, free cancellation up to 24 h before

from CHF 29 (Oct 2026)

Check prices & availability

Photo: Wikimedia Commons/KeanoManu

via Swiss Activities

City Pass Zurich (zone 110, 24 hours)

Transport only in the city zone, no airport; cheaper if you skip museums

from CHF 9.40 (Oct 2026)

Check prices & availability

Ad: affiliate links. If you book, we earn a commission. The price stays the same for you. More

FAQ: Zurich Card

How much is the Zurich Card in 2026?

CHF 29 for 24 hours and CHF 56 for 72 hours for adults, CHF 19 and CHF 37 for children from 6 to 15. New prices apply from December 13, 2026.

Does the Zurich Card include the airport?

Yes, the ride between Zurich Airport and the city is included in both directions during the validity.

Is the Uetliberg included?

Yes, the train up the Uetliberg is part of the Zurich Card, according to Zürich Tourism.

Is the Zurich Card worth it for one day?

Yes, if you visit at least one or two paid museums, such as the Kunsthaus (CHF 24) or the FIFA Museum (CHF 26). For transport alone, a 24-hour ZVV ticket for CHF 14.40 is cheaper.

Do I need a Zurich Card with a Swiss Travel Pass?

Usually not. On valid pass days, public transport in Zurich is covered, and many museums are free with the pass.

Can I use the Zurich Card for the Rhine Falls?

No, the Rhine Falls lie outside the card’s zones. You need a separate ticket.

Check Zurich Card prices →

Zurich is often only the first stop. Compare the passes for the rest of your route in our guide to Swiss rail passes, including the Lucerne Travel Pass if Lucerne comes next. Families should read how the Swiss Family Card works, and for the Bernese Oberland, the region we know first hand, start with our Bernese Oberland guide. More ideas are on the Swiss Detours home page.