A zoo membership in OKC pays for itself on the second visit for most families. Daily admission at the Oklahoma City Zoo is $20 for adults and $17 for children 3 to 11 and seniors 65 and over. A ZOOfriends Passport for 4 costs $149 a year, so two family trips through the gate ($148) cover it, and every visit after that is free.
You are in Oklahoma City for a month or more, the kids have found out there is a zoo, and you are trying to decide whether to pay at the gate or buy a membership you might leave behind when you go home. We get this question from relocating families and travel nurses, and the math is simpler than it looks.
Two numbers decide it. Daily admission for a family of four is $74. A Passport for 4 is $149. If you will walk through the gate twice during your stay, the membership wins, and the third visit onward is where it starts paying you back in the form of free afternoons.
This guide lays out every published ticket price, every Passport level, what members get beyond free entry, the break-even point for different group sizes, how the reciprocal zoo program works when you leave Oklahoma, and the cases where a day ticket is the right call.
Daily tickets stop at 4 p.m., which is the Zoo's last entry. A Passport runs a full year from purchase and also discounts Safari Lights in November and December, so the timing of your stay changes what the membership is worth.
OKC Zoo Ticket Prices
Daily admission at the Oklahoma City Zoo is $20 for adults ages 12 to 64, $17 for children 3 to 11, $17 for seniors 65 and over, and free for ages 2 and under. Those are the online prices, and last entry is 4 p.m.
The Zoo also runs a community discount of $10 per person, ages 3 and up, for up to four guests per visit. It covers active duty military, veterans and their families, Oklahoma SNAP, EBT and WIC cardholders, Tribal WIC participants, Big Brothers Big Sisters matches, and Oklahoma families fostering children. You show a valid ID or eligibility card at entry.
Add-on experiences such as giraffe feeding and the carousel are priced at checkout or on arrival, and the Zoo notes they depend on weather and whether the animals feel like participating that day. Budget a few extra dollars per person if your kids will want them, because they always do.
| Ticket | Ages | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Adult | 12 to 64 | $20 |
| Child | 3 to 11 | $17 |
| Senior | 65 and over | $17 |
| Infant | 2 and under | Free |
| Community discount | 3 and over, eligible groups, up to 4 guests | $10 |
ZOOfriends Passport Levels and Prices
The Zoo's membership program is called ZOOfriends, and each Passport covers a set number of people per visit, including you. Six levels are published, from one person to ten.
| Passport | Annual price | Covers per visit | Break-even vs. adult day tickets |
|---|---|---|---|
| Passport for 1 | $60 | 1 person | 3 visits |
| Passport for 2 | $99 | 2 people | 3 visits (2.5) |
| Passport for 4 | $149 | 4 people | 2 visits |
| Passport for 6 | $199 | 6 people | 2 visits |
| Passport for 8 | $250 | 8 people | 2 visits |
| Passport for 10 | $299 | 10 people | 2 visits |
The break-even column uses adult pricing. With kids in the mix it shifts slightly, since children are $17, but for every level from four people up the answer is the same: two visits and you are ahead.
The Zoo's membership page lists the named adults per level a little inconsistently, so if you have a question about who can be named on the card versus who can walk in with you, call the Membership Office before you buy rather than sorting it out at the gate.
What Members Get Beyond Free Admission
Every Passport level includes year-round daily admission, a members-only entrance, and an electronic membership card. The discounts are where the extra value lives for a family on a longer stay.
- 10% off non-sale merchandise in the gift shops and 10% off concession purchases.
- Member pricing on Safari Lights, the Zoo's holiday lights event. For 2026 the Drive-Thru Combo is $45 for members versus $60 for nonmembers, and Walk-Thru is $10 versus $14.
- Member pricing on Haunt the Zoo in October, select rides and attractions, Wild Encounters, Baobab Lodge stays, summer camps and education classes, and VIP tours.
- Reciprocal admission benefits at participating AZA-accredited zoos and aquariums, with free or reduced entry depending on the partner.
That last one matters more than it sounds if OKC is one stop in a longer move. The Association of Zoos and Aquariums reciprocal program means your Oklahoma City card can get you into partner zoos elsewhere, usually at half price or free. Check the partner list before you count on any specific zoo, since participation and the discount level vary.
