Apple unveiled its mobile payment service Apple Pay last September alongside the iPhone 6 and Apple Watch later rolling it out to new iPhone users in October through the free iOS 8.1 software update. Dozens of banks and credit unions have flipped the switch on Apple Pay since then as more merchants have announced support or plans to accept the new payment method.
Apple Pay, which allows users to securely pay in stores using the latest models of the iPhone simply by placing the smartphone near a special terminal, uses your existing credit or debit card without revealing personal information like your name or card number to merchants.
In practice, Apple Pay is a real delight to use as a payment method as it feels a bit like you’re skipping the payment process altogether; I imagine moving from cash and checks to debit and credit cards years ago felt similar. There’s still a social oddity about paying with your phone in many parts of the United States in 2015, though, which I’m not sure happened with the transition to using cards.
This sort of social awareness experience doesn’t stretch overseas in parts of Europe and Asia where mobile-based payments have existed for years, and using Apple Pay in San Francisco or New York City probably only felt novel for a few days before becoming completely normal.
Paying for a cab by tapping my iPhone on a terminal from the backseat in NYC last year felt more futuristic than summoning an Uber from an app and paying with my thumbprint, almost like the cab was more tech-savvy than me.
In other parts of the country, though, the short-but-growing list of Apple Pay merchants and the feature being limited to one model of iPhone sometimes makes paying with your iPhone an awkward experience.
My best case scenario happened over the weekend when I picked up chocolates and an orchid from a local Winn-Dixie with self-checkout; almost like using Apple Pay in a social vacuum.
My worst case scenario followed the next day at Walgreens: terminal is picky at picking up the iPhone, still requests PIN input with my debit card, asks for an optional donation to an organization, presents cash back options, asks to confirm total. Four or so screens to get through all while a line builds up behind me. Had I paid by swiping my card I wouldn’t have noticed, but it crossed my mind that the process started by me waving my phone at the terminal.
What’s worse is the whole CurrentC episode that played out late last year causing problems even in big cities. Apple Pay worked at some non-official partners as expected, but later some of those merchants disabled support breaking expectations for shoppers.
Generally, Apple Pay is accepted at merchants with the standard contactless payment symbol displayed. Some merchants like Walgreens and Whole Foods go even further displaying the official Apple Pay logo to advertise support for paying with your iPhone.
Other merchants like CVS Pharmacy and Best Buy have terminals that display the contactless payment logo but manually disable support to block Apple Pay and other mobile payment solutions in favor of the upcoming CurrentC service.
Unless you follow technology news closely and know the backstory with Mobile Customer Exchange, you may attempt to use Apple Pay at one of these locations without success and be turned off by the experience. Hopefully this issue is resolved in the future.
Even some Apple Pay partners aren’t 100% prepared for accepting mobile payment services which makes using the service tricky.
Apple Pay worked flawlessly for me at Walgreens and McDonalds on the day of its launch, but the payment method did not work at my neighborhood Subway (an Apple Pay partner with terminals that support contactless payments) when I tried it a few weeks later. I also tried using Apple Pay at a local drug store with terminals displaying the contactless payment logo without luck.
In both instances the iPhone 6 knew something with Apple Pay was happening as it activated Passbook and displayed a message saying “Hold Near Reader to Pay”, but hiccups somewhere along the way (not distance!) couldn’t close the deal.
This is really where the way it feels to use Apple Pay comes in.
Swiping a card is largely the norm; paying with cash is acceptable; paying with a check is inconvenient, last decade, and increasingly not accepted by merchants, but not completely foreign. Paying with other methods are different. Despite contactless payments and mobile payment services existing years ahead of Apple Pay, the whole concept hasn’t become the new norm yet in the United States.
Apple also hasn’t actively marketed Apple Pay with the iPhone 6 using TV ad spots like it has other features like the Health app on iOS 8, sending voice messages, and using the camera. Not found in Apple’s recent TV spots for the iPhone: anything about Apple Pay.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLHFlHpPjgk71-8cHGcN7GpjIimFcVIC4X]
Both banks and credit card companies that have partnered with Apple have aggressively advertised support for Apple Pay showing people what it is and how to use it.
