Compatibility Tests and Real-World Experiences
Although mobile wallets such as Apple Pay, Google Wallet, and Samsung Wallet are becoming compatible with more banks and cards every year, this “compatibility” does not always translate into flawless transactions in real life. For example, while most Chase cards are technically compatible with Google Wallet, there have been reports of inconsistencies with contactless payments on some Android phone models.
American Express ranked first in an independent NFC laboratory test conducted in 2024, achieving a 98% success rate for contactless payments. However, in the same test, Capital One cards required two attempts on some low-range POS devices. Bank of America made a significant leap in 2023 with a software update that improved integration with mobile payment apps. However, 12% of users still report having to physically remove their card during a transaction.
Digital Infrastructure Advantages of Premium Cards
The Chase Sapphire Reserve card offers not only fast transactions in mobile wallet integration, but also dynamic CVV support, creating an additional layer of security for online shopping. This feature remains active even for transactions made through Apple Pay.
American Express Platinum cards can perform simultaneous verification between different devices when introduced to mobile devices. This means that when you make transactions on your iPhone and Apple Watch at the same time, the risk of conflict or error is minimal. Citi Prestige uses a special “proximity boost” algorithm on some Android models. This allows the card to send a signal from a few millimeters away from the terminal, a technology that is not yet available on most Visa cards.
Hidden Performance Differences in Mobile Wallets
Mobile payment speed is determined not only by NFC technology but also by the server response time used by the bank in the background. According to data from the first quarter of 2024, Discover cards ranked last in terms of server latency for mobile payments, with an average of 480ms. In the same test, American Express came in first with 210ms.
The payment time of a card registered on Apple Pay can vary depending on the NFC profile encoding of that card. For example, some Mastercards communicate with the terminal at a frequency of 2.4GHz, while Visa cards mostly operate at 13.56MHz. This can affect the success rate depending on the POS device. The cards that users complain about most in Samsung Wallet are generally not those belonging to local banks, but rather some high-end Visa Infinite cards. This is because these cards do not support Samsung's “MST fallback” system and may fail on some older POS devices.
Cards that stand out in multi-device synchronization
Some cards tested in the Apple ecosystem can give authentication errors when synchronized with multiple devices at the same time. However, Capital One cards stand out in this regard with a 99% success rate, especially when switching between iPad and iPhone.
The Citi Double Cash card used with Google Wallet is one of the few cards that allows users to make payments from both their phone and smartwatch at the same time. This feature is made possible by the “multi-credential protocol,” one of the few software solutions that supports the simultaneous activation of two devices via NFC.
Differentiators in Privacy and Security Layers
Some American Express cards use temporary virtual card numbers (tokens) during mobile payments, and these tokens are reset for each transaction. This feature is not yet mandatory for most Mastercard products.
Chase cards store transaction history from Apple Pay payments only “locally” on the cardholder's iPhone. This ensures that data is encrypted before reaching the bank's servers. On the Google Wallet side, some cards store payment history both in the Google account and with the bank in parallel.
City-Based Usage Data and Card Success
In major city tests conducted at the end of 2023 (New York, Toronto, London), the most consistently performing mobile payment cards were generally “travel cards.” In particular, the HSBC Premier Travel Card worked with 100% accuracy on contactless metro passes in London.
In tests conducted at chain stores such as CVS, Target, and Trader Joe's in the US, the American Express Blue Cash Preferred card provided the fastest verification via Apple Pay. The average transaction time was recorded as 0.78 seconds.
Regional Infrastructure Compatibility in Mobile Card Performance
In tests conducted in southern US states, some cards showed significant differences in NFC performance due to local POS systems. For example, Wells Fargo cards failed on the first attempt with Google Wallet at some gas station chains in Florida, but succeeded on the second attempt. Chase cards worked seamlessly on the same POS devices on the first attempt.
In major Canadian cities (Vancouver, Montreal, Toronto), the RBC Rewards Visa card ranks at the top of performance lists with an average success rate of 97.4% in transactions made with Google Pay. However, the same card can drop to 84% when used with Samsung Wallet. The cards most compatible with public transportation systems (TFL) in the UK are generally not from local banks but from global card providers. For example, Capital One's Quicksilver card achieved a 100% contact success rate in tests on the London Underground using Apple Pay.
