Mobile payments continue to gain traction

Consumers are really taking to mobile payments, and the big-name apps tend to be their go-to. What's more, they tend to spend more when paying with their mobile devices. The advisory firm Auriemma Group reported that better than half (54 percent) of credit cardholders eligible for mobile pay apps had used these services as of April 2024, representing a 20 percent increase over the first quarter of 2019.

The big winners among mobile pay apps were Apple Pay, which saw a 67 percent increase, Google Wallet (54 percent) and Samsung Wallet (35 percent).

Separately, an analysis of mobile pay spending, based on China-based Alipay, the largest mobile payment platform in the world, found that consumers spend an average of 9.4 percent more when using their mobile devices instead of their cards to pay for purchases.

The author of that research, Yugian Xu, an assistant professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, said in an interview with National Public Radio the findings map to U.S. consumers. "A fundamental mechanism here is the convenience that mobile payments bring to consumers," she said. "Therefore, we would expect that the effect would be similar in the U.S. payment market."

Merchant-branded apps lag

While merchant-branded mobile payment apps (for example, Walmart Pay, Target Wallet and the Dunkin app) have traction, it's nowhere close to their device-centric counterparts. For example, Walmart Pay, which launched shortly after the introduction of device-backed offerings, doesn't come close to matching options like Apple Pay, according to Auriemma Group's Mobile Pay Tracker.

Even when shopping with Walmart, most mobile pay users (54 percent) prefer to use Apple, Google or Samsung payment apps over both traditional payment cards and Walmart Pay, Auriemma found.

The Auriemma study is based on an online survey of 2,168 American adults conducted in April 2024. "Mobile payments obviously span far beyond Apple, Google and Samsung's offerings," said Jonathan O'Connor, senior manager of research at Auriemma. "However, our research continues to highlight the importance of being first to market and having broad acceptance, with many of the more established players garnering higher usage and interest levels than their counterparts."

The rise of super apps

O'Connor suggested that mobile payments could see increased competition in the form of super apps, like WeChat, the Chinese social media and messaging app that also supports mobile payments. It is said to be the largest standalone app, with an estimated 1.3 billion monthly active users in March 2024.

WeChat is reported to be available in more than 200 countries, including the United States. The Trump administration tried to ban WeChat from U.S. app stores in 2020 on national security grounds, but a federal judge blocked the ban. Public records indicate that WeChat has 4 million users in the United States.

Although awareness and usage of super apps is in early stages, familiarity and interest are notable. Auriemma's research suggests nearly four in 10 (39 percent) of Americans who have never used a super app express interest in using one.

"Super apps can act as a one-stop-shop – bundling everything from messaging to payments and shopping in one place," O'Connor noted. "While they have only started to make headway in the [U.S.], if their popularity rises, we may see traditional mobile pay providers adopting some of their features to remain competitive."

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