I think pushing the message in the living room leads to a better experience out in the real world. MasterCard’s ad campaign with Gwen Stefani is a great example of making a cool-but-techy concept and making it look normal.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8QNZszaW27s]
Perhaps Apple has opted out of advertising Apple Pay for now as not every iPhone user can use the service yet instead relying on specific banks to spread the message instead. Apple Pay, however, does support 90% of US credit cards by transaction volume and more specifically over 60 banks and credit unions across the country. Nevertheless, wider distribution won’t hurt; obviously we’ll see more people using Apple Pay as it becomes more widely available.
There’s certainly no shortage of Apple Pay compatible iPhones out in the wild with over 74 million iPhones (a mix of old and new models) sold around the world last quarter.
Once the Apple Watch hits the market in April, even more people will be able to use Apple Pay as pairing the Watch with the older iPhone 5, iPhone 5c, and iPhone 5s models lets you use the mobile payment service in stores, according to Apple.
As ready for the Apple Watch as I am, though, I imagine paying with Apple Pay and the Apple Watch will have the social side effects of feeling like an early technology adopter even at official partner merchants like Walgreens and Whole Foods.
This is not to say that Apple Pay isn’t a winner, but that whole experience is more nuanced than that. In general, I use Apple Pay at least once a week around town. I’d love to use it everywhere for the security benefits alone, and I’m confident we’ll see more merchants accept the payment type over time.
My current Apple Pay use is at the same few locations each time, and I’m reluctant to try Apple Pay again at places where it hasn’t worked in the past. There are even a few mom-and-pop shops that recently added terminals with the contactless payment logo, but I’m about as comfortable asking if they accept checks as I am trying to hover my iPhone over that reader at those places. Explaining the abstract concept of mobile payments to a cashier after a failed attempt isn’t a great experience, and trying again time and again inconveniences both the cashier and the person checking out.
Even without a marketing campaign in people’s living rooms led by Apple, mobile payment services like Apple Pay will become more common in the US—even helping services like Google Wallet—but I would love to see a bigger push from Apple to make Apple Pay feel as normal as swiping a credit card.
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I use Apple Pay several times a week and the worst issue that is noted here that I have experienced is needing to input my PIN number. Other than that, Apple Pay has been a fantastic service.
Really? You had to input your PIN? I haven’t experienced that yet. Maybe it was specific to that merchant.
I have seen this a few times. It says press cancel to run as credit, just do that and it doesn’t require a pin number! I believe this is when the merchant try to run the transaction as debit, instead of the default credit. Easy workaround, terrible system in which those terminals make you answer 42 questions before you are done checking out.
wow this article is spot on.. This is VERY true.. it even happens at EVERY walgreens location i have been to in south florida it gets even worst… the cashier asked to see my card and ID AFTER the transaction was complete… Poor training and awareness but yes made me feel completely awkward to the point where i haven’t used this process at all since.
My local Whole Foods doesn’t make Apple Pay simple. Once initiated at the terminal, I still have to choose between the red button for debit (and then enter my PIN) or the green button for credit. In either case, I have to then sign for my purchase. I’ve discussed this counter-intuitive approach with management, but they stated they don’t manage the terminal system. I’m not sure if other Whole Foods work this way, but their checkout isn’t any easier than the “old-fashioned” method of pulling out my credit card.
Um, at Whole Foods that’s not my experience at all in fact ever. Whatever your describing asking for your pin is on your end not Whole Foods. I just sometimes have to sign at the terminal depending on amount. Apple Pay is awesome and am very happy with it. Am in Los Angeles and with a ton of iPhone 6’s in the wild here people are using them at Whole Foods a lot. I also realize Apple Pay is in its infancy. There are a TON of opportunities for it yet. Relax people it’s barely 3 months old..
