Take a photo, read a review, watch a movie, order a pizza, catch a rare Pokémon. These are just a few examples of the hundreds of things your mobile device is capable of. And, thanks to advances in technology a few years prior, you can add making and sending payments to that list.
Yes, paying bills, sending $20 electronically to a friend, or purchasing a product can now all be done directly from the comfort of your couch on your mobile device, thanks to solutions that have become available to businesses and consumers over the past five years. Although the technology is still relatively new, here are 7 mobile payment solutions you’ve probably heard of – or will be hearing about in the near future.
7 Mobile Payment Solutions You Should Know
- Apple Pay. With Apple being one of the most profitable companies in the world, it’s no surprise that a product of theirs leads off this list. Apple Pay allows iPhone users to use their smartphone as a mobile wallet, giving them the ability to pay for goods at Apple Pay accepting locations by simply holding their phone over the card reader. Unfortunately, much like many of its competitors, Apple Pay hasn’t quite been the hit Apple expected it to be, with only a small fraction of iPhone users with the capability of using Apple Pay actually doing so.
- Samsung Pay. Samsung Pay is essentially what Apple Pay is, but for Samsung Android devices. Much like Apple Pay, Samsung Pay hasn’t found a lot of success since it’s launch and trails the former in usage rates. However, researchers believe that Samsung Pay is actually growing at a quicker pace than it’s California based rival, and looks to have a promising future ahead of it.
- Perhaps best known as the payment processor of eBay, PayPal is also available as a mobile app. With the ability to attach your credit card to the app by simply snapping a photo of it, PayPal offers a hassle-free method for processing payments. Currently integrated with some major businesses such as Airbnb, Uber, and StubHub, PayPal is one of, if not the leader in the mobile payment systems industry.
- Venmo. Often thought of as the “little brother” to PayPal, this PayPal owned app offers a more casual and cost-free way to transfer money. Used by many millennials as a means to pay back friends when they’ve forgotten their wallet or don’t have any money on them, many small businesses and startups are beginning to see some advantages with processing their payments through Venmo.
- Google Wallet. As one of the first NFC-based mobile payment systems released back in 2011, Google Wallet allows users to make payments online or in store, and send money electronically from your smartphone. Although it’s since seen its usage drop since the release of Apple and Samsung Pay, others believe that Google Wallet will continue to see use for years to come.
- Dwolla is unique in the fact that it does not require a credit or debit card to allow you to transfer money, but rather connects directly to your checking account. It does come with a fee of $0.25 per transaction (unless it’s less than $10), but the good thing is that only one party has to pay the fee, meaning you can send money to someone even if they don’t have a Dwolla account.
- The last company in the mobile payment systems industry to make this list is Stripe. Marketed as a web and mobile payment system “built for developers”, Stripe offers a number of services and API’s to customize towards your business.
The mobile payment systems industry is one that is primed to grow larger in the next five years. As more businesses look to integrate technology and mobile use with their products, it’s only a matter of time before a majority of transactions are made possible via a mobile device. Choose Payline to help your business experience payments differently.
