What is the Apple Pay Limit for Contactless Payments?

Apple Pay, Apple’s super simple and safe to use mobile payment service, has taken contactless spending one step further. The Apple Pay limit differs depending on where you’re shopping – but there is a popular shift towards relaxing these limits and accepting higher value transactions.

By importing your cards into a digital wallet, you no longer need to carry a physical wallet or waste time rummaging through a purse as the line grows behind you. Simply wave your iPhone or Apple Watch over the point of sale terminal and it’s job done. But there’s one downside to contactless payment. Often, there’s a limit on how much you can spend per transaction. Typically, this is £30 in the UK – with similar limits imposed elsewhere in Europe.

So, what is the Apple Pay limit? Well, it depends...

Banks vs Shops: What’s the Apple Pay Limit?

When it comes to banks and retailers, there seems to be a difference in opinion and approach to digital wallet contactless limits. Interestingly, many banks have opted not to set a limit on Apple Pay transactions.

However, most merchants have set up their terminals to only accept contactless payments of up to £30, no matter whether you’re swiping your card or your smartphone.

What is the Limit on Apple Pay in the UK?

Apple’s official line is that “you might not be able to use Apple Pay for purchases over 30 GBP” in the UK. But we expect this will change as attitudes shift towards using digital wallets in place of their real-world counterparts.

And the good news is that some major UK-based retailers are already coming around to the idea of relaxing the Apple Pay contactless limit. Tesco announced back in 2018 that it was scrapping the limit on Apple Pay transactions, while the likes of Aldi, IKEA, Waitrose and M&S already allow spends above the £30 contactless limit.

Which Banks and Cards Are Supported?

Apple Pay supports most of the world’s major debit and credit card providers, including MasterCard, Visa, and American Express. You do need to be a customer of a participating bank to set up Apple Pay on your device, but most major banks support Apple Pay. You can find out if your bank is supported by clicking one of the links below:

• Participating banks in Europe and the Middle East
• Participating banks in Canada, Latin America, and the United States
• Participating banks in Asia-Pacific

Are There Fees for Sending Money via Apple Pay?

If you choose to send money from a debit card via Apple Pay, you won’t have to pay any fees. However, if you do the same with your credit card, you’ll be charged an additional 3 percent of the total.

And there are limits when sending or receiving money via the Messages app:

• You can send or receive a minimum of £1 per message.
• You can send or receive a maximum of £10,000 per message.
• You can send or receive a maximum of £10,000 within a 7-day period.

You may also be limited by the available balance on your debit card, and by limits imposed by your bank or card supplier.

How to Use Apple Pay with Revolut

Revolut fully supports Apple Pay, and it’s simple to set up and use.

• To use Apple Pay with Revolut, open our app, tap the Cards tab, and tap “Add to Apple Wallet”.
• To add your card to your Apple Watch, open the Apple Watch app on your iPhone and select “Wallet & Apple Pay”, then tap “Add Credit or Debit Card”.

Give Apple Pay a shot. The spending possibilities are (almost) limitless!

The content of this page is for general information purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. If you have any questions about your personal circumstances please seek professional and independent advice. Revolut is not a financial adviser.