Yes, the problem is not with Apple Pay but with how retailers and/or POS providers implement it.
I had a similar experience at Walgreens where I initiated Apple Pay only to have the terminal ask me if I wanted to make a donation to a charity. I’ve also been asked to sign for my Apple Pay purchases which as we all know, is really counter intuitive. The fact is, Apple Pay is significantly more secure that a swiped transaction so I shouldn’t need to sign or provide any additional identification.
Again, the problem is with the retailer, not with Apple Pay.
I experienced this just this morning at my Whole Foods (PA). It’s really obnoxious to have to sign and catches me off-guard every time. My signature changes regularly…thumb print – not so much.
I’ve used ApplePay at Whole Foods a few times and I don’t remember having to do that. Maybe it was just that specific Whole Foods or maybe they are switching their systems on their end. I haven’t been to Whole Foods for a while, so the next time I go there I’ll see if that location makes me enter in the PIN, etc. Maybe it’s also because of the actual card you were using too?
It might be the specific Whole Foods. It’s a Chase Business Checking with no PIN (or debit account) associated with it, and the transaction was only $8 or so. Even when I use the card at Target (non-Apple Pay) I don’t get asked for a debit/PIN option.
I’ve found at my local Whole Foods that even going to different check-out clerks makes for different experiences. One, I pull out my phone, use Apple Pay, get the reciept, and I’m on my way. Otherwise, I’ve pulled out my phone, use Apple Pay, am asked to sign the kiosk, get my reciept, and I’m on my way.
My experience at Whole Foods as well as Meijer is that I do indeed need to choose what type of card I’m using on the terminal, a PIN is required for a debit card, and I only need to sign for a credit card if I spend at least $50. That’s definitely not the case for all retailers, though so I can confirm that’s something those grocers choose to do (or whoever manages their terminals).
There was a general comment I was going to make in regards to this article but your comment is a great example I wanted I comment on. That is I think people get a bit too hung up on the idea of Apple Pay’s benefit being convenience. Yes, that is/can be one of the nice things about it, but in my opinion the true benefit of Apple Pay that people should really recognize and appreciate is the security. Even if the process isn’t completely streamlined at every retailer, it’s a better solution than pulling your card out of your wallet for any reason.
I really think more and more had Apple focused more on its security benefits when I unveiled its system during the keynote and not opened up with a video of somebody making a quick and easy NFC payment they would’ve gave a different, (IMO more important) impression of Apple Pay that would’ve gotten more people to recognize it’s security benefits first over its convenience.
I just used apple pay today for the first time and at the local whole foods by my school and it worked without using a pin and having to sign. I think its for sure what account the card is linked too because that could make a difference and i left without ever having to take out my wallet.
Great blog. I recently have been experiencing the same issues with Apple pay, especially at my local subway. After many failed attempts with Apple pay I am reluctant to try it again at this specific shop. I also get the strangest looks when I ask if I can use Apple Pay. I do believe Apple Pay will eventually move into the mainstream of mobile payments. I’m extremely surprised that Target does not take Apple Pay in stores, being that they Take Apple pay on their mobile App.
Reddit users tried to start a trend of boycotting stores that manually turned off Pay. I think that’s a powerful solution to that problem.
Increased ease of use is certainly a big lure of Apple Pay but I still think if the convince is only equal to CC transactions the fact that your card and personal data are not in the merchants hands are still a big plus.
Not sure what Apple can done about most of your issues here. I find it unbelievable that for you mentioning Apple Pay at Checkout is like asking if they accept checks. Also the request of extra information post-ApplePay is a function of the store’s terminal software and not something Apple dictates. For the majority of these terminals no software changes were required to get ApplePay to work.
As for the merchants that disabled ApplePay/Google Wallet, I have decided that my purchase will go in as a Credit Card purchase and not Debit Card. Give them a bit of penalty for inconveniencing me. I also do the same for those that have released my information (Target and Home Depot!).
