Paris City Pass Comparison: Which Is Worth It in 2026?

Is a Paris Pass Worth It in 2026?

A Paris pass saves money when the combined à-la-carte cost of your planned attractions exceeds the pass price. It fails when you overpay for inclusions you never use, or when you are part of the large group of travelers who qualify for free entry and do not need a museum card at all.

Paris has an unusually generous free-entry policy that most pass marketing does not flag prominently. EU residents under 26 enter all state-owned museums and monuments — including the Louvre, Musée d'Orsay, Centre Pompidou, Musée Rodin, and Versailles — completely free. All visitors under 18 also enter free regardless of nationality. If you or anyone in your group qualifies, the Museum Pass is a waste of money for those individuals. The Go City passes still make sense for this group only if they actively use the non-museum inclusions: the Seine cruise, the hop-on hop-off bus, the Eiffel Tower climb, and guided walking tours.

For adult visitors who do not qualify for free entry: the break-even point for the 2-day Paris Museum Pass (€62) is roughly three museum visits (Louvre at €22 + Musée d'Orsay at €16 + Sainte-Chapelle at €13 = €51, plus the Arc de Triomphe at €16 = €67). A tight two-day museum program already justifies the pass. The 4-day pass at €79 needs roughly four to five museum visits over the four days. Skip the pass entirely if your Paris list only includes one or two museums and the rest are free-entry sights (Notre-Dame exterior, Sacré-Cœur, Tuileries Garden, the Marais, Montmartre).

How Paris Passes Work: Time-Based vs Attraction-Count

Paris passes fall into two structural categories. Time-based passes give you unlimited access to a list of attractions for a set number of consecutive days — the clock starts when you first use the card. The Paris Museum Pass and Go City All-Inclusive both work this way. Attraction-count passes give you a set number of attraction entries to use at any time with no per-day deadline. The Go City Explorer Pass works this way.

Time-based passes reward dense itineraries. A 4-day Go City All-Inclusive at €239 requires roughly €60 in daily attraction value to break even. If you visit two premium sites per day (Louvre + Eiffel Tower guided climb = €61), the pass covers itself. One slow museum day followed by a full free day in Montmartre and you are overpaying. Attraction-count passes reward selectivity. The Go City Explorer 5-choice pass at €149 works out to roughly €30 per site, which beats the Louvre (€22) + Versailles (€21) + Sainte-Chapelle (€13) individual total of €56 for three sites, while leaving two more choices available.

One rule that applies to every pass type: the Louvre and the Palace of Versailles require timed-entry reservations that are separate from the pass itself. The pass gives you the right to enter at no extra cost; you still need to claim a specific date and time. Versailles timed slots in particular sell out several weeks ahead during July and August. Book the moment you purchase your pass — do not treat the slot booking as a separate task to handle later.

2026 Paris Pass Comparison Table

Updated June 2026. All prices are adult rates unless noted. "Digital" means fully app or email-based with no physical pickup required.

The Paris Museum Pass

The Paris Museum Pass is the city's official culture pass, covering more than 60 museums and monuments in and around Paris. It is time-based and consecutive: the first time you use it, the clock starts, and you have 2, 4, or 6 full days to use it as often as you like. Adult prices for 2026: €62 for 2 days, €79 for 4 days, €99 for 6 days. Children under 18 and EU residents under 26 enter all covered museums free without any pass — for these groups, the Museum Pass provides zero value on the admission side.

What the Museum Pass covers: the Louvre (€22 individually), Musée d'Orsay (€16), Palace of Versailles (€21), Sainte-Chapelle (€13), Arc de Triomphe (€16), Centre Pompidou (€15), Musée Rodin (€14), Musée de l'Armée / Les Invalides / Napoleon's Tomb (€15), Panthéon (€13), Musée Picasso (€15), Musée de Cluny — National Museum of the Middle Ages (€12), Château de Fontainebleau (€14), and around 45 more sites including Champs-Élysées–Clemenceau, Musée de l'Orangerie, Musée Marmottan Monet, and the Conciergerie.

What the Museum Pass does NOT cover: the Eiffel Tower (any level), Seine river cruises, any guided tour, hop-on hop-off bus, Notre-Dame Cathedral interior (currently under renovation), any temporary exhibitions beyond the permanent collection, audio guides, or Metro transport. The Sacré-Cœur Basilica is free to enter regardless.

The pass is a physical credit-card-sized card — you will receive it by post if ordered online in advance, or you can collect it from the Paris Tourist Office or any of the participating museums. There is no digital version. Keep it with you at all times; you present it at each site's ticket desk or reserved-entry gate.

