What Is Tap to Pay? A 2026 Guide for Merchants

Shoppers’ expectations for a smooth experience at the checkout counter are higher than ever, with contactless payment methods like tap to pay reshaping the global marketplace. 

It’s now second nature for consumers to tap their cards, smartphones, and wearables at checkout terminals to pay in-store. So much so that Mastercard reports contactless payments accounted for 75% of transactions on its network in 2025. 

Ahead, you’ll learn how tap to pay works, the options it offers your customers, and the technology you need to process these digital payments in your store. 

What is tap to pay?

Tap to pay is a contactless way for customers to make purchases. Instead of swiping or inserting a card into a payment terminal, shoppers tap their cards, smartphones, or compatible wearable devices.

The technology behind tap to pay is called near-field communication, or NFC. It uses short-range radio frequencies to let payment terminals and contactless cards or devices communicate securely and wirelessly.

Tap to pay vs. contactless vs. NFC

These three terms come up a lot when discussing payment processing, especially as the industry surpasses $7.7 trillion in transaction value. But they all mean different things:

• Tap to pay is the checkout action. A customer taps a card, phone, or wearable to pay instead of inserting or swiping. 
• Contactless is the umbrella term for payments that don’t require physical contact, like tap to pay cards and mobile wallets. 
• NFC is the wireless technology that powers tap to pay. It runs at 13.56 MHz and works only at a very short range, which is why taps work best when the payment method is held still right next to the payment terminal.

How tap to pay works: A look at NFC technology

Customers can tap to pay thanks to NFC technology, which is a type of radio-frequency identification (RFID). It’s been used for decades in settings like supermarkets and airports to identify groceries or luggage.

NFC operates on a specific RFID frequency, which avoids interference from other wireless devices and ensures communication occurs over a small distance only. This provides a layer of payment security and reduces the chance of accidental taps.

Here’s how tap to pay works:

1. Initiation. The transaction begins when the NFC-enabled device is brought close to the payment terminal.
2. Transmission. The device transmits a unique encrypted code containing the transaction details to the terminal. This code typically includes information like the card number and expiration date, but is protected by encryption.
3. Merchant processing. The payment terminal sends the encrypted information to the merchant’s bank (also known as the acquiring bank).
4. Bank verification. The acquiring bank forwards the transaction details to the cardholder’s bank (the issuing bank) for verification.
5. Authorization. The issuing bank verifies the details, checks for sufficient funds or credit, and performs fraud checks. It then sends back an approval or denial.
6. Completion. Once the terminal receives the approval, it completes the transaction and sends a signal to the customer’s card or device to confirm the electronic payment.
7. Receipt and record. The terminal may print or send a receipt, or log the transaction in the merchant’s system, or both, completing the mobile payment process.

Today, many terminals can accept contactless payments, including point-of-sale (POS) systems, vending machines, and parking meters. All NFC-enabled payment terminals feature a universal contactless payment symbol with four curved lines representing a radio signal. 

There are two types of payments that use this technology: 

• Active payments happen between two powered devices, like a customer’s smartphone and a merchant’s POS terminal. Both devices can send and receive information.
• Passive payments involve one powered device and one unpowered item, like a contactless credit card. The card contains no battery and is briefly powered by the signal from your payment reader.

💡 Shopify POS hardware lets customers tap to pay at the counter, on the sales floor, and on the go.

What the contactless symbol means

The contactless symbol (formally known as the EMVCo Contactless Indicator) is a consumer-facing icon that demonstrates that a contactless payment can be made. It’s made up of four curved lines increasing in length from left to right. 

If your business accepts contactless payments, you should display this symbol near your checkout area alongside other acceptance marks like credit card logos so customers feel confident in their payment choice.

Pros and cons of accepting tap to pay

It’s important to understand the advantages and disadvantages to accepting tap to pay with your business:

Pros

Enhanced speed and convenience

Tap to pay reduces checkout lines by speeding up the payment process. Contactless payments are faster than swiping, inserting a card, or using cash.

“I like the idea of not having to use the card reader,” says Daniel Vu, founder of Daniel Vu Ceramics. “It makes accepting contactless payments feel more seamless, and I can just send their receipt by text or email. My customers are really happy with the checkout process.”

Heightened payment security

Every time a customer taps to pay, their information is converted into a unique encrypted code. Even if a hacker accessed that code, the information is only valid for a single transaction—it can’t be reused to make fraudulent purchases. 

Active NFC contactless devices may contain additional security layers. Apple Pay for iPhone, for example, requires customers to confirm their identity with Face ID or a passcode before making a purchase.

Meeting modern customer expectations

According to market research, tap-to-pay methods (including digital wallets and NFC-enabled credit cards) will account for most POS transactions by 2027. By offering this payment option in-store, you cater to modern customer expectations for speedy checkout.

Cons

Dependency on technology and power

Tap to pay relies entirely on NFC-enabled payment systems, which need electricity and stable internet. In the event of a power outage, Wi-Fi drop, or POS system failure, most platforms won’t process contactless transactions.

Shopify POS, however, has an offline mode that allows you to process transactions during an internet disruption, so customers can still pay for purchases before leaving. Their payment information is stored securely and will go through when your connection is restored.