Apple Pay replaces swiping the card but it doesn’t replace what happens afterwards. At Apple Stores, I’ve had to input my PIN if I’m paying with my debit card and request a debit transaction just like before. If I want, I can ask the specialist to run it as credit, just like I do at Walgreens and publix. Every merchant is different. Apple Stores require a signature of over a certain dollar amount (usually ~$100+ from what I noticed) even when paying with Apple Pay. Apple pay replaces your card swipe, not your pin entry or signature. And if merchants want to ask for donations or your email, that’s their doing and not on Apple.
I’m thoroughly confused. So some of you “think” that Apple pay is a “problem” because it doesn’t replace the use of a “pin”.. I kinda guess that you didn’t read the memo that AmEx MasterCard, Visa are CREDIT card companies and its that use of the card from your BANK that fuels Apple Pay at the moment. Do you really want Apple Pay to access your CASH right now being new? Years ago I was advised by Chase to use CREDIT to protect my account from fraud. I’m seriously not ready to use my fingerprint to get cash so I’m clear why my BANK still requires my PIN. I resent people using Apple for everything wrong in the world. It’s your card issuer that your frustrated with… Insert that name when posting your frustrations.
I also found Subway to be a toss-up with compatibility, the Subway near my house didn’t work right but another one on my way to work had no problems. The cashiers don’t feel comfortable with it yet, possibly because Subway now offers a new mobile payment option through their app which came out around the same time as Apple Pay, forcing customers like myself to specify that I’m not paying with my phone but with Apple Pay. Cashiers also don’t feel comfortable with it because it’s new, I’m not typically in a rush so I take the time to try and educate them on how to use it in the hopes that they’ll show other coworkers how easy/cool it is and make other patrons’ experiences that much better. In my experience, the key is educating the retail store employees on how to use it.
You’re a good guy.
I’m not sure what the issue is here. Any contactless payment is going to do the same thing. Using Apple pay doesn’t make the entire transaction happen in an instant. It replaces you going into your pocket/purse and pulling out card, then swiping. Phone is usually in hand always so it’s faster. But you still have to choose between debit/credit transaction, choose to donate etc. I usually tap my phone to the terminal if it has an NFC symbol. If it doesn’t show anything in a few seconds I put the phone away and pull out my card. Easy peezy.
Only issue is when it starts to show but terminal is wonky and doesn’t make a full connection
Obviously, you and the other posters here that are criticizing the expectations of Apple Pay have no clue as to what the concept of a seamless transaction such as this is supposed to take.
BENEFIT TO CONSUMER: Instead of getting out your card, swiping it, and entering additional information and button pushes, Apple Pay is designed to eliminate these extraneous steps. With Apple Pay, you hold up your card, and—poof—done. There is no need for a signature (because the identity of the card holder is now behind the fingerprint that allows the transaction) and there is no need for a debit/credit differentiation because the money is deposited to the merchant either way (vs. you making the decision whether the payment is taken instantly or in an x-matter of hours).
BENEFIT TO MERCHANTS AND CONSUMERS: Merchants are struggling with Apple Pay as a whole because they are no longer allowed to store credit card numbers, PINs, etc., for any other purpose than to track customers’ buying habits to target them later with “deals—” only to have their servers hacked, the customer then screwed, and the bank than having to issue new cards because of the merchant’s carelessness.
WHAT NEEDS DONE: If any issue here at all, on Apple’s end, is their failure to sells to the merchants (1) how such data breaches can be prevented, (2) how there are other means to track customer data, and (3) that on Oct. 1 and thereafter, merchants will be held accountable for data breaks (instead of the banks) because of their negligence to prevent fraud.
For a seamless transaction, the process needs to be SEAMLESS—meaning, same terminal experience for every consumer and every merchant. To wave this process off with, “Oh well, it doesn’t work this way all the time,” makes all NFC purchases as ordinary as swiping the card if the first place. And, again, that’s not the point.
