PayPal Tackles In-Store Payments With ‘PayPal Everywhere’

PayPal is integrating its debit card with Apple Wallet to enter the in-store payment arena.

The company announced its omnichannel “PayPal Everywhere” solution Thursday (Sept. 5), and with it an expansion of its rewards program, letting users pick a monthly category of spending, such as groceries or clothing, to receive 5% cash back.

“E-commerce has obviously been one of the fastest growing areas where people are spending their dollars … but it’s not everything,” PayPal President and CEO Alex Chriss said in a Reuters report. “Now consumers can use PayPal for every purchase, everywhere, every time.”

In addition to expanded rewards, PayPal has introduced a feature called auto-reload that lets users set a balance threshold that automatically tops up if it drops below the customer’s chosen amount.

Customers can also now add their PayPal Debit Card to Apple Wallet to use it with Apple Pay, giving them more ways to pay, the company added.

“We’re excited to work with PayPal to bring Apple Pay to PayPal Debit Card cardholders and help deliver a seamless shopping experience to even more users,” said Eddy Cue, senior vice president of services at Apple.

“Whether in-store, online or in-apps, PayPal debit card cardholders will be able to enjoy the convenience and security that Apple Pay brings to their everyday lives.”

PayPal’s new effort comes as digital wallets continue to gain in popularity, with this payment method expected to overtake debit cards in terms of North American point of sale (POS) transaction value by 2027.

A report by Worldpay found that digital wallet use will more than double from 15% to 31% of POS transaction value by 2027. The same report found that debit card use is projected to fall from 28% to 23% during the same period.

“But this trend is not limited to North America,” PYMNTS wrote recently. “Digital wallets are expected to account for nearly half of global POS transaction value by 2027. This share was 30% in 2023.”

In other digital wallet news, PYMNTS wrote Thursday about the embrace of the technology by people in Brazil, where nearly half of all consumers use digital wallets to pay bills.

“Surprisingly, it is the country’s baby boomers and seniors who are the most active digital wallet users when paying bills — and for online shopping,” that report said. “In fact, 31% of baby boomers in Brazil paid for an online purchase using one of these wallets. In contrast just 20% of Generation Z and 25% of millennial consumers in Brazil did the same.”