No. Washington's Metrorail charges fares based on distance and time of day. As of July 2024, rides start at $2.25 and top out at $6.75 on weekdays. That said, young children, DC school students, SNAP recipients, and certain law enforcement officers can ride free or at half price.
In brief
No. Washington's Metrorail charges fares based on distance and time of day. According to WMATA, rides start at $2.25 and reach $6.75 on peak weekdays. Young children, DC school students, SNAP recipients, and certain law enforcement officers can ride free or at half price, but the system is not fare-free for the general public.
What it actually costs to ride Metrorail
Metrorail fares are calculated by how many stops you travel and at what time of day. Fares during the day range from $2.25 to $6.75. After 9:30 p.m. and on weekends, fares range from $2.25 to $2.50.
Metro's last general fare increase before July 2024 was in 2017. Starting that week, Metro raised its base rail fare to $2.25, a quarter more than before. The agency put the increases in place to close a $750 million budget gap.
The cheapest possible trip, say, Gallery Place-Chinatown to Metro Center, costs $2.25. The most expensive, like Ashburn to Downtown Largo (39.47 composite miles), hits $6.75 on a weekday but falls to just $2.50 in the evening or on weekends.
Your fare depends on how far you travel and what time you travel. There is no single answer to "how much is the Metro?", there are 4,753 answers, one for each pair of stations.
Who rides for free (or close to it)
Young children
Up to two children age 4 and younger can ride free with each fare-paying adult. Children age 5 and older pay the regular fare and need their own payment method.
DC school students, Kids Ride Free
Metro Rail and Metro Bus trips are free for DC students who attend public, private, charter, or parochial schools through the DC Kids Ride Free program. District of Columbia students ages 5 to 21 enrolled in an elementary or secondary public, charter, private, or parochial school located within the District, or a ward of DC through the foster care system, are eligible. The program relies on an electronic pass loaded onto a student's DC Kids Ride Free SmarTrip card. Students 13 and older who use an iPhone or Apple Watch can convert the plastic card to a digital card in Apple Wallet.
Law enforcement in uniform
When in uniform, the state police of Maryland and Virginia, the U.S. Park Police, the U.S. Capitol Police, the Secret Service, and local sheriff's offices may ride the Metro transit system free of charge. Parking is not included.
SNAP recipients, Metro Lift
In mid-2023, Metro launched its Metro Lift program. It offers 50% off Metrobus and Metrorail to DC, Maryland, and Virginia customers enrolled in SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program). That's not free, but it cuts the minimum fare from $2.25 to $1.13 and the weekday peak maximum from $6.75 to $3.38.
It is free to enroll in Metro Lift. Riders applying for themselves or their households submit their contact information, SmarTrip card number, an image of a federal or state ID, and an image of their EBT card. The half-price discount expires after one year, but riders can re-enroll.
Seniors and riders with disabilities
Riders enrolled in Metro's reduced fare programs receive 50% off Metro Rail and Metro Bus fares. Customers age 65 and up can receive reduced fares on Metro and regional buses that accept SmarTrip.
Montgomery County riders
Metrobus provides free rides to senior citizens and persons with disabilities on all Metrobuses with bus stops in Montgomery County. Montgomery County students with a Ride On Youth Cruiser SmarTrip card or a valid student ID with an expiration date for the current school year can ride the Metro transit system free of charge.
How to pay
To ride Metro Rail, tap your SmarTrip or contactless payment at the faregates at both the start and end of your trip. The fare is calculated when you tap out at the exit faregate, always tap both in and out, or you will be charged the maximum fare.
Riders can pay by tapping a contactless credit or debit card (or a card in a mobile wallet) on the faregates at any Metro station. Customers can also get a physical SmarTrip card from a fare machine or create a virtual SmarTrip card on their Apple or Android device. There is a $2 fee for new digital cards and a $2 fee for new physical cards.