I’m still waiting for ApplePay to arrive in my homeland but this is what I currently do;
I take a card from my wallet in the pocket
Show it to the reader
Put the card back to my wallet
Unfortunately there’s a 100 AUD (80 USD) limit so sometimes I need to go back to the traditional pin code.
I do like the idea of having all the cards in the phone, but I don’t really see ApplePay being a lot easier. I still need to take the phone from my pocket (I don’t have it on hand all the time) and I can only assume that I need to unlock it, perhaps activate the ApplePay with my fingerprint, and then put the phone back to my pockets (and perhaps lock it again). If the comparison is the signature and swiping from the 90’s or pin-code, it’s obviously different.
When you authorize a payment with Apple Pay using your iPhone, you simply hold your phone near the terminal. The phone will automatically wake and display the card you’ve set as your default (you have the option of changing to another card), you don’t need to unlock it. At that point you scan your finger with Touch ID and receive and audible/visible/physical confirmation that the transmission was successful. You can then put your phone away, it’s role is finished.
Another other interaction required at the terminal (if any) depends on the retailer. In my experience it’s no more a “hassle” than using a card, for certain retailers its more streamlined, and for all cases, it’s more secure. As I said it a comment above, I think people are really missing the bigger/more important picture here. The true benefit of Apple Pay, in my opinion, is its security. Convenience is nice but that’s not what truly makes Apple Pay a superior payment solution.
It’s *safer* by miles. No more compromised terminals stealing card numbers! I’ll take an extra button press any day of the week.
I agree that With time Apple pay will be more common to people. I don’t understand target, they take apple pay with there mobile app, but not in store.
I really don’t understand how applepay is more than a gimmick. It’s honestly not more convenient than a credit card. You still have to pull it out. You still have to hold it over the device and wait a second or two for it to react. You still need to enter your pin if you go debit and (electronically in most cases) sign your name if you go credit. When stores finally activate the chip readers the security features will be the same. ApplePay is meh at best.
The idea here is eventually you don’t need to carry credit cards on your person and that Pay is inherently more secure.
Which is still not more than a gimmick. I still have to carry a wallet to hold my license, my museum card, and my clipper card. Considering how long the apple pay takes to come up I’d hate to combine the latter with my phone on the bus.
I’ve never had to sign my name using credit with Apple Pay.
Have you made any purchases over $50?
Yes I have, several times. However I can’t say I haven’t had to sign with Apple Pay any more. Last night at Circle K, I had to sign and give my drivers license to pay after authorizing my Apple Pay transaction.
Yes, several.
I use Apple Pay whenever I can. It can be wonky at Subway or Office Depot. I put that down to “their” machines not being up to snuff.
Wait… CurrentC is still “upcoming”?
I would imagine this will remain an American issue when this gets to the UK. No on ever signs for things here. We haven’t signed for things since the 90s, so no one is going to ask us to sign after using apple pay.
I think most of the idea of ApplePay yes convenience, but more importantly, security. I have yet to use ApplePay as I don’t have an iPhone that supports it (yet) and my credit union doesn’t yet support it but once it does and I have the hardware to support it I’ll be using it.
If I have to put in a PIN and thats all then I’m fine with that. Its still WAY more secure than swiping a card and hoping the server doesn’t get hacked which is happening way too many times per year.
I wouldn’t worry about retailers like BestBuy and Wal-Mart. I think eventually they’ll be forced to support ApplePay. They’ll have to follow suit as more and more retailers sign on. It will get to a point where people will not spend their money on a retailer that doesn’t support it I think.
While I enjoy using Apple Pay at physical locations, the real benefit,to me, is using it online. I feel a lot better about using Apple Pay for online purchases, rather than sending my actual credit card number over the Internet to be stored in someone’s server that could potentially be hacked. The biggest disappointment with Apple Pay, is that Apple does not take Apple Pay for purchases in the App Stores or in iTunes. You are still required to provide credit card information to Apple to make online purchases. This seems very odd and is inconvenient because the credit card they have on file for me requires verification of security code and expiration for every App Store or iTunes purchase I make.