Worth-it verdict: 4-day pass at €79 vs Louvre (€22) + Musée d'Orsay (€16) + Versailles (€21) + Arc de Triomphe (€16) + Sainte-Chapelle (€13) = €88 for just five sites. The pass pays for itself before the end of day two. For art-focused, museum-heavy travelers who plan to visit at least four sites over four days, this is the best-value pass in Paris by a significant margin.

Go City Paris All-Inclusive Pass

The Go City All-Inclusive Pass is the successor to the old Paris Pass commercial bundle. It works on a day-count system: choose 2, 3, 4, or 6 consecutive days and visit as many of the 80+ included experiences as you want within those days. Adult prices for 2026: €149 for 2 days, €195 for 3 days, €239 for 4 days, €289 for 6 days.

Crucially, the Go City All-Inclusive includes the Paris Museum Pass as a component — meaning the 60+ state museums are covered within the bundle. On top of that, it adds the Eiffel Tower Guided Climb (€39 individually), Big Bus hop-on hop-off bus 24-hour ticket (€40–€45 individually), Bateaux Parisiens Seine River Cruise (€17), Montmartre guided walking tour, Paris Visite experience tours, wine tastings, a comedy show ("How to Become Parisian in One Hour", €31 individually), and a range of day trips, cooking classes, and other activities.

The pass is fully digital — you receive a QR code via email and manage everything through the Go City app on your smartphone. Timed-entry reservations for the Louvre and Versailles must still be made through the app after purchase. The pass does not skip security queues, only ticket-buying queues. Metro transport is not included.

Worked worth-it math — 4-day pass at €239: Day 1: Louvre (€22) + Arc de Triomphe (€16) + Seine cruise (€17) = €55. Day 2: Versailles (€21) + hop-on hop-off bus (€43) = €64. Day 3: Musée d'Orsay (€16) + Eiffel Tower guided climb (€39) + Sainte-Chapelle (€13) = €68. Day 4: Centre Pompidou (€15) + Musée Rodin (€14) + comedy show (€31) = €60. Four-day à-la-carte total: €247 vs pass price €239. The pass barely saves money on this list — but it eliminates individual booking friction at nine separate venues and guarantees a standardised touring experience. The pass makes genuine financial sense only if you add two or three more activities on top of those already listed. The Go City app shows real-time availability so you can swap in alternative experiences day by day.

Skip it if: you plan fewer than three paid activities per day, you prefer self-guided wandering over structured tour formats, or any member of your party qualifies for free museum entry (which makes the embedded Museum Pass component worthless for them).

Go City Paris Explorer Pass

The Go City Explorer Pass gives you a fixed number of attraction entries — between 2 and 7 — to use within 60 days of the first activation. You choose from the same menu of 40+ sites as the All-Inclusive, but you pick only the ones you actually want. Adult prices for 2026: €79 for 2 choices, €109 for 3 choices, €129 for 4 choices, €149 for 5 choices, €169 for 6 choices, €189 for 7 choices.

The Explorer Pass is significantly more flexible than the All-Inclusive. Since it does not run on consecutive days, you can arrive in Paris, take a day to settle in, then activate the pass when you visit your first attraction. This suits travelers who know they will have one or two slow, non-sightseeing days during their trip. It also suits those visiting over a long weekend who want to combine two or three paid attractions with free walks, cafes, and gallery visits without pressure to cram in activity.

The 5-choice Explorer Pass at €149 covering: Louvre entry (€22) + Versailles (€21) + Eiffel Tower guided climb (€39) + Seine cruise (€17) + hop-on hop-off bus 24h (€43) = €142 à la carte. At €149, the pass saves only €7 in raw ticket costs but removes five separate booking transactions and provides the Go City app coordination layer. Add a sixth choice — Musée d'Orsay (€16) — and the 6-choice Explorer at €169 versus €158 individual gives you the same coordination benefit at similar value. The real financial advantage of the Explorer over buying separately emerges when you include the guided tours: a Montmartre guided walking tour (typically €25–€30 individually) or the Eiffel Tower guided climb (€39) are consistently the highest single-item values on the Explorer menu. Build your choices around the highest individual-value items first.

Explorer vs All-Inclusive decision rule: If you are visiting Paris for three or more full days of sightseeing and will use more than four attractions per day, the All-Inclusive wins on daily cost. If you are visiting for two to three days with a varied itinerary or a mix of free and paid days, the Explorer is the sharper tool.