The Math for a Month-Plus Stay
Here is a hypothetical to make it concrete. Say you are a family of four, two adults and two kids ages 6 and 9, placed in Oklahoma City for six weeks while your home is repaired after a storm. You plan to hit the Zoo on three separate weekends because it is a full-day outing and the kids ask every Saturday.
Day tickets: $74 per visit times three visits is $222. A Passport for 4 is $149. You save $73 on admission alone, and the fourth visit, if it happens, is free.
Now layer in the discounts. If your stay overlaps November or December and you do Safari Lights once, the member Combo saves $15. If you spend $30 on concessions each visit, 10% back across three visits is $9. Call it $97 saved against the membership price, and the card still works for nine more months after you go home, including at reciprocal zoos.
Flip the scenario. Same family, same six weeks, but you only plan one Zoo day. Then day tickets at $74 beat a $149 Passport by a wide margin. The membership is a tool for repeat visits, and one visit is not repeat.
Relocating to OKC for a month or more? Our furnished homes sit 15 to 25 minutes from the Zoo, sleep 2 to 16+, and carry monthly rates on 30+ night stays. See our extended-stay homes or call or text (405) 870-2146.
Who Should Buy a Day Ticket Instead
A day ticket is right for one-visit trips, for couples passing through, and for anyone whose stay is short. A Passport for 2 at $99 needs three visits to beat two adult day tickets, and most weekend visitors are not making three.
Grandparents visiting for a week should also pay at the gate. Seniors are $17, so two grandparents and two grandchildren for one day is $68. Unless the grandparents live in the metro and plan to come back with the kids, the Passport math does not close.
The community discount is the other case. If your household qualifies, four people at $10 each is $40 per visit, and you would need four visits before a Passport for 4 wins. For many qualifying families on a short stay the discount beats the membership.
Who Should Buy the Passport
Buy the Passport if you are in the metro for a month or more with kids, if you have a dog-free rainy-day problem to solve, or if the Zoo is going to be your default Saturday. A Zoo day with a Passport costs nothing at the gate, which changes how you use it. Members tend to drop in for two hours on a weekday evening rather than grinding through a full eight-hour day to justify the ticket.
Travel nurses on a 13-week contract with a partner or kids along fall in this group. So do insurance-placed families on a three-to-six month repair. Our guide to 3-month rentals in Oklahoma City covers that stay length, and what is a mid-term rental explains how monthly furnished pricing works.
If you are weighing the Zoo against other family outings for a long stay, our OKC family weekend itinerary stacks it against Science Museum Oklahoma and the rest of the Adventure District. The Zoo is also in the middle of a long expansion, and the OKC Zoo master plan explains what is under construction and when the new marine habitat opens.
Where to Stay If the Zoo Is a Regular Stop
The Zoo sits in the Adventure District in northeast OKC, off the I-44 and I-35 interchange. From our homes in the Lake Hefner and Gaillardia areas it is a 20 to 25 minute drive east on I-44. Our home across from OU Medical Center is about 10 minutes away.
For a month-plus stay, the drive matters less than the house. A kitchen means Zoo-day lunches are packed instead of bought, laundry means muddy shoes are not a crisis, and a yard gives kids a place to burn off whatever the Zoo did not. Our guide to where to stay near the OKC Zoo compares hotels in the district with furnished homes by drive time.
Guests rate our homes 9.5 out of 10 across 1,580 reviews on Airbnb and Vrbo. Monthly rates apply on stays of 30 nights or more, and booking direct saves up to 35% on any stay of 4+ nights.
How to Decide on a Zoo Membership, Step by Step
- Count how many separate Zoo visits your group will realistically make during your stay.
- Multiply your group's day-ticket total by that number of visits.
- Compare the total to the Passport level that covers your headcount.
- Add member discounts you will use, such as Safari Lights or concessions.
- Check the AZA reciprocal list for zoos near your home city if you are leaving Oklahoma.
- Buy the Passport if two or more visits are likely; buy day tickets if not.
Your Next Steps
- Confirm your stay dates and how many weekends include a free Saturday for the Zoo.
- Price your group at the gate versus the matching Passport level using the tables above.
- Book a furnished home near the Zoo on our properties page or call or text (405) 870-2146 for monthly rates.
Official pricing: Oklahoma City Zoo tickets and ZOOfriends membership.