Riding the bus without an Auckland Hopcard (available with debit card, PAY)

In Auckland, New Zealand, you need a Hopcard (AT HOP) to ride public transportation (buses, trains, ferries), but now it's possible to ride the bus without an Auckland Hopcard. This is because contactless payment systems such as debit and credit cards have been hijacked.

At HOP card (Auckland)

The Auckland Hopcard is a type of transportation card used to travel on buses, trains, and ferries in the Auckland region. When I came to Auckland in 2016, it was a must-have purchase along with opening a bank account.

As the title suggests, despite the fact that it's now possible to ride the bus without an Auckland Hopcard, there are still a number of benefits to having one, so it's definitely worth getting one.

I'll show you how to buy, top up, and even where to buy a Hopcard, a must-have for public transportation in Auckland, in my original post below.

Riding the bus without an Auckland Hopcard

In November 2024, the city of Auckland gave its citizens more options for using public transportation with Hopcard.

That's why we introduced contactless payment systems, allowing you to use your card, Apple Pay, or Google Pay on public transportation.

Options for contactless payment methods

Now you can swipe your Debit card to get on the bus, or pay with Apple and Google Pay in your mobile wallet.

As a side note, if you look at the front of your card and see something like a wifi wave, it means you can make contactless payments, so check it out before you use it.

Hopcard vs. contactless payment systems (cards, Pay)

In a country like New Zealand, where it's hard to drive around town, having more options for paying for public transportation, especially buses, is definitely a good thing.

However, even though it's now possible to ride the bus without the Auckland Hopcard, I still think the benefits of the Hopcard are better.

Differences between Hopcard and contactless payment systems

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Obviously, if you're a frequent bus rider, you're better off with a Hopcard. It's a shame that students can get discounts, especially when using Hopcard, but not when using Card or Pay.

Another reason I recommend using a Hopcard is that the Auckland Hopcard has a 7 day fare of $50, which allows you to ride as much public transportation as you want during that time, but you can't use it to pay with a card or PayPal.

However, it's nice to know that you don't have to prepay (top up) like you do with Hopcard or Pay.

Sometimes I've been embarrassed to board a bus because I couldn't charge it and the bus driver told me to charge it and get on, but with Card or Pay, that won't happen anymore.

Cautions for using contactless payment systems (cards, Pay)

If you've been carrying your Hopcard around in your phone case to pay for buses, you might want to be careful now, because you never know which side it's going to come from.

Also, with so many options, it's important to remember that when you board a bus, you must use the same card and the same payment to tag on (get on) and off (get off). The same goes for transfers.

I would still recommend using Hopcard in Auckland.

However, I think the advantage of having a contactless payment system is that if you lose your Hopcard and need to replace it, or if you forget it at home and don't have it with you, you have another option: use Card or Pay.

I don't have to go back to my house to get my Hopcard, especially when I don't have cash on me.

If you're interested in learning more about the introduction of contactless payments on Auckland's public transportation, check out the announcement from Auckland Transport below.

Finalize

Today we've been talking about taking the bus without an Auckland Hopcard. The contactless payment system above is only for the Auckland region.

Other cities are excluded because New Zealand has a transportation system that is maintained separately by each city. For example, Wellington uses the GoCard and Queenstown, where I'm based, uses the B-Card.

And if you're planning to take a bus into the city from Queenstown Airport, I've written about it in my post below. It explains the bus routes, so be sure to read it. .

I'd love to see other urban areas in New Zealand adopt a system like this as soon as possible so that we have the option to use it in case of an emergency. This has been Daniel, the New Zealand Life Whitepaper.