How to Use the Milan Metro

I love subway systems. They're usually the cheapest and fastest way across a city, locals use them far more than tourists do, and the people-watching is free.

Milan has the biggest metro in Italy: five color-coded lines that reach the main station, the Duomo, the San Siro stadium and Linate airport. It's also one of the easiest to use, because you don't need a ticket anymore. Tap a contactless bank card or your phone at the gate and you're in. Here's everything else you need to know.

>> For buses, trams and the rest, see the guide to Milan public transportation.

Milan Metro: fast facts

• Five lines: M1 (red), M2 (green), M3 (yellow), M4 (blue, from Linate Airport through the center to San Cristoforo) and M5 (lilac, out to the San Siro Stadio stop in front of the stadium).
• Hours: roughly 6am to 12:30am. Holidays such as Christmas Day and 1 May run on reduced hours, so check ATM's site if you're traveling then.
• Frequency: every few minutes at peak times, less often late in the evening.
• Fare: about 2.20 euros in 2026 for 90 minutes on the metro, buses and trams.
• Operator: ATM (Azienda Trasporti Milanesi), which runs all the city's public transport.

Get a map

Download the network map from ATM's map page or use the ATM Milano app; Google Maps and Citymapper also route you through the metro well. The most useful maps show the stations on top of a street map, so you can see exactly where you'll come up.

Here's what the network looked like before M4 and M5; the current map is on ATM's site:

Get your bearings

First, find your “home” station, the one closest to where you're staying. You'll use it every time you head out or come back, so learn its name. If two lines meet there, even better, but changing lines is easy anyway.

Next, figure out which station you need for each sight. Station names don't always help: “Duomo” puts you under the cathedral, but most names are streets and squares, and the “Gorgonzola” stop on M2 won't put you in a vat of cheese. A few you'll likely use: Duomo (M1, M3) for the cathedral and Galleria, Cadorna (M1, M2) for the Malpensa Express and the walk to the Last Supper, Centrale (M2, M3) for the main train station, and San Siro Stadio (M5) for football.

Paying: tap in, no ticket needed

Since January 2026 ATM no longer sells or accepts paper tickets. You have three ways to pay:

• Contactless bank card, phone or smartwatch. This is the one to use. Tap it on the reader at the gate going in, and use the same card or device every time. The system works out the fare, and after four journeys in one day it stops charging you and applies the daily fare (about 7.60 euros in 2026). If you're traveling as a couple, each person needs their own card or phone.
• The ATM Milano app, which sells digital tickets and passes you scan at the gate.
• A RicaricaMi card, a rechargeable card you buy and top up at station machines and newsstands. Useful if you don't have a contactless card, or you'd rather not use one.

Whichever you use, the gates have a green arrow when they're working and open for you; a red X means out of order or exit only. Tap or scan, and the gate opens.

For the record, this is the paper single ticket Milan used for decades, which you'll no longer be handed:

Passes and multi-ride options

ATM lists these on its tickets page, with 2026 prices of about:

• Single ticket: 2.20 euros, valid 90 minutes, with changes between metro, buses, trams and the urban suburban-rail lines.
• Daily ticket: 7.60 euros for 24 hours.
• 3-day ticket: 15.50 euros, until the end of service on the third day.
• 10-trip carnet: 19.50 euros; each ride is for one person at a time.

My take: for a short visit, just tap your card and let the daily cap do the math. Buy the 3-day ticket only if you know you'll ride a lot for three straight days.

The old paper carnet looked like this:

And this was the back of a stamped paper ticket:

Airports: Linate is on M4, a straight ride into the center. Malpensa and Bergamo are well outside the city and need a train or bus with its own fare. For Malpensa, see getting from Malpensa airport to Milan.

Work out your direction

Each Milan Metro line has its own color, so picking the line is easy. The part that trips people up is direction. Signs don't say north or east; they name the last station on the line. So you need to know the end of the line you're heading toward.

Say your hotel is near Wagner station on M1 (red) and you want the Duomo:

1. Go down into Wagner and follow signs for the direction Sesto 1° Maggio FS (usually shortened to Sesto FS).
2. Ride to the 6th stop, Duomo.

That's it. Now something with a change: Wagner to the main train station, Centrale FS, which is on M2 (green) and M3 (yellow) but not the red line.

1. At Wagner, take M1 toward Sesto FS.
2. Get off at the 3rd stop, Cadorna FN.
3. Follow signs for M2 (green) and the direction Cologno Nord or Gessate. Why two names? The green line splits in two after Cascina Gobba. You're getting off before the split, so either train works. At split lines, check the destination on the front of the train as it pulls in.
4. Ride 5 stops to Centrale FS.

There are other ways, too. You could stay on M1 to Duomo and change to M3 (yellow, direction Comasina) for Centrale, or ride M1 to Loreto and take M2 two stops in the direction of Abbiategrasso or Assago. Once you think in end-of-line names rather than compass points, you'll plan routes in seconds. If you've used the Paris metro, this will feel familiar.

A few more tips

• Watch your pockets on crowded trains and escalators, especially on M1 and M3 around Duomo and Centrale. Pickpockets work the doors as they close. More in our Italy anti-pickpocketing tips.
• Keep the card you tapped in with until you've left the station. Inspectors check fares on board, and riding without a valid one gets you fined.
• Stand on the right on escalators. Milanese commuters walk on the left and will let you know.

For timetables, service alerts and fares, ATM's official site is the place to check.