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Mobile Pay 101: How to Pay with Your Phone

Mobile

February 08, 2019

With mobile payments now accepted in millions of stores worldwide, it’s easier than ever to shop with your smartphone. There’s no need to break out a credit or debit card — simply use an app on your phone to quickly make purchases.

How to use mobile pay

Mobile pay is fast, secure, and helps cut down on fraud. Once you’ve added your credit or debit cards into your mobile wallet app, you won’t need your card numbers when you pay with your phone. Instead of using your credit or debit card number, your bank and the app will trade temporary, encrypted numbers each time you make a purchase.

In stores, you’ll hold your phone close to the card reader at the register to pay (instead of swiping a credit card). The payment is then authorized using a secure PIN, thumbprint, or facial recognition.

Take a look at the three main mobile payment services and how to use them:

Google Pay

First, you’ll need to download the Google Pay app (formerly Google Wallet) if you don’t already have it on your Android device.

When you’re ready to pay at the register, wake your phone and hold it near the store’s wireless card reader. If you’re using a debit card, you may be asked for your PIN (or your signature if it’s a large credit card purchase). When you see a blue check mark on the Google Pay app, you’re all set.

You can use Google Pay wherever you see the “G Pay” logo, or check this list for stores that support this feature.

Apple Pay

To get started with Apple Pay, open the Wallet app that comes pre-installed on your iPhone and add the cards that you want to use. You will also need to add the security code, located on the back of each card. The Wallet app will contact your bank to verify the card, and then you’re ready to go. You can find locations that accept Apple Pay here.

To make a payment, you’ll need a phone with Face ID (iPhone X or later) or Touch ID with the fingerprint scanner on the Home button.

On the iPhone X or later, double-click your phone’s side button; on phones with Touch ID, double-click the Home button. Hold the top of the phone near the store’s wireless reader and use Touch ID or Face ID to verify the purchase.

If you’re having trouble opening the Wallet app when you want to pay, open the app in your Settings and check to see that “Double-Click Side Button”, or “Double-Click Home Button”, is turned on.

Samsung Pay

Samsung Pay is available on the Note 5, Galaxy S6, and later. Like the Apple and Google mobile wallet apps, it works with wireless readers, but it also uses a wireless technology called Magnetic Secure Transmission (MST) that lets you pay at any store where you’d typically swipe your card. The only places the MST feature won’t work is anywhere you need to insert your card, like an ATM machine, or a gas pump.

If the Samsung Pay app isn’t on your phone, download it from the Google Play store. You’ll then either scan your fingerprint or iris and create a special PIN code for payments. The app will prompt you to take a picture of your card and sign your name on the screen.

When you’re ready to pay, swipe up from the bottom of your phone. Enter your PIN and then hold the phone near the card reader or near the slot where you’d typically swipe a credit card to complete your purchase.

As mobile pay becomes more popular, it’s as easy as ever to make purchases using your smartphone. Explore Xfinity Mobile’s devices to find a phone that meets your needs.

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