Paris Metro Navigo Cards Now Supported on iPhone - MacRumors
Skip to Content

Paris Metro Navigo Cards Now Supported on iPhone

Navigo cards for travelling on the Paris metro and bus network are now supported on iPhone, with the ability to "recharge" passes using Apple Pay (via iGeneration).

smart navigo card paris scan

Last week, it was rumored that Apple had reached an agreement for Navigo cards to work with NFC on iPhone, and now the feature has arrived with the latest update to the Navigo app from Paris's transport authority, Ile-de-France Mobilités.

Users can now buy a ticket within the app using ‌Apple Pay‌ and then add it to their physical Navigo card by scanning it on the back of the iPhone. Contrary to previous reports, Navigo is still unable to be added to Wallet or used digitally.

The implementation is considerably more onerous than Apple Pay-based solutions in other cities. For example, in London, commuters are able to pass through gates with ‌Apple Pay‌ directly, without the need to purchase a ticket ahead of time or recharge a physical card. Nevertheless, the update to Navigo allows users to buy digital tickets to roam Parisian public transport with ‌Apple Pay‌, avoiding the need to recharge at a dedicated machine.

Navigo, the city's digital mobile transit card, was launched in September 2019, but its success was mired by the need for direct secure authentication with reader gates. This is also why ‌Apple Pay‌ cannot currently be implemented to pay for travel directly on gate readers, since it would skirt the Navigo system.

There have been reports that the need for secure authentication with Navigo will be eliminated at some point in 2021, allowing ‌‌Apple Pay‌‌ to be used directly to traverse the public transport network as it does other cities such as New York, which recently completed its rollout of ‌‌Apple Pay‌‌ support.

Navigo on iPhone is supported on iPhone 7 and newer, but it does not yet work with iPhone XR, iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max.

Tag: France

Popular Stories

Four iPhone 18 Pro Colors Mock Feature

iPhone 18 Pro: Pre-Orders and Release Date

Thursday August 20, 2026 8:00 am PDT by
Apple has yet to reveal when the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone Ultra will be announced and released, but the dates usually follow a familiar pattern. As usual, the iPhone event is expected to take place in the first half of September. Labor Day falls on September 7 this year. The last time the holiday was on that day was in 2020, but the iPhone event that year was delayed until October due to...
Foldable iPhone 2023 Feature 1

Gurman: iPhone Ultra Wows Early Testers, Except for Its Camera

Sunday August 23, 2026 11:19 am PDT by
Apple's upcoming foldable iPhone Ultra is winning over the few people who have had hands-on time with the device, though the camera setup may leave some users wanting, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Writing in his latest Power On newsletter, Gurman says people who have used the device – which is reportedly referred to internally as the iPhone Ultra – like how it fits in your...
macOS 27 next to MacBook Pro Running macOS 27

macOS Golden Gate Marks the End of an Era

Thursday August 20, 2026 2:19 pm PDT by
macOS 27 Golden Gate is not compatible with any Macs with Intel processors, marking the end of an era. The update, which is currently in beta ahead of a release later this year, is limited to Apple silicon Macs with an M1 chip or newer. Last year, Apple said that macOS 26 Tahoe would be the final macOS release compatible with Intel-based Macs, so this was an expected development. Intel...

Top Rated Comments

Futurix Avatar
73 months ago
This article seems to be completely wrong - the new feature added to the app is the ability to 'recharge' the Navigo passes (physical cards) with your iPhone. You have to put the card on the back of your phone, pay with Apple Pay for a new season ticket, and it will update the card (via NFC).
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
dontwalkhand Avatar
73 months ago

Apple still won’t allow Oyster style cards in the Wallet? Apple Pay is okay for random trips but if you need a travel card because of a discount then you still need to use a physical card.
They do, its up to the transit agency and their equipment manufacturer. So far all cities with Cubic Transportation equipment are getting it, with the exception being London, who seems to be in favor of phasing out Oyster instead, maybe?. The manufacturer themselves have to work with Apple before offering the ability for Apple integration to the transit agencies. Conduent has been working with Apple for quite some time to try to get the SEPTA Key and NJ Transit passes to Apple Wallet....Paris' NAVIGO is also a Conduent system. So once Conduent does their thing with Apple, I am sure Paris will enable it as soon as possible.

See: Hong Kong (Octopus - Vix Technology), Japan (Suica - Proprietary Sony FeLiCa readers, Vix Technology Back of House), Chicago (Ventra - Cubic Transportation), Portland (HOP FastPass - INIT), LA (TAP -Cubic Transportation), and Washington DC (SmarTrip - Cubic Transportation).

Coming Soon:

Phoenix (PlatinumPass - Scheidt & Bachmann, migrating to Vix Technology)
Seattle (ORCA - Vix Technology)
San Francisco (Clipper - Cubic Transportation)
New York (OMNY - Cubic Transportation, enabled with regular credit card Apple Pay now, physical OMNY card and virtual OMNY card coming soon)
Melbourne (MyKi - Vix Technology)
Sydney (Opal - Cubic Transportation)
London (Oyster - Cubic Transportation)
San Diego (CompassCard - Cubic Transportation, migrating to INIT)
Toronto (PRESTO - Scheidt & Bachmann)
Boston (CharlieCard - Scheidt & Bachmann)
Berlin (Schedit & Bachmann)
Amsterdam (OV ChipKaart - Scheidt and Bachmann, Migrating to Vix Technology)
NJTransit (Conduent)
Philadelphia (SEPTA Key- Conduent)
Paris (NAVIGO - Conduent)

NAVIGO is Conduent, so its a matter of time....

As you can tell, there are about five major players in this game, it won't be that hard. Cubic, the biggest one in the room, Scheidt & Bachmann, Conduent, Init, & Vix Technology.

Source: Many friends in the fare collection system industry.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
73 months ago

Apple still won’t allow Oyster style cards in the Wallet? Apple Pay is okay for random trips but if you need a travel card because of a discount then you still need to use a physical card.
It is allowed, you can use suica cards in Japan, Octopus in Hong Kong and other examples. Here is a list: Where you can ride transit with Apple Pay - Apple Support ('https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT207958')
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
73 months ago

From Wikipedia: "Cards are available either attached to an account for those who live or work in the Île-de-France region (known simply as Carte Navigo), or can be issued on the spot to anyone at a station (Carte Navigo Découverte). The Navigo card bear the name and a photograph of the holder."

So you can't anonymously take public transportation in Paris?
The cards with pictures on them are the annual subscriptions that give you unlimited rides on the network. It’s a way to control it since they don’t want people abusing it (Sharing with others). And yes, they do random checks on the metro.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
73 months ago

Do you think nobody lives in Paris?
the only country that exists in the world is the United States, clearly
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
73 months ago

Users can now buy a Navigo pass within the app using ‌Apple Pay‌ and then scan their digital ticket at gates via NFC. Contrary to previous reports ('https://www.macrumors.com/2021/01/06/apple-to-support-paris-metro-navigo-cards/'), Navigo is still unable to be added to Wallet. This means that users must keep the app open in order to scan their ticket.
Unless I'm missing something this seems to be entirely wrong, the app now allows you to 'charge' your physical card with a ticket or subscription via reverse NFC payable with Apple Pay (with no Apple tax, which is weird). So you still need a physical Navigo card. The only thing is that you don't need to go to a machine to load something on your Navigo card but can use your phone which is some added convenience.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)