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Apple Pay and Google Pay: a technical guide for merchants

How wallet tokens work, why they tend to approve better than typed card numbers, and the setup details that trip teams up.

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Apple Pay and Google Pay feel like payment methods to the customer, but under the hood they are card payments with a better envelope. Understanding that envelope helps you get the most out of them.

How wallet payments work

When a customer adds a card to a wallet, the card network issues a device token (often called a DPAN) instead of exposing the real card number. At checkout, the wallet sends that token plus a one-time cryptogram that proves the payment came from the customer’s device and was authenticated with Face ID, a fingerprint or a passcode.

The issuer sees a tokenised, device-authenticated payment, which is why wallet payments typically approve more often and carry less fraud than typed card details.

Apple Pay: details that matter

  • Domain verification. On the web, Apple Pay only appears on domains you have registered and verified. Every subdomain that shows the button needs it, including staging.
  • Merchant identity. Your payment provider usually handles the certificates; make sure the merchant name customers see matches your brand.
  • Show the button early. Wallet buttons convert best on product and cart pages, not only at the last step.

Google Pay: details that matter

  • Two auth methods. Google Pay can return either a tokenised card with a cryptogram (CRYPTOGRAM_3DS) or a plain card number (PAN_ONLY). Tokenised payments are device-authenticated; PAN_ONLY payments may still need 3-D Secure in SCA markets.
  • Allowed networks. Configure the card networks you actually accept, or customers will pick a card that fails.

SCA and liability

In the EEA and UK, a device-authenticated wallet payment generally satisfies strong customer authentication without a separate 3DS challenge. That removes a step from checkout. Rules can differ by issuer and transaction type, so let your provider handle the fallback when a step-up is needed.

Recurring payments

Wallet tokens can be used for subscriptions and merchant-initiated payments when you set them up correctly at the first payment. Flag the payment as the start of a recurring agreement so later charges are recognised.

Tips

  1. Put wallet buttons above the card form on mobile.
  2. Pre-fill shipping and contact details from the wallet sheet.
  3. Track wallet approval rates separately from typed cards; they should be higher.

Tuskpay supports Apple Pay and Google Pay alongside cards and local methods through one integration. Talk to us about adding them.