If you forget to tap out, you will be charged the maximum fare for your line from your entry station. If you are charged incorrectly, you can request a refund through WMATA's online portal within 7 days.
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Last updated: May 22, 2026
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CAN I KICK IT? screens New Jack City at the Sylvan Theater, Washington Monument, on Aug. 22. (Courtesy SHAOLIN JAZZ)
The live-cinema series CAN I KICK IT? returns to the National Mall this month with what its producers are calling the "Gangsters on the Mall" chapter of their free outdoor summer run. On Saturday, August 22, the SHAOLIN JAZZ production brings the 1991 crime classic New Jack City to the Sylvan Theater at the Washington Monument for a night of film, music, and community under the DC summer sky.
What sets the event apart is the sound. As the film plays, DJ 2-Tone Jones builds an original score in real time, reimagining one of the most iconic crime movies of the ’90s through hip-hop, soul, funk, and more. It is less a movie screening than a live performance built around the film.
The details:
Film: New Jack City (1991), with a live soundtrack by DJ 2-Tone Jones
When: Saturday, August 22 — seating opens at 7:30 p.m. (bring lawn chairs and blankets); film begins at 8:30 p.m.
Where: Sylvan Theater at the Washington Monument, Independence Ave SW & 15th St NW
A parking note from the organizers: expect road closures and restricted parking east of 14th Street NW due to a separate race event in the District. Roads west of 14th Street NW will be accessible and available for parking.
New Jack City is the second of three screenings in this year’s free CAN I KICK IT? outdoor series, which opened with Black Panther at Skyland Town Center and concludes with Scarface at the Lincoln Memorial on September 5. Produced by the Washington, DC-based multimedia arts company SHAOLIN JAZZ, the series has presented more than 150 live cinematic experiences at venues across the country, from Lincoln Center to SXSW.
"I wanted to be able to tell good stories with substance and remove the ‘ego’ out of the art," said Andrew Huang during a recent interview. Now, he’s building his career at the intersection of discipline, creativity and innovation.
Andrew Huang, founder of New Place Studios. (Courtesy photo)
As a Chinese American, Huang was reared with a deep respect for hard work, consistency and excellence. He describes his childhood as "not so affluent" and later attended college to hone his passion for videography. "In college I tried to do something I loved, which was video, but along the way I knew that I had to find a job. And so I thought, ‘what was the low hanging fruit to get to that stable 9 to 5 job?,’" he stated.
Later in life, Huang found himself working for corporations where his creativity was often limited, eventually leading to burnout. "I worked in a corporation for a long time and there were a lot of missing pieces. I wanted to fill in gaps missing in corporate video production," said Huang.
He later described how his upbringing and a mindset of "survival" led him toward a corporate career. However, his desire for balance and authentic storytelling ultimately pushed him to take the entrepreneurial leap.
"I founded a new place where you can create video and film with ‘substance and style,’" said Huang. His desire for work-life balance and passion for storytelling naturally evolved into a small business based in Virginia. With the launch of New Place Studios, the entrepreneur quickly found himself reconnecting with the values that would become the foundation of everything he creates behind the camera.
Huang said being a business owner has allowed him to first embrace himself. While others may see video as simply capturing moments, he sees it as a way to preserve stories that inspire, connect and leave a lasting imprint.
By combining cinematic visuals with cutting-edge production techniques and a keen understanding of branding, Huang helps organizations and individuals communicate their vision with purpose. He said understanding a client’s "why" serves as the compass for delivering the services they need.
One benefit of working with a small business, he said, is that clients get to see the production process unfold through a micro lens while working with the same faces throughout the entire project. "The work feels personal," said Huang.
Huang does not regret leaving behind the flash-over-substance mentality and corporate hustle culture. That does not mean the Asian American entrepreneur has been without challenges in the industry. "It’s relatively hard to find other Asian American creatives or people who would want to work with me in the DMV," said Huang.
He identifies the industry culture in which everyone is trying to blend in, creatives may fear displaying their Asian identity and some feel pressure to adopt an American corporate persona. He also points to what he describes as a level of gatekeeping within the industry. According to the U.S. Small Business Administration’s 2024 statistics, Asian American and Pacific Islander entrepreneurs own more than 3 million businesses and employ 5.2 million people in the United States.
After tapping into organizations such as SCORE, which offers free small business mentorship, New Place Studios has become a trusted creative partner throughout the DMV (Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia). The company produces a range of creative services, including commercials, corporate branding, documentaries, film, 2D animation, motion graphics and photography.
For Huang, entrepreneurship has become more than a departure from corporate life. It has given him the freedom to create with intention, build meaningful connections and tell stories that go beyond the surface.
The 2026 CAN I KICK IT? outdoor series. Poster courtesy of SHAOLIN JAZZ.
For three Saturdays this summer, some of Washington’s most familiar public spaces will do something they rarely do after dark: fill up with blankets, lawn chairs, and the sound of a movie being scored live, in real time. CAN I KICK IT?, the traveling “live cinema” series produced by the DC-based multimedia arts company SHAOLIN JAZZ, is bringing a free outdoor run to the city — pairing three era-defining films with an original soundtrack performed on the spot by DJ 2-Tone Jones.
The premise is what sets it apart from a normal screening in the park. Rather than simply pressing play, 2-Tone Jones builds a score as the film unfolds, pulling from hip-hop, soul, funk, jazz, rock, electronic music, and sounds from around the world. The result, the organizers say, is less a movie night than a one-time performance — the same film you know, wired to a soundtrack you have never heard and will not hear again. Guest DJs warm up the crowd starting at 7:30 PM before each 8:30 PM screening.
The 2026 outdoor schedule
All three events are free and open to the public.
Saturday, August 8 — Black Panther at Skyland Town Center. A pop-up marketplace and community activities kick off the evening; guest DJs at 7:30 PM, film at 8:30 PM. Marvel’s superhero epic gets a one-night-only live score in Southeast DC.
Saturday, August 22 — New Jack City at the Sylvan Theater, Washington Monument. Seating begins at 7:30 PM; the film starts at 8:30 PM. The 1991 crime drama plays out at the foot of one of the country’s most recognizable landmarks.
Saturday, September 5 — Scarface at the Lincoln Memorial. Seating at 7:30 PM; film at 8:30 PM. The series closes with Brian De Palma’s crime saga against the backdrop of the Memorial, scored live from start to finish.
First up: Black Panther at Skyland Town Center on August 8. Poster courtesy of SHAOLIN JAZZ.
A DC company with a national footprint
SHAOLIN JAZZ describes itself as a Washington-based arts company working at the intersection of music, film, art, and culture, and CAN I KICK IT? is its signature production. According to the organizers, the series has staged more than 150 live cinematic experiences around the country — at performing arts centers, museums, festivals, and cultural institutions including Lincoln Center in New York, SXSW, the Denver Center for the Performing Arts, Republic Square in Austin, the Tacoma Armory, and The Cary Theater.
“CAN I KICK IT? has always been about creating a shared experience,” said Gerald Watson, co-founder of SHAOLIN JAZZ. “When you combine iconic films with live music in public spaces, something special happens. People aren’t just watching a movie — they’re experiencing it together. That’s what makes these nights so memorable.”
Cinema as a community event
The DC run lands as cities across the country look for new ways to activate public space through arts and culture — and this series is a straightforward pitch for how to do it: take a landmark everyone already knows, add a film everyone has an opinion about, and let a live soundtrack turn the evening into something neighbors experience shoulder to shoulder. Families, film buffs, and music fans are all invited, and admission won’t cost a thing.
The CAN I KICK IT? outdoor series runs August 8, August 22, and September 5. All events are free; check SHAOLIN JAZZ (shaolinjazz.com) for the latest details and any weather updates before heading out.
