Mobile wallets are getting busier and more useful, with Google pushing out tools that help you store more types of IDs, find key passes faster, and surface tickets from your photo gallery, plus a new Tap & Pay shortcut in India.
On the Apple side, hotels are starting to issue room keys straight into Wallet, US passport support is on the horizon, and iOS 26 adds practical upgrades for boarding passes, including Live Activities, airport maps, and luggage status.
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Mobile wallets are turning into the go to option at checkout. Across 11 countries that account for half of global GDP, they now handle 35% of online purchases and 21% of in-store transactions, based on 216,000 consumer surveys from 2022 to 2024. The funding rails have not changed much. Cards and bank accounts still sit behind the glass. What is changing is the form factor and the flow.
Speed and convenience explain most of the shift. Tap to pay, biometric unlock, and stored credentials reduce steps at checkout. Adoption is highly local. Japan and Singapore lean into QR and instant rails. France and the United States move slower because contactless plastic already feels fast and familiar. Local wallets matter too. About 8% of in-store transactions run through domestic systems like Pix in Brazil and iDEAL in the Netherlands.
Younger shoppers set the pace but they are not alone. Gen Z’s in-store wallet use is up 23% since 2022, with gains across millennials, Gen X, and boomers as well. Growth is also cutting across income levels. Lower income consumers have increased wallet use faster than higher income peers, which points to wallets as low cost tools for everyday spending rather than a premium feature.
Google Wallet News
Google Wallet’s Everything Else expands beyond the US
Google is widening access to its “Everything Else” tool in Wallet, which lets you snap or upload images of unusual IDs and documents, such as campus cards, club memberships, or parking permits, and store them as digital items.
Google’s support wording now suggests broader availability outside the US, with Australia, India, and Japan listed as exceptions. Early reports indicate India is seeing the feature even though the documentation has not fully caught up, so regional quirks may persist for a bit.
Google Wallet may let you favorite passes for faster access
An APK teardown of Google Play Services points to a new star button that lets you mark passes as favorites and surface them more quickly. The strings reference adding a starred pass to the home screen and a database update that tracks whether a pass is favorited, the order of favorites, and the last time you opened it.
Today, passes already appear in Wallet’s home view, so this could either pin key items to the top or create launcher shortcuts you can tap without opening Wallet. The feature is still in development, so behavior and timing could change.
India gets a Wallet “Tap & Pay” shortcut
For users in India, Google has added a “Tap & Pay” entry point inside Wallet. Wallet itself does not have regulatory approval for NFC payments in the country, so the shortcut opens the local Google Pay app. This improves the handoff without changing the underlying payments setup.
Google Wallet will suggest passes from your photo gallery
Google is developing a system that scans your camera roll for tickets and passes, such as boarding passes or event QR codes, and prompts you to add them to Wallet. By skipping manual steps, this should make it easier to keep important passes searchable and scannable instead of buried in screenshots.
Apple Wallet News
Apple Pay momentum in the U.S. and beyond
Apple Pay’s footprint is massive in 2025, with around 60–66 million users in the U.S. and roughly 550–640 million worldwide. It drives more than half of in-store mobile wallet transactions in the U.S., while global card share remains in the single digits. Estimated throughput sits around $1–2 trillion this year, reflecting steady double digit growth.
Acceptance keeps widening, with about 85–90% of U.S. retailers and roughly 2.4 million websites supporting Apple Pay. Usage is strongest among Gen Z and Millennials but is rising across age and income groups as one tap checkout becomes routine.
Security underpins the model, using device specific tokens, dynamic codes, and biometric authentication while keeping card numbers off Apple’s servers. The offer is also expanding with Tap to Pay on iPhone and bank or fintech powered installments. Bottom line: Apple Pay is becoming a default checkout option for iPhone users thanks to scale, coverage, and low friction.
easyHotel adds room keys to Apple Wallet in London and Paris
Guests at easyHotel London City Shoreditch and Paris Aubervilliers can now add a mobile room key to Apple Wallet and unlock doors with iPhone or Apple Watch. Express Mode allows entry without waking the device, and Power Reserve keeps access working when the battery is low.
The rollout, developed with Alliants and dormakaba, follows easyHotel’s shift away from plastic cards and is expected to expand to more properties.
Apple Wallet is preparing US passport support
Apple has signaled that US passports will be supported in Wallet before the end of the year, joining the small but growing set of digital IDs on iPhone.
The addition could arrive in an upcoming iOS 26 point release or via a server side update. Acceptance will vary across real world scenarios, so consider this a convenient backup rather than a full replacement for carrying a physical passport.
Apple Wallet gets new tools for boarding passes in iOS 26
As we mentioned back in June, Apple is adding three features to boarding passes in Wallet. Live Activities will run directly from the pass so you can see real time flight updates and share that live card with friends or family.
When you open a pass, you will also get quick links to airport maps and the status of AirTag tagged luggage in Find My, with an option to report a missing bag. These updates make Wallet a more complete place to handle flights in iOS 26.
Montana rolls out mobile ID for Apple and Google Wallet
Montana’s MVD has launched Montana Mobile IDs, letting residents add a state ID or driver’s license to Apple Wallet or Google Wallet for identity and age checks. A companion Mobile ID Verifier app supports businesses, and recent state laws bar merchants from storing ID data and clarify that handing a phone to police is not consent to a device search.
TSA already accepts digital IDs from participating states, including Montana, at major in-state airports, but travelers should still carry a physical ID while acceptance grows. Rollout is underway with early uptake reported, and broader business adoption will follow as more retailers enable verification.
Samsung Wallet News
Samsung Wallet adds in-store installments with Splitit
Samsung Wallet users in the US can activate card-linked installment payments for in-store purchases through Splitit. After a one-time registration, shoppers can set up plans on purchases of $50 or more with a single tap using an eligible Visa or Mastercard.
There are no new credit checks, card rewards and protections still apply, and issuers remain in the transaction flow. Because the solution uses existing rails, merchants do not need new hardware or integrations, and Splitit expects higher average order values as shoppers take on larger baskets.
The rollout is in pilot across select states with nationwide coverage planned, and support is expected at most US point of sale terminals, including major chains like Target, Best Buy, Albertsons, and Macy’s. Splitit and Samsung also plan cobranded campaigns inside the wallet to direct qualified shoppers to participating stores, followed by an omnichannel expansion.
Woori Bank to operate Samsung Wallet Money·Points
Woori Bank will run Samsung’s new Money·Points service on Galaxy devices in South Korea. Launching in the fourth quarter, the built-in wallet will let users pay with cards, linked bank accounts, or virtual account top ups, while earning and redeeming points on the spot. The banks says it worked with Samsung this year to deliver simple sign up, fast top ups, real time transfers, secure payments, and immediate point accrual.
By tying payments and points together, Money·Points aims to stand out in a domestic market that has grown more than 20 percent annually over the past five years and now handles about 1 trillion won in daily transactions. At launch, Samsung and Woori plan special products and promotions for Galaxy users and Woori customers.
