In 2024, digital wallets have risen to become one of the preferred payments options for consumers.
Enabling the completion of payments through the convenience of mobile phones, paying through digital wallets offers a seamless and quick way to complete transactions.
And, the popularity of digital wallets is only set to grow further. In its 2024 Global Payments Report, Worldpay projects that in the UK alone, payments made via digital wallets will account for £203.5bn (US$256bn) of e-commerce transactions by 2027.
With the popularity of digital wallets skyrocketing, we look at the Top 10 digital wallets on the market today, available on mobile.
10. Amazon Pay
Amazon Pay enables partner companies to embed a payments function on their websites through which customers can pay for products and services. Amazon Pay supports several payment functions, such as SEPA payments in the EU and SWIFT payments globally. With no monthly commission for use, Amazon Pay offers low transaction fees, a high level of security and a simple registration process that takes no more than a few minutes. The Amazon Pay system allows users to make payments in their national currency with further conversion into US dollars at the average rate.
Revenue: US$514bn FY 2023 - Amazon.com
Employees: 1.54 million
CEO: Andy Jassy
Founded: 1994
9. Samsung Pay
The digital wallet for those with Galaxy devices – including smartphones and smartwatches – Samsung Pay empowers customers with a convenient payment option for shopping at virtually any location that accepts contactless payments. Utilising Samsung’s contactless payment technology is effortless; users simply need to add their cards to Samsung Wallet and tap to complete transactions. Every transaction benefits from bank fraud protection and requires authentication via either fingerprint or PIN. Additionally, tokenisation enhances security by adding extra layers of protection.
Revenue: US$194bn FY 2023 - Samsung Electronics
Employees: 270,000
CEO: Kyung Kye-Hyun and Han Jong-hee
Founded: 1938
8. Zelle
Operated by its parent entity, Early Warning Services – which is owned by major US banks – Zelle was introduced as the replacement for the clearXchange payment platform in 2017. With Zelle, users can effortlessly transfer funds to friends or family using just an email address or US mobile phone number. This is done directly through a banking application regardless of who a person banks with. With translation processing taking just minutes, Zelle’s popularity has only been growing, and today it is integrated with over 2,000 US banking applications.
Transaction volume: US$806bn FY 2023 transaction volume
Employees: 1,022
CEO: Cameron Fowler (CEO of Early Warning Services – Zelle parent)
Founded: 2017
7. Alipay e-Wallet
Alipay e-Wallet helps businesses connect with their customers across the globe through its innovative e-Wallet solutions. Powered by Alipay’s technology, Alipay e-Wallet provides seamless payments collection and a convenient customer experience. Alipay offers a diverse portfolio of market-preferred payment methods, flexible and scalable integration options, efficient cross-border and multi-currency settlement and leading financial technology that safeguards every transaction. Today, Alipay, whose parent company is Ant Group, has a range of products and services. It now serves more than 1.2 billion users worldwide and works with over 250 overseas financial institutions.
Revenue: N/A
Employees: 5,000 - 10,000
CEO: Jennifer Tan
Founded: 2004
6. Venmo
In recent years, Venmo has emerged as synonymous with transferring funds among friends and family in the US. Originating as a basic SMS platform for monetary exchanges, Venmo has transformed into a social payments application and has introduced a host of features. These include capabilities for dividing expenses and offering exchange experiences, as well as payments alone. Venmo was founded by college roommates seeking an improved method of transferring funds among themselves in 2009. Today, it has 60 million users and processes hundreds of millions of transactions across the US. Venmo is wholly-owned by PayPal.
Revenue: US$2.4bn FY 2023 (projected)
Employees: 724
Founders: Andrew Kortina and Iqram Magdon-Ismail
Founded: 2009
5. PayPal Digital Wallet
Among PayPal’s products and services, the PayPal wallet is one of its most popular. The digital wallet is useful when making purchases from foreign online stores, thanks to the fintech’s international brand recognition. Storing funds in the wallet also allows consumers to access those funds from anywhere in the world, and bank accounts can be directly linked to PayPal to negate the need for consumers to keep topping up their accounts. With easy registration, PayPal’s services have long been favoured among countless consumers.
Revenue: US$29.77bn FY2023
Employees: 27,200
CEO: Alex Chriss
Founded: 1998
4. The Dwolla Balance
Dwolla offers digital wallet-like services for businesses via The Dwolla Balance. This functionality enables Dwolla’s customers to hold and move funds in and out of their balance as if it were a wallet. Money transferred using The Dwolla Balance is done so through the company’s financial institution partners, which include major US banks such as Bank of America. Users can send payments via automated clearing house (ACH), real-time payment (RTP) or to a debit card with push-to-debit. With Dwolla, businesses can transfer money and complete purchases more easily than ever before.
Revenue: US$10.2m FY2023
Employees: 75
CEO: Dave Glaser
Founded: 2008
3. Cash App
Initially designed to simplify peer-to-peer transactions, Cash App began as a straightforward solution with a singular focus. However, fast-forward to 2024, it has transformed into a multifaceted financial platform catering to nearly 50 million active users, providing various services, such as Afterpay (Clearpay). Its most notable transformation is, indeed, its digital wallet Cash App Pay. Launched by Block, Cash App facilitates swift and convenient contactless payments for Cash App users. This method enables customers to make payments to merchants effortlessly by scanning a QR code, whether at physical locations or online.
Revenue: US$10.6bn FY2022 *For designer: 2023 stats not yet released
Employees: 2,400
CEO: Jack Dorsey (CEO of Block)
Founded: 2013
2. Google Pay
Formerly Google Wallet and Android Pay, the Google Pay we know today was born in 2018. One of the most ubiquitous digital wallets on the market today, Google Pay offers an easy way to pay on various websites, within apps and also in stores using cards saved to customers’ Google accounts. Today, shoppers hoping to use Google Pay when they checkout need only to look for the relevant icon, with no internet connection required for in-person transactions. Google is vocal about its efforts to protect payment information using industry-leading security technologies, allowing customers to pay with peace of mind.
Revenue: US$307.39bn FY2023 Alphabet, Inc
Employees: 182,000 – Alphabet, Inc
CEO: Sundar Pichai (Alphabet, Inc)
Founded: 1998 (Google)
1. Apple Pay
Today, Apple Pay is the most dominant and widespread digital wallet on the market. It has become synonymous with contactless mobile payments and facilitates the leading amount of mobile payments in countless markets. has almost become a synonym for contactless payments, such is its dominance of these markets. The iPhone – to which Apple Pay is already built – remains the most popular smartphone on the market, and a growing proportion of users are activating the feature, making the most of its simple, tap-to-pay functionality. Apple Pay is a fast, easy alternative to cards and cash, and can be set up in a matter of seconds for use on iPhone, Apple Watch, Mac and iPad. Launched a decade ago, the payment method is these days accepted on millions of websites and apps.
Revenue: US$383.285bn FY2023
Employees: 161,000
CEO: Tim Cook
Founded: 1976
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