I wrestled with whether I should say this or not — we don’t know each other personally and the cliché thing to do in a comment section is to hysterically rude to someone you don’t know — but, with all due respect, I can’t believe you’re getting paid to write drivel like this.
I question whether you even proof-read the article to look for inconsistencies or to see where you might be able consolidate certain points due to redundancy.
You cite that Apple hasn’t made a concerted effort to market Apple Pay while recognizing that most banks and credit card companies are doing the heavy lifting. Well, isn’t that enough? Why should Apple pay millions of dollars for primetime marketing when all the banks they’ve partnered with are doing it?! American Express’ latest commercial is a HUGE boon for Apple Pay and some of the newest headlines like the federal government approving the use of Apple Pay are doing more to promote Apple Pay than any amount of money Apple could pay for banner ads or ads during the Grammy awards.
But my biggest problem with your article is found in the last section. You document the awkwardness of using Apple Pay in places that may or may not accept it. Suddenly you’re embarrassed or you feel that you’re erasing precious moments from the cashier’s life as you wait impatiently for the Passbook app to load and recognize the contactless payment console in front of you. Of the 5 seconds it takes to use Apple Pay and to see if it’s compatible is hardly worth getting upset over or worrying that the cashier or the people behind you are inconvenienced.
News flash: your little awkward moment doesn’t matter to anyone but yourself and secondly, how cowardly is it to be gun shy of a credit card machine?!
But I’m not here to beat you up, I wanna help you. The next time you want to use Apple Pay in an unfamiliar place go there with the intent of testing by only buying a single item then wait for the line to die down to nothing. When it’s your turn kindly announce to the cashier and say, “Okay, I’m gonna try this so don’t laugh at me if it doesn’t work”. If it doesn’t work have a little fun and say, “I guess you guys aren’t up on the latest technology” or if you feel that’s offensive maybe you could say, “Oh well, at least my credit/debit card still works” and have your card already in your hand so you’re not digging into your back pocket and/or wallet.
There’s a lot more I could talk about that’s wrong with this article — like Apple Pay’s months-long life span being cited as “not the new norm” — but by the time I reached the end of the article all I saw was a frightened young man who’s afraid to use new technology around strangers. As though everyone is awkwardly gazing at the über geek trying to pay for a bottle of NyQuil with his smartphone.
Hopefully what I said was less offensive and more helpful.
I have to agree here and hate to lob on but what is this talking about in terms of not marketing it – Apple Pay? First of all its a brand new very serious service involving payments. In a hyper security world Apple itself would be irresponsible to push a payment system in a big way until it’s proven itself to be reliable and works to the customers liking. In other words his complaints almost answer his own doubts.
Second what rock do you live under. Here in the Soutgern California media market Apple Pay has dedicated commercials running from every major bank, and AmEx MasterCard as you show in your own article…seems like another 9 to 5 mac hit piece.
I think a lot of people are missing the point somewhat… even if you have to do an extra step (enter a PIN, provide a signature, etc.), Apple Pay still achieved its most important purpose: you never had to swipe, or even show, your credit/debit card. Your most sensitive information was never provided to the merchant in any way. That’s the important point… I’ll gladly suffer any minor inconveniences that still linger on.
The first time I used Apple Pay, I kept putting my thumb on the fingerprint that shows up on th screen and I couldn’t figure out why it wasn’t reading it. It probably took around 5 seconds to figure out the dumb thing I was doing, but it felt like eternity.
Ok, seriously, what you said about apple may not advertiseing it because it is not available to every iPhone user yet is completely pointless.
Then they wouldn’t have advertised the iPhone 4S with Siri, too. That’s the point of advertising: showing people what’s new about the new phone… ^^
Something like #ProxyEMVPay may be the cheap. equally secure and more reliable answer?
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/proxyemvpay-poor-mens-non-mobile-applepay-cousin-milos-dunjic?trk=prof-post
hello