Essential French Phrases for Navigating Paris Métro Ticket Machines.

Why the Ticket Machines Trip Up English Speakers

Paris’s Métro network is one of the most efficient urban transit systems in Europe, but its ticket machines operate almost entirely in French, with English translations that are inconsistent at best and absent at worst. Even travelers who consider themselves intermediate French speakers find themselves staring blankly at a touchscreen prompt they’ve never encountered, a queue forming behind them, and a train rumbling in through the platform below. The problem isn’t the French language itself — it’s the specific vocabulary of transit bureaucracy, a register that language courses almost never cover. This guide focuses on exactly that vocabulary: the words and phrases printed on ticket machine screens, the options you’ll tap through, and the phrases you can use when a machine or a human needs a little more communication from you.

The RATP (Régie Autonome des Transports Parisiens) has updated its machines in recent years with newer Île-de-France Mobilités interfaces, but older machines still exist across the network. Newer machines offer a language toggle — usually a flag icon near the top right — but not every machine in every station has this, and in busy interchanges during peak hours, finding a machine with that option while a crowd waits is its own stress. Understanding the French interface means you’re not dependent on finding the English mode.

There’s also the issue of touch sensitivity and screen layout. The machines use a layered menu structure: you don’t just press one button and arrive at checkout. You navigate through ticket category, ticket type, quantity, zone, and payment. Each of those screens uses different vocabulary, and the words that seem familiar — like validation or destination — often mean something slightly different in the transit context than you’d expect.

The Machine Interface: What You’re Actually Looking At

When you approach a Métro ticket machine and tap the screen to wake it, the home screen typically presents a set of large rectangular buttons. These are your main categories. Understanding what each one covers determines whether you’re about to buy the right thing or end up with a ticket that won’t open the turnstile you need.

The most common home screen options you’ll see are:

• Tickets et cartes — Tickets and cards. This is where you buy single-use tickets (now the rechargeable ticket de métro on the t+ system) or pick up a Navigo card.
• Recharger ma carte — Reload my card. If you already have a Navigo Liberté+, Navigo Découverte, or Navigo Easy, this is where you add credit or passes.
• Mes achats — My purchases. A receipt or summary screen; not needed for most travelers.
• Informations — General network information, maps, service alerts.
• Accessibilité — Accessibility options, including larger text and audio assistance.

The back button, which you’ll use constantly, reads Retour. The confirm button reads Valider. These two words alone will carry you through most of the interface.

Ticket Types and the French Terms That Label Them

Paris phased out the magnetic-strip paper ticket (the old ticket t+) in favor of a dematerialized system loaded onto contactless cards. As of 2026, you can no longer buy old-format paper magnetic tickets. The machines now issue tickets on rechargeable chips or onto your existing contactless card. Here’s the vocabulary for each ticket format you’ll encounter on screen:

• Ticket de métro — The standard single-journey ticket valid on the Métro, bus, tram, and RER within zones 1–2. Loaded onto a Navigo Easy card.
• Carnet — A pack of 10 tickets, offering a small discount over buying individually. On screen it may appear as Carnet de 10 tickets.
• Navigo Easy — A reloadable contactless card onto which you load individual tickets or carnets. The card itself costs €2 and is non-nominative (no photo, no registration required).
• Navigo Découverte — A weekly or monthly pass card. Requires a photo. The machine will prompt Insérez votre carte (Insert your card) if you’re reloading one.
• Forfait Navigo Semaine — Weekly pass, covering all zones, valid Monday to Sunday (not 7 rolling days — a detail that matters at the machine).
• Forfait Navigo Mois — Monthly pass, valid from the 1st to the last day of the calendar month.
• Ticket Aéroport or CDG Express — Specific airport tickets, found under a separate category on some machines at stations serving Charles de Gaulle or Orly connections.

When the machine asks Quel type de titre souhaitez-vous? (What type of ticket do you want?), this is the moment to choose from the above list.

Key Phrases for Selecting Your Journey (Button-by-Button Vocabulary)

Once you’ve selected your ticket type, the machine moves into a configuration sequence. This is where most confusion occurs because the questions change depending on what you selected earlier. Here are the prompts you’re most likely to encounter, in roughly the order they appear:

Choisissez votre destination — Choose your destination. On RER machines, you’ll sometimes need to enter a station name. On standard Métro machines, you’re typically selecting a zone rather than a named station.

Nombre de tickets — Number of tickets. A number pad appears. Type the quantity you want and press Valider.

Tarif normal / Tarif réduit — Full price / Reduced price. Reduced fares apply to children aged 4–9 (half price), large families (familles nombreuses), and certain disability card holders. If you tap Tarif réduit without qualifying, you may be asked for proof by inspectors.