Note that the following payment options won’t work in offline mode:

• Tap to pay on iPhone/tap to pay on Android
• Gift cards
• Swipe cards or Manual card entry (MOTO) payments

Transaction limits 

Some card issuers or banks set limits on tap-to-pay transactions—particularly for physical cards. For example, the Bank of Ireland states that physical card contactless payments have a €50 per-transaction limit, whereas Apple Pay allows transactions over €50.

If a customer exceeds that limit, they may need to insert the card or enter a PIN. If not, they might need to try a different payment method. Limits and verification rules vary depending on issuer and region. 

Hardware costs

Tap to pay requires compatible NFC-enabled terminals, which can be more expensive than basic swipe or chip readers. There may also be ongoing maintenance or software fees, especially with integrated cloud-based payment systems.

You can avoid these hardware costs by using tools like tap to pay on iPhone, which turns your smartphone into a contactless payment device without any additional technology.

Common ways customers tap to pay

As customer behavior evolves, new contactless technology continues to emerge. Customers can now tap to pay using: 

• Contactless debit and credit cards
• Smartphones and mobile wallets
• Wearable devices

Contactless debit and credit cards

A contactless card is a debit or credit card with an embedded NFC chip and antenna. It lets the customer tap their card on a compatible payment terminal to pay—no need to insert or swipe. The card’s chip generates a unique, one-time-use cryptographic code for that transaction (called a token), ensuring the customer’s actual card number is not transmitted.

Smartphones (mobile wallets)

Today’s consumers rarely leave home without their phones, and contactless mobile payments are becoming the preferred payment method in certain markets. All major smartphone manufacturers offer a mobile wallet for contactless payment, including Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Samsung Pay.

After loading credit or debit card information into a phone’s mobile wallet, customers can hold their phone over an NFC-enabled terminal to pay.

Wearable devices

NFC-enabled wearables come in various shapes and forms, such as bracelets, rings, fobs, and smartwatches. Together, they form a market projected to reach $82 billion by 2026. 

After enabling tap to pay and setting up an account on the device’s mobile wallet feature, wearable users can bring their device within two inches of the contactless symbol on the terminal to pay.

How to accept tap to pay at your business

You have a few different ways to start accepting tap to pay:

Using a dedicated POS card reader

Tap and chip card readers add contactless payment features to POS terminals—the in-store devices used to process customer purchases and orders. These card readers can either be fixed to a countertop terminal or mobile. Mobile readers allow you to process payments anywhere on the shop floor, not just at the checkout counter.

Using tap to pay on iPhone

Apple tap to pay on iPhone is a native portable POS system that lets retailers accept contactless card and mobile payments using their iPhone. When enabled, your phone displays the amount being charged, your merchant name, an icon representing the type of purchase (e.g., groceries), and directions showing customers where to tap their card or device.

💡Tap to pay on iPhone for Shopify is the easiest way to support contactless payments. Accept contactless debit, credit, and mobile payments with just your iPhone—no extra hardware needed.

Using tap to pay on Android

Tap to pay on Android is a contactless payment method that lets you use your Android phone as a mobile POS system through the Shopify POS app. Customers can tap their NFC-enabled credit card or mobile wallet against your device to pay for goods in-store. 

Quick setup checklist for merchants

• Confirm eligibility. Confirm your Shopify POS location is set up with Shopify Payments. 
• Use a compatible device. Install the Shopify POS app and make sure your device supports tap to pay. 
• Enable tap to pay inside Shopify POS. In the POS app, go to the hardware/payment settings and connect tap to pay as a payment device so it appears as an available reader. 
• Allow the necessary phone permissions. On iPhone, location services/permissions may be required to use tap to pay, so confirm they are enabled.
• Run a test transaction and set a fallback. Do a small tap purchase to confirm it works, and keep a backup option ready. Consider a paired card reader for cases where a customer wants to insert or use a PIN. 

Troubleshooting common tap-to-pay issues

Tap to pay offers convenience for both retail cashiers and customers, but it does come with occasional challenges:

Payment failure

Physical cards can become damaged, or customers might hit a payment limit on the device they’re using. Instead of losing the sale entirely when this happens, send personalized email carts to each shopper. This gives them a direct online checkout link they can use to complete the transaction. 

Connection errors

If your network connection is weak, the tap-to-pay transaction might stall or time out. Always keep card readers charged when they’re not in use, and use a reliable high-speed internet connection to stay online. You could also set up a backup connection—for example, by hotspotting from your smartphone to your POS terminal—to cover temporary outages. 

Refund issues

Because a customer’s payment details are tokenized with tap to pay, it can be difficult to track orders to a particular shopper when they’re requesting a refund (especially if they don’t have a physical receipt). Shopify solves this with unified customer profiles. Search the customer’s email address in the POS system to retrieve their order history and process a refund to the original payment method.

Let your customers tap to pay with Shopify

Most customers prefer the speed, security, and convenience of tap to pay—so it makes sense to support contactless payments in your store.

With Shopify, you don’t need to add more tools. Tap to pay turns your smartphone into a mobile card reader, so you can accept digital payments from anywhere in-store—no extra hardware required. It’s all powered by the Shopify Payments gateway that already handles online sales and chip-and-pin transactions on your POS system.