The Paris Pass (ParisPass.com)

The commercial Paris Pass, sold via ParisPass.com, is a competing all-inclusive bundle that covers over 80 attractions and experiences. Like Go City, it includes the official Paris Museum Pass as a component, adds the Eiffel Tower, Seine cruise, and hop-on hop-off bus, and operates on a consecutive-day model. Prices are broadly comparable to Go City: roughly €149 for 2 days, €195 for 3 days, €239–€249 for 4 days, €289–€299 for 6 days — though exact pricing fluctuates and can be lower through third-party booking platforms.

The Paris Pass is fully digital, delivered by email, and activated on first use. One advantage it has traditionally claimed over Go City is slightly broader inclusion of smaller experiences: certain food tours, bicycle rentals, and comedy shows have appeared on its menu that are not always on Go City's roster. Check both sites against your planned itinerary before committing, since the specific menus can differ and prices change seasonally.

Verdict: The Paris Pass and Go City All-Inclusive serve effectively the same market and offer near-identical value. Compare current prices on both platforms for your specific dates. If Go City is cheaper, take it; if the Paris Pass offers an experience you specifically want that Go City does not, take that instead. Do not assume brand-name loyalty makes one better than the other.

Paris Visite: The Only Paris Pass With Transport

The Paris Visite travel pass is fundamentally different from the sightseeing cards above: it is a public transport pass, not an attraction pass. It provides unlimited travel on the Paris Metro, RER trains, buses, trams, Orlyval (CDG and Orly airport trains when you choose zones 1–5), and the Montmartre Funicular within the selected zone range for a set number of consecutive days.

Zones 1–3 cover central Paris and cost: €13.95 for 1 day, €22.65 for 2 days, €30.90 for 3 days, €44.45 for 5 days. Zones 1–5 extend to CDG airport, Versailles (RER C), Disneyland Paris (RER A), and Fontainebleau — and cost: €29.25 for 1 day, €44.45 for 2 days, €62.30 for 3 days, €76.25 for 5 days.

Is it worth it? If you are arriving at CDG Airport and want seamless transport straight into the city and back, the 5-day zones 1–5 Paris Visite at €76.25 competes well against the CDG Express (€11.80 one way) plus a Navigo Easy card (€2 per journey, roughly 8–10 journeys over a 5-day stay = €16–€20). The total individual approach costs €40–€44, making the Paris Visite zones 1–5 unnecessary unless Versailles is also on your itinerary. If you are visiting Versailles, the 3-day zones 1–5 at €62.30 makes the RER round-trip to Versailles (roughly €7 return) essentially free. Combine that with 3 days of Metro travel and the pass delivers fair value for an active week.

If you are not airport-bound and not visiting Versailles or Disneyland, the Navigo Easy card (€2 per tap, no minimum) is almost always cheaper than the Paris Visite for the typical tourist who makes 6–8 Metro journeys per day. The Paris Visite is a legacy product that makes sense in narrow scenarios — do the arithmetic for your specific routing before buying.

Break-Even Math: What Does Paris Actually Cost Without a Pass?

The following are verified 2026 à-la-carte admission prices from official attraction websites. These are the adult rates for non-EU, non-resident visitors. Many state museums charge nothing for EU residents under 26 and all visitors under 18.

Individual 2026 Ticket Prices — Key Paris Attractions

• Louvre Museum: €22 (online timed-entry, mandatory reservation)
• Musée d'Orsay: €16 (online recommended; closed Mondays)
• Palace of Versailles: €21 (palace only; gardens free on most days; closed Mondays)
• Sainte-Chapelle: €13 (closed during official functions)
• Arc de Triomphe: €16 (rooftop; online booking recommended)
• Centre Pompidou: €15 (permanent collection; closed Tuesdays)
• Musée Rodin: €14 (includes sculpture garden)
• Musée de l'Armée / Les Invalides / Napoleon's Tomb: €15
• Panthéon: €13
• Musée Picasso Paris: €15 (closed Mondays)
• Château de Fontainebleau: €14 (closed Tuesdays)
• Musée de Cluny: €12 (closed Tuesdays)
• Eiffel Tower (lift to 2nd floor): €19.40 (online); guided climb with pass: €39
• Seine River cruise (Bateaux Parisiens): €17
• Big Bus hop-on hop-off (24h): €40–€45

Worked Itinerary: 4-Day Paris Museum Pass vs Individual Tickets

This scenario represents a museum-focused adult traveler visiting for four consecutive days and spending each morning at one major institution.