Souhaitez-vous un reçu? — Would you like a receipt? Options are Oui (Yes) and Non. Receipts print from a small slot below the main screen.

Confirmez votre sélection — Confirm your selection. This is a summary screen showing what you’re about to buy and the price. Check it before tapping Valider.

Présentez votre carte — Present your card (contactless). Hold your Navigo Easy or bank card to the circular reader on the machine face.

Insérez votre carte — Insert your card. Used for chip-and-PIN payment or when the machine wants you to insert your Navigo card to load purchased tickets onto it.

Payment Screen Phrases and What Each Option Means

Payment screens in French transit machines use financial vocabulary that’s distinct from what you’d see in a shop. Knowing these terms prevents you from accidentally canceling a transaction right at the end.

Montant à payer — Amount to pay. The total displayed before you complete payment.

Mode de paiement — Payment method. You’ll typically see:

• Carte bancaire — Bank card (credit or debit). Contactless and chip-and-PIN are both available, though older machines may only accept chip-and-PIN.
• Espèces — Cash. Coin slots accept €2, €1, and smaller denominations. Note that many machines no longer accept banknotes, and those that do typically cap at €20 bills. The word for coins is pièces; for notes it’s billets.
• Sans contact — Contactless. You may see this as a sub-option under Carte bancaire.

Composer votre code — Enter your PIN. You may also see Saisissez votre code confidentiel, which means exactly the same thing.

Opération acceptée — Transaction accepted. You’ll see this briefly before the machine dispenses your card or receipt.

Opération refusée — Transaction declined. This could be your bank blocking a foreign transaction. Try a different card or use cash. It does not necessarily mean your card is invalid — foreign banks sometimes block the first contactless transit attempt.

Rendu monnaie — Change given. The machine will display this when dispensing coins after a cash transaction. Collect from the coin return slot, usually at the bottom left.

Error Messages and What the Machine Is Trying to Tell You

Error messages are the most stressful part of any ticket machine interaction because they appear when you’re already under pressure. Here are the ones you’re most likely to see on Paris Métro machines and what they actually mean:

Carte non reconnue — Card not recognized. Your Navigo card or contactless bank card wasn’t read properly. Remove it, wait one second, and try again. If it persists, the card’s chip may be damaged.

Crédit insuffisant — Insufficient credit. Your Navigo card doesn’t have enough loaded to complete the purchase. You need to add funds (recharger) before proceeding.

Titre invalide — Invalid ticket/pass. The pass on your card doesn’t cover the journey you’ve selected, or it has expired.

Hors service — Out of service. The machine isn’t functioning. Move to another machine or go to the ticket window (guichet).

Veuillez patienter — Please wait. The machine is processing. Don’t tap the screen again; it often doubles the transaction if you do.

Retirez votre carte — Remove your card. The payment or loading is complete and you need to take your card back from the reader or chip slot.

Billet non disponible — Ticket not available. Occasionally shown when a machine is out of a specific ticket type or format. Try a different machine or the guichet.

Session expirée — Session expired. You took too long between taps and the machine reset. Start again from the home screen.

Navigo Cards: The French You Need to Load and Validate

The Navigo ecosystem is central to getting around Paris efficiently, and the machines have a dedicated Navigo workflow with its own vocabulary. If you’re using a Navigo Easy for single tickets, or a Navigo Découverte for a weekly pass, these are the terms you’ll navigate:

Recharger ma carte Navigo — Reload my Navigo card. The main entry point for adding credit or a pass to an existing card.

Insérez votre carte Navigo dans le lecteur — Insert your Navigo card into the reader. Navigo cards with chips use a chip slot, not contactless, on older reload machines.

Présentez votre carte Navigo — Present your Navigo card (contactless). On newer machines, Navigo Easy and Navigo Liberté+ work via tap.

Choisir la période — Choose the period. For weekly passes, you’ll select which Monday-to-Sunday week you want. The machine shows the current week and the following week. If it’s a Wednesday, buying for the current week means you’re buying Monday-to-Sunday but boarding from Wednesday — you don’t get a partial-week discount.

Semaine en cours — Current week. Semaine suivante — Following week.

Mois en cours — Current month. Mois suivant — Following month.

Valider le chargement — Confirm the loading. After selecting your pass type and period, this confirms the credit will be written to the card once payment is made.

Chargement effectué — Loading complete. Your pass has been written to the card. You’ll see this after payment is processed and before the machine prompts you to remove the card.

One critical point: buying a Navigo pass on the machine and having it loaded are two separate steps. If your machine session is interrupted after payment but before Chargement effectué appears, go to the guichet immediately with your receipt. Staff can complete the loading manually.

