Transportation around London

I set up one of my credit cards into Apple Wallet (or is it Apple Pay?). Anyway, it worked good for the tube and bus. If you do that, don't mix it with your contactless credit card. Use one or the other to tap in and out. A tube employee recommended this to me instead of paying £5 for the Oyster Card, then downloading £ onto it.

If you can tap & pay here in the states, then your card should work in the UK and on the tube. I would ensure there are no foreign transactions fees associated with the card. If you are comfortable with pulling out your CC when entering and leaving the tube, whether you use it or an Oyster make no difference. Daily fare caps are in place for both. Since we’ve had them for so long, my wife and I continue to use our Oyster cards. The Transport for London site has any information you’d need to make an informed decision.

Unless there is a special reason for Oyster cards (eg entitlement to discounted Adult fares) there is now little point to acquiring a new one for a brief visit if you have a suitable contactless payment method.

Citymapper app is so helpful for public transport in London. Put it on your phone. You will be glad you did.

If I lost the Oyster I could easily replace it. Losing a tap Debit or Credit Card would cause frustration and heartache. This is why I prefer to use an Oyster than my debit or CC.

Been a London visitor for decades. Nearly going every year so its been simple return home with Oyster making sure it has 10£ still on it for next visit.
I have also kept the Kate and Willam Oyster as a souvenir.

I also love the Oyster card carrier I bought at the British Library.

But that’s just me.

If you go with the Oyster get it there. No need to buy the visitor Oyster.

We bought our Oyster cards from a pay machine once we got there. It felt more convenient than pulling my wallet out to access a credit card. We still have a bit of money on them so we'll likely use again. But if this is a one-time trip then it may make more sense to use a credit card.

“If you can tap & pay here in the states, then your card will work in the UK and on the tube.”

Not in all cases. The London TFL website warns about this—not all US tap and pay cards will work on the tube. On our recent (September) trip, my husband used his Bank of America Visa card for tap and pay successfully all over Italy, and in London grocery stores and coffee bars. But it did NOT work for the Tube or bus. Fortunately we also carried Oyster cards from our previous visits, so he just used that.

My AmEx card worked just fine for contactless pay on the Tube and bus. According to TFL, AmEx cards are the one US credit card that reliably works for contactless payment.

https://tfl.gov.uk/fares/how-to-pay-and-where-to-buy-tickets-and-oyster/pay-as-you-go/contactless-and-mobile-pay-as-you-go

Agree with Claudia to be safer, use an Oyster card. It doesn’t cost very much.

Also, agree with Carol - loved CityMapper app for London and Edinburgh

I agree with Claudia as well. I took her advice and used an Oyster card for my first trip to London this past summer. I definitely preferred pulling it out of my pocket to hop in a bus rather than my cc. With my Oyster card and the CityMapper app I navigated London with ease.
Hope you have a great trip!!