Using Clipper on Muni

Muni is upgrading all the Muni Metro stations with new, Clipper-only fare gates. Once the new fare gate upgrades are complete, customers will need a Clipper card or the new Muni ticket to enter. The gates are also equipped with magnetic stripe readers which will accept paper passes until they become available only on Clipper.

The first paper pass to transition to Clipper is Muni's "A" Fast Pass. The November A pass will be available only on Clipper.

Muni is also introducing limited-use Muni tickets to be used with their new fare gates. Instead of paying with cash or a token at the gate, customers will tag their Clipper cards or purchase a paper Muni ticket that uses the Clipper payment technology. Unlike the Clipper card, the tickets can only be purchased for single and round-trip rides (no passes) and expire 90 days from the date of purchase. These tickets can only be used on Muni-they cannot be used to pay fares on any other transit systems.

Clipper is available for all Muni customers. Customers can add monthly passes, Adult Fast Passes or 10 ride books as well as cash value to their Clipper cards. See the "Fares and Passes" page for more information on the available payment options.

Clipper customers who use a Muni Monthly Pass can now use Clipper on the cable cars, as well as all other Muni vehicles. Cable car operators will be equipped with hand held card readers which can verify that a current Monthly Pass exists on your Clipper card. The card readers cannot deduct a cash fare, so customers paying with cash or 10-ride books are not yet able to ride the cable cars using Clipper. If you order your pass online (including through Autoload) or over the phone and you have not yet touching your card to load your new pass, the hand-held card readers used by the operators cannot load your pass to your card and you will be asked to pay the cash fare.

Please note: There are now two Adult Monthly Pass options - the "A" Adult Fast Pass which offers unlimited rides on all Muni vehicles and can also be used to ride BART within San Francisco. The second option is the new "M" Adult Monthly Pass, which is a Muni-only Monthly Pass that is good for unlimited rides on Muni and is not valid for use on BART within San Francisco.

To use your Clipper card, look for the card reader at the entrance to the bus or on the fare gate. Touch your card by holding it flat to the card reader, until you hear the beep and see the green light. The card reader will also display your remaining cash balance, expiration date of your pass, or remaining rides.

If you order your pass online (including through Autoload) or over the phone and you have not yet tagged your card to load your new pass, the hand-held card readers used by the operators cannot load your pass to your card and you will be asked to pay the cash fare. For customers using Autoload, please make sure you have tagged your card after the grace period for the previous month expires (after the 3rd day of the month) to be sure your new pass is loaded onto your card.

Download the Muni customer guide to learn more about using your Clipper card on Muni.