If you’re a regular traveller, then it’s often possible to seriously cut your costs by getting a railcard or season ticket. Which one works for you depends on how often you travel.

• Spend over £72/year? Get a 16-25, Family & Friends or Senior Railcard.

  Railcards which can be bought from the Railcard website typically cost £24 per year, or £65 for three years, and cut a third off the bill. Therefore spend over £72 a year (even in just one trip) and you save. Until May ‘08 railcards weren’t valid on some super-cheap promotional fares; now they’re valid on all tickets bought in advance and all standard class tickets.

  Don’t assume every journey is eligible for use with a railcard though; always check it out first – especially if you’re travelling at peak times. The main cards are…

  The 16-25 Railcard: This is for under 25s or full-time students of any age. So do renew just before your 26th birthday to get another year (the same applies for those older and leaving Uni).

  Family & Friends Railcard: This can be used on all tickets provided there’s a minimum one adult and one under-16 travelling together, and a maximum four adults and four children.

  The Senior Railcard: If you’re over 60 then this one works for you; some local councils give discounts on this card, so it’s worth checking first.

  The Disability Railcard: If you qualify for it, this is actually the cheapest railcard at £18; and again some local councils may allow you to get it even cheaper.

• Local rail cards, season tickets and Rover & Ranger tickets

  Local rail cards, season tickets and Rover and Ranger tickets, such as the Network Railcard in the South East, are also available, offering holders unlimited travel within specific areas for specific periods of time. There’s a full list of these on the National Rail website.

• Season tickets for regular travellers; but check out hidden options

  If you travel a route as a daily commuter, it’s often worth getting an annual season ticket. The National Rail website’s season ticket calculator is a nifty little tool to help you work out the cost.

  Sometimes there’s more than one option available for the same journey. It’s important to check both as it can make a real difference. E.g. from Bristol to London the season ticket limiting you to trains travelling through Warminster and Salisbury is nearly £3,000 a year cheaper than the unrestricted one.

  If you’re getting a season ticket on a heavy commuter route, it’s also worth checking if there are any split ticket options (see the hardcore tricks section for an explanation), which mean you can buy two season tickets covering different legs of your journey which are cheaper.

source: Money Saving Expert Forum

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