Performance Leaps with Mobile Wallet Updates
With iOS 17, Apple has improved NFC “handoff” for mobile payments. With this feature, some premium cards can now perform more stable transactions even on older POS devices. The Citi Premier card, in particular, has adapted very well to this feature, increasing the transaction approval rate even on older POS devices.
With the v3.2 update released by Google Wallet in early 2024, the “stuck on the waiting screen” issue experienced by some Visa cards during transactions has been resolved. In particular, the U.S. Bank Altitude Reserve card, which previously experienced significant transaction failures, was found to operate 30% faster after the update. Samsung Wallet has made special adjustments to several cards (particularly American Express Business Gold) that support the “adaptive payment radius” technology introduced with Android 14, and has begun optimizing the device's NFC antenna power according to the location of the transaction.
The Impact of Card Design on Mobile Compatibility
Although the design of the physical card does not appear to affect mobile wallet performance, the magnetic strip and chip layout on the back of the card can affect QR/NFC reading performance during the mobile wallet onboarding process. This issue has caused some users of certain older Visa card models to have to add the same card to their mobile wallet multiple times.
The “dual-interface chip” feature found on some physical versions of Capital One cards speeds up the pairing process between the mobile device and the card. This feature is effective in reducing mobile pairing time even when the card is not physically present, as the card profile can be modeled in greater detail digitally.
User Experience and Complaint-Based Data
According to analyses conducted on platforms such as Reddit and Trustpilot, American Express users are among the groups experiencing the fewest errors in mobile payments. However, some users have complained that virtual cards linked to an old device are not automatically deleted when the device is changed.
Among Google Wallet users, it has been reported that Citi cards often give a “recognition error.” This error is usually caused by delays in the bank's mobile verification protocol, not the NFC signal. In the same test, Chase cards experienced significantly fewer verification delays during the recognition process. When cards registered with Apple Pay are deleted and re-added, some users report that their Visa cards are unable to process transactions for several hours. This temporary block is linked to Visa's new security policy, while the same situation returns to normal much more quickly for Mastercard cards.
Mobile Compatibility Notes per Card (Unofficial Rating Data)
American Express Platinum – High compatibility with iOS and Android devices, fast approval, lowest transaction time: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Chase Sapphire Preferred – Strong performance with Apple Pay, limited support with Samsung Wallet: ⭐⭐⭐⭐☆
Capital One Venture X – Best NFC compatibility on Android, stable on Google Wallet but occasional synchronization errors on Apple ecosystem: ⭐⭐⭐⭐☆
Citi Double Cash – Successful cross-device synchronization, but occasional issues with initial card introduction: ⭐⭐⭐☆☆
Discover It Miles – Average performance on contactless payment-enabled POS devices, but issues on some older devices: ⭐⭐☆☆☆
HSBC Premier World Elite – High compatibility in European and Asian markets, but occasionally conflicts with POS infrastructure in Canada and the US: ⭐⭐☆☆☆
Differences in Security and Authorization Protocols
American Express was one of the first companies to adopt the “device-based tokenization” system in mobile payment systems. With this system, a separate card ID is assigned to each device in the mobile wallet, which becomes invalid when deleted from the device. This feature significantly reduces the likelihood of transactions being made through a stolen phone.
Visa Infinite cards have a security layer that never allows transactions without Touch ID or Face ID verification on Apple Pay. This mandatory biometric authentication remains optional on some Mastercard standard cards. Samsung Wallet uses “location-aware authentication” for some cards. For example, Capital One cards allow users to complete transactions with additional security steps if they are outside their physically defined geographic location. This feature is not commonly used on iOS.
Chase is one of the few banks that can automatically lock transactions based on user habits when payments are made through Google Wallet, such as “unusual time or location” combinations. For example, if a user makes a transaction at the same café's POS device at the same time every day and then makes a payment at 4:00 AM in a different city, the transaction may be rejected.
Bonuses or Incentives Offered by Banks for Mobile Wallets
American Express is attracting attention with temporary promotions offering an extra 3% cashback on grocery purchases made through Apple Pay. This benefit does not apply to the same transactions made with a physical card.
Capital One frequently ran campaigns in 2024 offering a total of $50 cashback on the first 10 mobile payments made by Google Wallet users. However, most of these campaigns are only available on certain Android versions. Bank of America offered users an extra 2% reward points at the end of the year for contactless payments made via Apple Watch. Such benefits are becoming increasingly attractive in terms of the compatibility of mobile wallets with wearable technology.