Asking Station Staff for Help — Phrases That Actually Work

Even with solid vocabulary, machines malfunction and situations arise that need a human. Paris Métro station agents work in glass-fronted booths called guichets at the entrance to most stations, though not all guichets are staffed at all hours. When approaching a staff member, specific requests get faster results than vague ones.

Excusez-moi, je voudrais acheter un ticket, mais la machine ne fonctionne pas. — Excuse me, I’d like to buy a ticket, but the machine isn’t working. Practical and direct; no agent will find this unreasonable.

Je n’arrive pas à recharger ma carte Navigo. — I can’t manage to reload my Navigo card. The verb arriver à (to manage to) signals you’ve tried and failed, not that you haven’t attempted it.

Est-ce que cette machine accepte les billets de banque? — Does this machine accept banknotes? Useful before you try to feed a €20 into a coin-only slot.

Mon paiement a été refusé. Pouvez-vous m’aider? — My payment was declined. Can you help me?

Je voudrais un ticket pour l’aéroport Charles de Gaulle. — I’d like a ticket to Charles de Gaulle airport. Simple and clear when you need an airport-specific ticket that isn’t obvious in the interface.

C’est pour combien de zones? — How many zones does this cover? A question worth asking if you’re unsure whether a ticket you’re buying covers your destination.

Agents respond better when you’ve already tried something — mention what you attempted. J’ai essayé, mais… (I tried, but…) signals good faith and moves the conversation forward faster.

RER vs. Métro: How the Machine Distinguishes Them in French

This distinction causes genuine confusion because some Métro stations have RER platforms, and the ticket machines at those stations serve both systems. Understanding how the machine separates them prevents you from buying a Métro-only ticket when you need an RER ticket for an outer-zone journey.

On machines at interchange stations, the home screen may include a separate option for Trains Île-de-France or RER / Transilien alongside the standard Métro ticket options. This is not the same as the Tickets et cartes button.

Key vocabulary differences:

• Zone 1–2 — Covered by a standard ticket de métro. Most of central Paris including most RER A and B stops within the périphérique.
• Banlieue — Suburbs. When a machine asks if your destination is in banlieue, it’s asking whether you’re traveling beyond zones 1–2.
• Choisissez votre gare de destination — Choose your destination station. RER machines often require you to type or select your specific destination station to calculate the correct fare.
• Tarif Île-de-France — The zonal pricing system. The machine may show the fare alongside the zone count.
• Correspondance — Connection or interchange. If the machine asks whether you need a correspondance, it’s asking whether you’ll change lines — relevant for calculating whether a single ticket covers the full journey.

For journeys to CDG airport via RER B, look for Aéroport Roissy-Charles de Gaulle as a named destination option. For Orly via RER B and Orlyval, look for Aéroport d’Orly. These destinations have specific ticket categories and different pricing than standard zone tickets.

Common Mistakes and the French Labels Behind Them

Several recurring errors happen specifically because of vocabulary misunderstandings at the machine. Knowing what labels cause confusion helps you avoid them.

Tapping “Tarif réduit” thinking it means a general discount. Réduit means reduced, but it refers to legally defined categories — children 4–9, qualifying disability cardholders, and certain family-card holders. It doesn’t mean “cheaper option” in a general sense. Tapping it and traveling without qualifying documentation is technically fare evasion.

Confusing “Valider” at the machine with validating at the turnstile. Valider on the machine means confirm your purchase. Valider votre titre at the turnstile means tap your card to pass through. The same word, two different actions. If your Navigo card was just loaded, you still need to tap it at the turnstile — loading isn’t the same as validating for entry.

Buying a weekly Navigo pass on a Sunday expecting it to run through the following Sunday. The Forfait Semaine always runs Monday to Sunday of the same calendar week. If you buy it on Sunday, it covers that day only — the pass is for the current Mon–Sun week. Always buy Semaine suivante on a Sunday if you’re planning for an upcoming trip.

Selecting “Navigo Easy” as the card type when you want to create a new one. If the machine asks Avez-vous déjà une carte? (Do you already have a card?) and you say Oui when you don’t, it will prompt you to insert a card that doesn’t exist. Select Non to get a new card issued from the dispenser slot.

Missing the “Retirez votre carte” prompt. After a Navigo reload, the machine tells you to remove your card. Many travelers close their wallet before seeing this screen and walk away thinking the transaction is complete — but the card is still in the chip slot. The machine will eventually eject it, but not immediately. Watch for Retirez votre carte every time.

Paris’s Métro machines aren’t hostile — they’re just bureaucratic in a very French way, built for a daily commuter audience that already knows the system. With the specific vocabulary laid out here, the screens become readable rather than opaque, and the layered menus follow a logic you can navigate without guesswork.

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📷 Featured image by Philippe Murray-Pietsch on Unsplash.