Day 1: Louvre (€22) + Sainte-Chapelle (€13) = €35
Day 2: Palace of Versailles (€21) + Arc de Triomphe (€16) = €37
Day 3: Musée d'Orsay (€16) + Centre Pompidou (€15) = €31
Day 4: Musée Rodin (€14) + Musée de l'Armée (€15) = €29
Total individual cost: €132

4-day Paris Museum Pass: €79

Saving: €53 (40% reduction) — the Museum Pass wins clearly.

Now add Metro transport: roughly 4 journeys per day × 4 days × €2.15 per tap (Navigo Easy) = €34.40. Even with transport added separately, the Museum Pass + Navigo Easy (€79 + €34 = €113) beats the individual ticket total alone (€132) before adding any transport costs. The 2-day Museum Pass (€62) breaks even against just Louvre + Versailles + Sainte-Chapelle + Arc de Triomphe (€72) — a realistic two-day program — with one museum entry left over before you need day two.

When the Museum Pass Does NOT Save Money

The pass is a poor choice in three specific scenarios. First: if any member of your party is an EU resident under 26 or a visitor under 18 — they enter all of the above sites free and do not need any pass. Second: if your Paris itinerary includes only one or two paid museums. The breakeven requires at least three museum-calibre visits (€62 / average €15 entry = roughly four museums minimum for the 2-day pass to pay off). Third: if your main sightseeing goal is the Eiffel Tower, Seine cruise, and hop-on hop-off bus rather than museums — these are not covered by the Museum Pass, so you would need a Go City card or individual tickets anyway.

Paris Without a Pass: Free Sights and the Navigo Easy Option

Skipping every pass is the right decision for a specific category of visitor: those spending two or fewer days in Paris with only one or two paid attractions on their list, or EU residents under 26 who qualify for free museum entry. Paris has a remarkably rich free itinerary.

Permanently free major sights: Notre-Dame Cathedral exterior (renovation ongoing, façade visible), Sacré-Cœur Basilica, all of Montmartre neighborhood and Place du Tertre, the Tuileries Garden, the Palais-Royal garden, the Marais district and Place des Vosges, Canal Saint-Martin, Père Lachaise Cemetery, the Covered Passages (Galerie Vivienne etc.), most exterior views of the Eiffel Tower and from Trocadéro, and sunset from the top of the Arc de Triomphe (paid entry, but an iconic view that often replaces more expensive activities).

For transport only: the Navigo Easy contactless card (€2 chip fee, reloadable, €2.15 per tap in 2026) is the cheapest option for visitors making fewer than ten Metro or bus journeys. Load as many trips as you need; unused credit never expires. If you plan to use the Metro frequently (more than 8 journeys per day over multiple days), a weekly Navigo Découverte card (Monday–Sunday, €30 for all zones 1–5 including airports) becomes the best value if your trip starts on a Monday.

Check Paris City Pass price for 2026 for the current full price schedule across all available durations and pass types.

Which Pass for Which Traveller: Decision Guide

Use this to find your answer in under a minute.

• First-time visitor, 3–5 days, want museums + Eiffel Tower + Seine cruise + guided tours, active daily schedule: Go City All-Inclusive 3-day or 4-day (€195–€239). Book Louvre and Versailles slots immediately after purchase.
• Museum-focused visitor, 4–6 days, plan to visit Louvre, Orsay, Versailles, and more cultural sites: Paris Museum Pass 4-day or 6-day (€79–€99). Cheapest serious pass in the city for its category. Buy online and collect at the tourist office or at the first museum.
• Selective visitor, 3–4 days, want to choose 3–5 premium sites without committing to a daily count: Go City Explorer 4-choice or 5-choice (€129–€149). Better suited to leisurely pacing than the All-Inclusive.
• EU resident under 26 or any visitor under 18: Do not buy any museum pass — state museums are free. Buy Go City only if you specifically want the Eiffel Tower guided climb, the hop-on hop-off bus, or guided tour activities (not museum admissions).
• Short stay (2 days), want Eiffel Tower + one museum only: Buy individual tickets. Louvre (€22) + Eiffel Tower lift (€19.40) + Navigo Easy for Metro = ~€56 total. Cheaper than any pass.
• Family with children under 18: Children enter all state museums free. Buy the Paris Museum Pass for adults only, use free entry for children. Go City child rates apply to the activity inclusions only.
• Transport-first visitor arriving at CDG, also visiting Versailles: Paris Visite zones 1–5 (3-day €62.30). Covers the airport, Versailles via RER C, and all Paris Metro travel for the duration.
• Day-tripper from London or Brussels via Eurostar: Skip every pass. Your time is too limited for multi-day pass value to accrue. Buy individual tickets for one or two sites and spend the rest of the day at free sights.