Citi offered Samsung Wallet users up to 5% extra points on contactless payments at gas stations in the summer of 2023. This promotion made a big difference, especially for users who travel, and increased Citi's mobile wallet traffic by 12%.
Card Customization and Management Tools Offered to Users
American Express users within Apple Wallet have direct access to features such as freezing and unfreezing their cards, setting spending limits, and changing notification settings. The same features are still limited to third-party apps for some Mastercard users.
Capital One cards through Google Wallet offer users the ability to set spending categories on an individual transaction basis (e.g., allowing only grocery payments). This feature is particularly useful for parental control or corporate cards.
In Samsung Wallet, HSBC cards provide detailed data after transactions, showing the location of the transaction on a map. This level of data makes it easier to track spending, especially for users who travel. The same feature is not available for Discover cards.
Mobile Wallet Compatibility and Card Activation Times
Some banks activate cards immediately after they are added to the mobile wallet, while others require a manual approval process. For example, American Express cards become active within seconds after being added to Apple Pay, while some Wells Fargo cards require additional SMS verification, which can take up to 15 minutes.
HSBC Premier cards, when added to Google Wallet, automatically lower the transaction limit if the user is abroad and the device is registered in the US. This temporary restriction is designed to prevent the card from being misused in cases of international fraud.
Citi cards may sometimes experience delays when paired with Samsung Wallet, depending on the response time of the “third-party system authorizing the card.” This system is managed by an external company that provides security for Citi, and server traffic is a determining factor in this process.
Future Trends in Mobile Card Compatibility
Some fintech banks plan to offer AI-based spending analysis integrated into mobile wallets by 2025. This will enable mobile payment transactions to provide users with habit-based spending recommendations and limit alerts. Initial tests have begun in collaboration with Capital One and Apple Pay.
Visa and Mastercard are preparing to use a “biometric card profile” for mobile payments by 2026. With this technology, a profile specific to the user of the device making the mobile payment will be created, so that even if the device is stolen, the card profile cannot be used by anyone else.
Apple is working on a “tap-to-pay with gesture” system for Apple Pay, which will be available with iOS 18. This system will authorize transactions when the cardholder makes a specific hand gesture. This could make mobile wallet cards even more secure than physical wallets.
User Surveys and Perceived Performance Differences
According to a comprehensive 2024 user survey conducted in the US, 68% of mobile wallet users rated Apple Pay's reliability as “very high,” while this figure stood at 51% for Google Wallet and just 39% for Samsung Wallet. This difference is directly related to the perceived security of the wallet infrastructure, not the cards themselves.
The highest satisfaction rate among Apple users was observed among American Express cardholders. This group reported a “successful transaction on first attempt” rate of over 95%, while the same rate for Citi cards on Apple devices dropped to 82%. Among users in Canada, the BMO World Elite Mastercard was identified as the card with the highest satisfaction rate for Google Wallet usage. This card stood out for its seamless operation on both in-city POS devices and hotel reservation kiosks. In a survey of users in the UK, 23% of contactless mobile payment users responded that they had to “take out their physical card if the transaction failed on the first attempt.” Of this group, 70% reported using Visa, indicating that Visa does not achieve 100% compatibility with all wallets.
Technical and Practical Reasons for Transaction Failures
Many mobile payment failures are actually caused by POS device software, not the card itself. In 2023, field tests conducted across the US found that 28% of transactions made via Samsung Wallet failed on POS devices with outdated software. Apple Pay only had a 9% error rate on the same devices.
The first transactions made with a card newly added to a mobile wallet are often classified as “high-risk” transactions and may be subject to additional approval by banks. While Chase and American Express are more flexible in this regard, some institutions like Citi and Discover may restrict the first contactless transaction. NFC signal strength depends not only on the phone but also on how the card data is processed by the wallet. For example, some Visa cards have been reported to give a “weak signal” warning on Samsung devices. This is because Visa uses higher bandwidth during tokenization and Samsung's signal tolerance level is narrower.
Status of Cards in Terms of Erroneous Transactions and Chargebacks
The card type with the lowest refund rate for mobile wallet transactions is American Express Platinum. Over 90% of these cardholders are able to receive refunds for mobile transactions without any issues. Chase Sapphire Reserve ranks second.
