Welcome to the NS Community!

Without a monthly subscription for discount or free travel (for which you need a personal card with photo), it’s best to just use any debit/credit card to tap in and out. It needs to be enabled for contactless/RFID/NFC payments. A phone wallet (or even a smart watch) with your card coupled should work, too.

See https://ovpay.nl/en for details. Maestro, V pay, Mastercard, or Visa will work, AmEx doesn’t work.

If your card doesn't work, there’s always the ticket machines at stations that will provide tickets for single or return trips at a € 1,00 surcharge.

You cannot reserve a seat in domestic trains within the Netherlands. So trains can be very crowded or even so crowded that people have to stay behind, but there's nothing you can do to be guaranteed a seat. People who have bought a ticket in advance and those who have bought a ticket a few minutes before departure are in the same situation when it comes to finding a seat.

Or in case you want to travel in First Class buying a ticket online (download the NS-app) or at the ticketmachine or ticketdesk (€1 surcharge) is necessary.