The Mobile Suica: The Best Way to Get Around Town

Aug 28, 2024

The Mobile Suica: The Best Way to Get Around Town

We’ve talked about IC cards before. There’s Suica. There’s Pasmo. There’s ICOCA. There’s Manaca. So many cards! But the good news is that most of them can be used throughout Japan’s rail network. The bad news is that due to a materials shortage, some cards like the Suica haven’t been available to the general public for years. Starting next month, you’ll be able to pick the Suica up from a few stations in the metropolis but what if there was an easier way to do this without going to an airport or major station to get a card? A card, I might add, that you could potentially misplace. My point is that while many may celebrate the return of the physical Suica, I want to remind you that the true way forward in 2024 is putting your Suica on your smart phone and just ditching the physical card altogether. So let’s discuss the ins and outs of using the Mobile Suica. For the purposes of this article, we will focus on the Suica App for iOS, but there are android options and even apps for other cards such as the Pasmo. Honestly though, the mobile Suica will take you most places in Japan and is the most widely used in Tokyo so let’s just forget about the rest. Sorry, Pasmo. 

What is it?

Thanks to technology, it is easier than ever to use your Suica card on your mobile devices, such as a smartphone or even Apple Watch. Once the Suica card is saved in the Suica app, you can tap it instead of bothering with the card at turnstiles, vending machines, etc.

Most made-for-Japan Android smartphones, and “feature phones” before them, have had this ability for over a decade through an Osaifu Keitai app. Just as Apple made smartphones easier to use, their Apple Pay solution has done the same, and the iPhone version of Mobile Suica is one of the outcomes.

Apple Pay + Mobile Suica

To start your journey into the world of mobile transport payments on your iPhone, you’ll need the following:

• An iPhone 8 or later, or an Apple Watch Series 3 or later with the latest version of iOS or watchOS.
• An iPhone 7 or Apple Watch Series 2 purchased in Japan.
• A debit/credit card already set up in Apple Pay -or- any Japanese debit/credit card issued in the country, even if not able to be used with Apple Pay (more on this later)
• Physical Suica card (optional). You can create a virtual Suica card using the mobile Suica App, but since the app is in Japanese, it takes a few extra steps… If you’re in Tokyo already, you have a Suica card anyway. If not, head to a JR station and pick one up for ¥500 at the ticket machines.
• Have the region of your device set to Japan (this doesn’t change your device’s language, just what App Store country you download from.)

Once you are ready, download the Mobile Suica app from the App Store. The first thing to note is everything’s in Japanese, but we don’t need to worry about that for now.

Next, open the Wallet app and tap the “+” icon in the upper right corner to add a new card. The next screen should have a new entry, “Add Suica Card”; tap that and follow these directions from Apple to transfer a Suica card into your phone or watch.

How to generate a virtual Suica instead

You can also go into the mobile Suica app and generate a virtual card, but since the app is only in Japanese for now, it may be best to ask a Japanese-speaking friend for help.

What about the Apple Watch?

After you’ve got a valid pass on your iPhone, you can quickly move it to your Apple Watch through the Watch App’s wallet function. The cool thing about this is that even if you have an iPhone that doesn’t have the NFC-F ability for Mobile Suica, your Apple Watch series can be used in its place. I just find tapping my wrist to the ticket gate to be a little uncomfortable..

What about Android users?

Since 2010, the first “made-in-Japan” Android smartphones have been able to use Mobile Suica. This is because the technology had already been in place here for some time. But this also meant that those of us bringing an Android phone into Japan are out of luck since the phones are missing a specific microchip and SIM card required to make it work. However, if you have a Japanese Android smartphone and comparable SIM card, then all you need is the Google Play App and follow the instructions for adding a new card, and if your phone is compatible, you should see the screens to add a Suica card.

Let’s get to tapping!

With your mobile Suica set up, your options for using them are nearly limitless. Not only can you ride trains, buses, and taxicabs, but you can rent bicycles, use coin lockers, play video games and buy groceries with Suica. And the best part? This convenience is nationwide since you can use the mobile Suica on almost every transport system in the country. So get out there and start tapping away with your mobile Suica. 

タチヤマカムイ, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons