Fare box

The machine beside the driver's seat that takes cash fares and reads transit IC cards. Toei Bus guidance calls it a fare machine in the 23 wards and a fare box in the Tama area, and as of October 2026 the only banknote it accepts is the ¥1,000 note.

What a fare box is

A fare box, or unchinbako in Japanese, is the machine placed beside the driver's seat on a local bus to take fares from passengers. Besides slots for coins and banknotes, it has a reader where you tap a transit IC card, so whether you pay in cash or by IC card, this is where the payment happens. The general word is unchinbako, but Toei Bus guidance uses the name "fare machine" (料金機) on routes inside Tokyo's 23 wards and "fare box" (料金箱) on routes in the Tama area.

When you use it depends on how you board. Toei buses inside the 23 wards use front-door boarding, where you get on at the front and pay first, so you put your fare into the fare machine right where you step on. In the Tama area you board through a door toward the back and pay when you get off, so you put your fare into the fare box beside the front door before leaving.

What the Toei Bus fare box can do

As of October 2026, the Tokyo Metropolitan Bureau of Transportation's guidance says the Toei Bus fare box can do the following.

Cash payment: coins and ¥1,000 notes are accepted. The ¥1,000 note is the only banknote.
Change: the fare machines in the 23 wards settle the amount automatically and give change if you put in more than the fare.
Money changing: the fare boxes in the Tama area can change coins and ¥1,000 notes.
IC card payment: tap a transit IC card on the reader.

The same guidance says that on board the bus you can also top up an IC card with ¥1,000 notes, in units of ¥1,000.

Inside the 23 wards, when you pay with a mix of coins and notes, the guidance asks you to put in the smallest amounts first. If you are paying with a ¥10 coin and a ¥500 coin, putting the ¥10 in first keeps your change from coming back in small pieces.

The fare amounts and how paying by IC card differs are covered in detail in our article on how to pay Toei Bus fares.

Points to watch when using it

¥5,000 and ¥10,000 notes cannot be used either to pay the fare or to top up on board, so the bureau asks riders to change money before boarding and have ¥1,000 notes or small change ready. Old coins such as the old ¥500 coin, and old banknotes, cannot be read by the fare machine either, so pay with other coins or notes.

If you use an IC card, mind what is in your pass holder too. When you show a magnetic commuter pass or Silver Pass to the crew, an IC card kept in the same holder may be read by the fare machine and charged. If you intend to board by showing a commuter pass or Silver Pass, keep the IC card in a separate holder.

Note also that, according to the bureau's FAQ as of October 2026, Toei Bus does not issue receipts for fares. When the bus is crowded or running late, you may be asked not to top up several times on board, so finish your top-up before boarding.