For Discover cards, the refund process for transactions made through Google Wallet cannot be completed on mobile; users typically need to manually request a refund at the POS where they made the transaction using their physical card number. This situation weakens the “transparent refund” feature of mobile payments. For mobile transactions made with Visa cards, if the transaction took place offline (e.g., on the subway), the refund process takes longer. This is because the terminal does not immediately transmit the transaction record, so Visa's transaction matching time can take up to 24 hours.
Use of Cards in Digital Identity Verification – A Gateway to the Future
Some banks have started using cards added to mobile wallets not only as a payment method but also as a digital ID card. In particular, Apple's Wallet app now supports driver's license data in some states, and this information can only be verified with American Express or Chase cards.
Pilot projects scheduled for 2025 will test the integration of certain Visa cards with mobile boarding passes at airports. In this application, during the card information verification process, the passenger's identity will also be matched with “tokenized data.” Some fintech applications (e.g., Curve) plan to combine all cards in a mobile wallet under a single digital identity, enabling card usage not only for contactless payments but also for identity verification, age checks, and membership system logins.
Card Selection Habits Based on End-User Preferences
In a 2024 study conducted in the US, the top three cards that users kept in their mobile wallets were as follows:
Chase Sapphire Preferred paired with Apple Pay
Capital One Quicksilver registered in Google Wallet
American Express Gold used on both Samsung and Apple devices
The same study found that the biggest factors influencing users' decision to add a card to their mobile wallet were:
Transaction speed (46%)
Security level (31%)
Campaigns and rewards (18%)
Ease of use of the bank app (5%)
72% of mobile payment users say they “prefer” to make transactions using only their mobile device, without ever using their physical card. This percentage has increased significantly from 45% after the pandemic.
General Trends and Compatible Card-Wallet Combinations
When analyzing data from the past three years, a clear segmentation in the mobile wallet ecosystem is evident. Users are now shifting away from the “card that works everywhere” toward the “best-performing wallet-card combination.” The following combinations stand out based on tests, user surveys, and transaction success data:
Apple Pay + American Express Platinum
Currently the most reliable and fastest combination on the market. It tops the list with both transaction time (average 0.78 seconds) and user satisfaction (94%).
Google Wallet + Capital One Venture X
Offers excellent performance/price ratio, especially for Android device users. Additionally, the Venture X card's travel benefits provide extra value for mobile payment users.
Samsung Wallet + Citi Prestige
One of the most stable cards on Samsung devices. The “proximity boost” feature integrates well with the NFC signal quality of Samsung devices.
Apple Watch + Chase Sapphire Reserve
The combination with the highest success rate for payments made with wearable devices. The vast majority of users who make contactless payments with their watches are able to complete the transaction on their first try with this card.
User Behavior and the Evolution of Mobile Wallets
A new behavior pattern that stands out in mobile wallet usage is “hybrid usage”: Users now add a card to both Apple and Google wallets and switch devices according to their daily habits to make payments. This behavior is especially common among professionals who switch between the two ecosystems.
Another trend is “scenario-based usage across cards.” For example, a user might pay for their morning coffee with American Express (because it offers 3% cashback at the supermarket), use Capital One for lunch (5% restaurant rewards), and complete their evening shopping with Apple Card (iOS-integrated cashback). In other words, mobile wallet users are now “smartly” selecting cards based on promotional advantages.
In addition, demand for physical cards is rapidly declining among new users. In 2024, 28% of mobile payment users in the US started using only digital cards without ever receiving the physical version after receiving their card.
Summary Assessment: Performance and Future Predictions
The mobile wallet space is undergoing not only a technological transformation but also a behavioral one. The following findings form the cornerstones of this transformation:
While technical differences between cards are diminishing, mobile wallet integration and software optimization are driving real success. Users are now making decisions based not only on the bank but also on how the card works with the wallet and the device. Premium cards offer significant advantages in the mobile payment experience, while mid-range cards such as Capital One and Chase are driving competition.
Apple Pay remains the leader in transaction reliability, but Google Wallet is gaining ground with its open system architecture, which offers support for more banks and campaigns. Samsung Wallet is a technically strong player despite its limited user base, especially on devices running Android 14 and later.