A total of 10.8% of Australians are now using Apple Pay, Google Pay or Samsung Pay, up from 7.1% a year ago, a new report from market researchers Roy Morgan has found.

Most of the increase has been driven by wider adoption of Apple Pay, which is now used by 6.5% of Australians, compared with 4.1% a year ago.

Google Pay is now used by 4.1%, up from 3.6%, while Samsung Pay usage remains unchanged at 1%.

Young trend- and tech-focused Metrotechs are the most likely to use these services, with more than one in six (16.9%) in this category using Apple Pay, Google Pay or Samsung Pay.

‘Big spending’ consumers in the researchers’ Leading Lifestyles category follow, with a 12.2% adoption rate, along with ‘highly ambitious and culturally diverse up-and-comers’ in the Aspirationals category at 12.1%.

Take-up among other demographics has not been so rapid, however, with less than one in ten of those in the Doing Fine (9.8%), Hearth and Home (8.5%) and Fair Go (7.9%) categories yet to adopt.

“Covid-19 has put personal hygiene front and centre for Australians and this includes the way we pay for goods and services,” says Roy Morgan CEO Michele Levine.

“Many retailers are requesting contactless payment be used rather than handling cash to reduce the opportunities for passing on Covid-19,” she adds.

“However, even before Covid-19 came to Australia and changed the way we live, the use of contactless mobile payment services was rapidly increasing.”

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