One combination that often makes sense for first-timers: Paris Museum Pass 4-day (€79) for cultural sites, plus individual tickets for the Eiffel Tower (€19.40) and Seine cruise (€17). Total: €115.40 vs Go City All-Inclusive 4-day at €239. The Go City costs €124 more but adds guided tours, the hop-on hop-off bus, comedy shows, and dozens of additional activities. Worth it only if you intend to use three or more of those extras. If you just want the Big Five monuments (Louvre, Orsay, Versailles, Eiffel Tower, Seine cruise), the Museum Pass + individual tickets combination wins every time.

Managing the Mandatory Reservations

Every Paris pass requires timed-entry reservations at several major attractions — this is the step that most visitors underestimate. Holding a pass does not mean walk-in entry. At the Louvre, a timed reservation is mandatory for all visitors regardless of how they purchased their ticket. The Louvre reservation system opens 60 days before the visit date. During peak season (May–September), 9am slots sell out within days of opening. If you plan to visit the Louvre on a specific day, book before you book anything else.

The Palace of Versailles runs a separate timed-entry system. The gardens are largely free and do not require reservations (Musical Fountains Shows require a separate ticket at €10). The palace interior requires a timed-entry slot. Book this at least three weeks ahead in summer. Go City users book through the Go City app; Museum Pass holders book through the official Versailles reservation portal using the "Museum Pass" entry option.

Sainte-Chapelle and the Arc de Triomphe are easier — online booking is recommended but walk-in is often possible outside peak hours. The Centre Pompidou rarely runs out of timed slots in advance but queues can be long in the afternoon without a booking. For the Eiffel Tower: the Go City guided climb accesses the second floor via the stairs, managed through a separate reservation made in the Go City app. The standard lift tickets are available on the Eiffel Tower official site but sell out weeks in advance at peak times.

Practical booking sequence for any Paris pass: purchase the pass; immediately open the reservation portal; book the Louvre first, then Versailles, then the Eiffel Tower if included. Leave the remaining attractions flexible. The bottleneck is always those three venues — everything else can be planned day-by-day.

Where and How to Buy Paris Passes

Always buy Paris passes online before your trip. In-person prices at museum desks and tourist offices are the same as or higher than online prices, and you lose the ability to reserve time slots in advance if you wait until you arrive. The Louvre does not sell timed-entry tickets at the door at all — you must have a reservation made online.

Paris Museum Pass: Buy at parismuseumpass.fr or through GetYourGuide and Tiqets (same price, all deliver a paper voucher or mail a physical card). If you order the physical card for delivery, allow at least one week within France and two weeks internationally. Alternatively, collect it at the Paris Tourist Office (25 Rue des Pyramides, 1st arrondissement) or at any participating museum ticket desk. Some museums can exchange an online voucher for a physical card on the day.

Go City All-Inclusive and Explorer: Buy at gocity.com or through GetYourGuide. Both are fully digital — download the Go City app after purchase and the pass appears there. Activate it on the first day you use an attraction. No physical pickup required, which means you can buy the pass the night before you visit and use it the next morning.

Paris Pass (ParisPass.com): Buy at parispass.com. Fully digital delivery by email, activated on first use. Also sold through some GetYourGuide listings — compare prices as the GetYourGuide rate sometimes includes free cancellation which the direct site does not.

Paris Visite transport pass: Buy at any Paris Metro station from the automated ticket machines or staffed windows. Also sold at CDG and Orly airports. Load it to a physical Navigo card (€5 deposit, returnable). Cannot be purchased online in advance from outside France, though some travel agents pre-sell them as part of airport transfer packages.

All sightseeing passes can be bought up to 12 months before your visit. There is no advantage to waiting. In fact, for summer travel, purchasing three to six weeks ahead is the minimum needed to secure Louvre and Versailles time slots at your preferred time.

Comparing passes across European capitals? See our full overview at best city passes in Europe.

More on the Paris City Pass & Nearby Cities

Dig deeper into Paris: is the paris city pass worth it · paris city pass price 2026 · paris pass vs paris museum pass.

Comparing other destinations? See the best city passes in Europe, or compare Nice city pass · Lyon city pass · Rome city pass.