Survey: Only 6% of U.S. iPhone Users Who Set Up Apple Pay Actually Use It

[SactoGuy18]

I use Apple Pay as much as possible, but sadly, there are still big retailers that are holdouts (Home Depot and Walmart being two of the best-known; that's why I also have the Walmart app so I can do contactless payments using Walmart Pay). Also, I have trouble using Apple Pay at locations where cellphone reception is not good, either.

 

[Max Webb]

I suspect this is because of slow adoption to use contactless in general in the US, as well as lack of promotion from Apple for Apple Pay. Most of Europe were using chip and PIN as the norm whilst US still were doing magnetic strip and signature. Now chip and PIN is more common in the US, Europe has already moved on to contactless. It seems the US is always a generation behind. In the UK, chip and PIN is used all the time, contactless a lot (there is a limit on how much you can pay using contactless), then Apple Pay frequently. I really don't see people paying with cash much these days.

There is not a limit with contacless using Apple Pay, someone bought a car with it, I bought £90 worth of shopping contactless in Tesco despite it saying 45 contactless limit that's due to apple security allows to bypass the limit even mentions it on apples website.

 

[0924487]

I don't get it. Apple Pay is way more convenient than paying with a plastic card.

In Canada due to financial regulations, Apple Pay or any tap-based technology has a C$100 limit. Also, most POS machines are not tap-enabled due to the extra fees that comes with tap transactions, which is usually around $0.1 per tap. The financial fraud liability of tap transaction lay with the merchants, but chip transactions at the clients. So, that motivated the denying of NFC-based technology.

 

[frumpywumpy]

i get better rewards on my other cards for specific purposes.

I have 6 credit cards stored in my Apple Wallet. When I use them from within my Wallet I still receive the rewards. For example. I have the Amex Blue which gives 6% back for groceries. When I go to the grocery, I pay using the Apple Pay (contactless payments) and select my Amex card. When I review the statements, that card was correctly categorized as paid to the grocery and I can see that it has been credited the 6% back.

I'd encourage you to try something similar, Apple Pay is much safer and easier than carrying (for me 6) additional cards around.

 

[rp100]

The biggest issue used to be that no one offered NFC payments. Now, my biggest gripe is retailers who appear to offer it, but attempting to use contactless payment results in an error on the reader (whether I use Apple Pay or wave a wireless enabled credit card over the reader). Don’t even show me the 4 LEDs (with one being green) if it isn’t even going to work…..

 

[saronian]

Apple Watch + Apple Pay the easiest combination. Link cards, choose card, tap and pay.

 

[I7guy]

I personally think they picked the wrong 3,671 people as my anecdotal observations shows about 50% of my friends associates use Apple Pay. But can’t prove or disprove any of this.

 

[JMStearnsX2]

That can't be accurate, I use it almost exclusively. Granted I live in California so most places take Apple Pay. As far as not having Touch ID on the phones anymore related to this, is pulling your mask down for the 2 seconds it takes to scan your face really that big of a deal? If the people around me seem to be overly sensitive to me doing that, I just hold my breath while I do it.

Problem solved.

 

[Small White Car]

I'm a tech-savvy user who does not use my Apple Pay.

Why? Because in each location I can not be certain how or if it's going to work.

Life is busy enough. The only way I survive is by minimizing the times I need to solve problems. As one example, I turn my headlights on in my car 100% of the time. Why? So I never have to think about it. Raining? Dark? Clouds coming in? Don't care, don't even think about it. My lights are on.

Exact same principle here. When I can use Apple Pay everywhere, I'll use Apple Pay. Until then I'll keep using my card because my card will always work.

 

[nt5672]

I enjoy using Apple Pay, but there are a few things that Apple needs to do to improve its adoption:

1. Add Face ID support for masks. If I need to wear a mask in a store, then I prefer to use physical credit cards because it's really annoying to wait for Face ID to fail and then unlock my phone with the passcode.

2. Put substantial effort into supporting driver licenses and IDs of all 50 states along with employee IDs, student IDs, gift cards, etc. Make it easy and proactively get organizations on board with this. My physical wallet has a bunch of cards in it and I would prefer not to carry my wallet around, but I still need to carry my wallet around if my iPhone doesn't support even just one of those cards.

3. Improve the wallet UI. If I want to use a credit card other than the one chosen as the default in my iPhone, it's annoying to scroll and find it in the UI. I would prefer a grid UI or something faster to move through.

4. Find a way to support Apple Pay at restaurants and other venues (e.g., gas stations in NJ) where a worker traditionally takes your physical credit card and goes elsewhere to process your transaction.

It would actually be better if restaurants processed your payment at the table as happens a lot outside of the US. It means you do not lose control of your credit card and you can use your phone.

 

[_Spinn_]

In 2015, 19 percent of U.S. merchants were able to accept contactless payments, but in 2021, this rose to 70 percent.

I use ApplePay whenever I can but around me there is no way 70% or merchants accept ApplePay. It actually feels like 20%.

The main reason behind the lack of usage may be attributed to the continued dominance of plastic cards. In addition, in the time since Apple Pay's launch, banks have issued an increasing number of contactless debit and credit cards

I just was issues my first contactless card this year. The rest of my cards still just have the chip.

