How the NYC Taxi Meter Works in 2026

The yellow-taxi meter is a published formula, not a mystery — but it has enough moving parts that the same trip can land at different totals. Here is exactly what it charges in 2026.

The base formula

The meter starts at a $3.00 drop fare, then adds $0.70 for every 1/5 mile while the cab is moving above 12 mph, or $0.70 per 60 seconds while it is stopped or crawling below 12 mph. That is why a trip's cost depends on traffic: in a jam, the meter switches to time and keeps ticking even when the cab is still.

The standing surcharges

Every metered trip adds a $0.50 MTA state surcharge and a $1.00 improvement surcharge. Trips that touch Manhattan below 96th Street add a $2.50 NYS congestion surcharge, and trips touching the Congestion Relief Zone below 60th Street add a $0.75 MTA per-trip fee that began on January 5, 2025.

Time-of-day surcharges

A $1.00 night surcharge applies from 8pm to 6am, and a $2.50 rush-hour surcharge applies on weekdays from 4pm to 8pm. These stack on top of the meter and the standing surcharges.

The airport exceptions

JFK to or from Manhattan is a flat $70 fare (plus a $5 surcharge on weekday afternoons, plus the standing surcharges, tolls, and tip). LaGuardia is metered plus a $5 surcharge. Newark is metered at the out-of-city rate plus a $20 surcharge, and the rider pays the cab's round-trip tolls.

Why it varies

Because the meter charges time when traffic is slow, the same Midtown-to-Downtown trip can cost noticeably more at 5pm than at noon — before any surcharge. That uncertainty is the structural difference between a meter and a flat fare.

Figures reviewed June 2026 from NYC TLC rules, the MTA, NYS Tax, and Port Authority sources. Estimates and surge figures are variable — see the Fare Fight method.