Nevertheless, of the various mobile wallets, such as Samsung Pay, Google Pay, and PayPal, Apple Pay has generally been the most popular with a 45.5 percent share of mobile wallet users in 2021.

Wow that's really bad for the other mobile wallets.

 

[almostinsane]

I have all my cards on my phone but almost never use Apple Pay. When I have tried it, the notification takes too long to pop up or nothing happens. Its just quicker to pull out my physical card and tap to pay.

Just as quick if not quicker than fishing out my phone and hoping Silicon Valley's technology will actually work this time.

 

[Mike MA]

Seems reasonable. Paying at home I prefer to use PayPal or my MasterCard. Being outside it’s a nice alternative if you don’t have your wallet with you, but these are only minor occurrences from my point of view.

 

[vip007]

I suspect this is because of slow adoption to use contactless in general in the US, as well as lack of promotion from Apple for Apple Pay. Most of Europe were using chip and PIN as the norm whilst US still were doing magnetic strip and signature. Now chip and PIN is more common in the US, Europe has already moved on to contactless. It seems the US is always a generation behind. In the UK, chip and PIN is used all the time, contactless a lot (there is a limit on how much you can pay using contactless), then Apple Pay frequently. I really don't see people paying with cash much these days.

Exactly.

I live in both the US and the UK and find it incredibly frustrating that I cannot use contactless (or Apple Pay) at so many merchants here in the States. On the other hand, in the UK I am literally yet to find a place where I could not use Apple Pay and/or contactless.

Thus, the solution to the problem is to increase the adoption of contactless payments in the US in general. Of course, this is tightly linked to the CC interchange fees, which are much higher in the States than in Europe/UK. So most small merchants are less likely to accept CCs in general in the US. And especially now in COVID/post-COVID times, where cash has seen a comeback (as a way to save more and avoid paying taxes, I guess). So that's what Apple has to work against.

 

[bobcomer]

It's never been longer for me having your phone on hand already saves you from having to dig into your wallet for the card, pull the phone out, double-tap the power button look at the phone it's ready to go takes 2 seconds.

I live in South Carolina, nobody uses Apple pay and the clerks are sadly lacking in understanding their side of it. Contactless cards, everyone understands, no problem. I usually put my card in my shirt pocket if I'm heading to the store or to get gas.

Where I'd actually like to use it, to get gas, nobody has that capability.

 

[ijordano]

As someone who lives in the UK and everyone around me uses Apple Pay for almost everything, that is a truly shocking percentage

 

[polyphenol]

I turn my headlights on in my car 100% of the time

I almost never turn the lights on in my, or partner's, cars. They just come on automatically. Depending on light level, use of wipers or whatever else the vehicles deem appropriate. But daylight running lights are on if the headlamps are not. So there is always some external light.

If I turned them on all the time, I'd actually have to switch them off when I stop. That is far too much to think about.

 

[now i see it]

A-Pay is just a cash cow for Apple. If we don't want to use it - we won't.
It always felt like a gimmick.
6% usage after six years. That pretty much sums it up

 

[wood1208]

Initially i was hesitant to use but once I started; never looked back. Waiting for Driver License, Passport,etc supported in iPhone wallet so never have to carry wallet. iPhone is the wallet.

 

[KaliYoni]

I use tap-to-pay more than Apple Pay because my credit card is thinner than my iPhone, doesn't have any ports, jacks, or buttons, and didn't come with a charger.

 

[DesertDrummer]

I use it all the time. 100% of the time at the grocery store.

During international travel, it's an absolute lifesaver, since some European countries don't deal with plastic cards the same way we do in the USA and it can be a serious hassle to use a card.

 

[macsound1]

I wear an Apple Watch almost everyday, go grocery shopping almost every day and the only time I use Apple Pay is the off chance when I forget my wallet.
It has nothing to do with covid or anything else, it's just the muscle memory that inserting a chip card of choice into the card reader is about as easy as it gets.

Also timing.
Safeway, my grocery store, allows you to insert your card at any time during the transaction (which applies to tap as well.)
Target requires you to enter your phone number or make another selection and wait until the end of the transaction to pay.
7-11 you also have to wait until the worker presses the total button.
Chevron you can insert your card at any time.

What I'm getting at is while tap to pay is easy, if you don't tap at the right time, you're just staring at your phone and maddenly bashing it against a grubby plastic box until you either learn the right timing or get your wallet out.

What I do understand is people who use apple pay at specific locations.
Usually that's the market they can walk to or certain repeatable retailers.
For me, I just like being able to do the same thing regardless of which retailer I'm at.

 

[bollman]

Since contactless payments below around $40 does not require PIN here it's way too complicated to pay with a phone , you just wave your card and be done. And since some purchases require ID, well, you wallet is already up, why bring up your phone too?

 

[jimmysalg]

i keep saying this: a LOT of places still don't have apple pay, even in big cities like new york or miami.

YEP! And what's worse is that many places the terminal has the ability but they purposely BLOCK Apple Pay!!! WHY????? If I could I would use it 100% of the time but it ends up being only about 50%

 

[zalusky]

I remember when Home Depot said they would be the largest retailer to accept Apple Pay. That was 6 friggin years ago.
They piss me off so much!