Does Walmart Take Apple Pay In 2022? [Detailed Answer]

With more than 4,700 stores in the U.S. and tempting low-grade pricing, Walmart has easily become the number one retail option for many consumers. You can just buy anything under one roof. But are you wondering what payments it uses, and in particular, does it use Apple Pay?

If you are an Apple fan like me, then you will be disappointed to know that Walmart currently doesn’t use Apple Pay for purchases. However, there are other ways to make payments. You can pay for the purchases by using its own mobile payment option, credit cards, debit cards, checks, cash, PayPal, and Walmart gift cards. 

While these payment options are sure to help you make a smooth check out, in case of emergency, you can use a clever hack to make payments via using Apple Pay with the help of another app. To know more about it, scroll down to figure out what it is.

Walmart is one of the largest multinational retail corporation chains in the United States, founded by Sam Walton in 1962. Its  headquarters are located in Bentonville, a city in Arkansas. Walmart currently operates around 10,500 stores and clubs under 46 banners in 24 countries, and it also has its eCommerce websites. 

This multinational retail brand sells everything you need and can imagine. It takes care of your food, clothing, electronics, drugs, health and beauty products, hardware, furniture, and much more.

Now let’s find out all the payment methods that Walmart uses, along with a hack that will also help you use Apple Pay to make payments at this store.

Does Walmart Accept Apple Pay?

In today’s fast-paced world, when everything has become digitally accessible, cashless transactions have become inevitable. So, you are at Walmart, standing in the billing queue only to find out that you have left your wallet at home or in the car. In such a case, going digital is the best option for you.

Thinking of Apple Pay to rescue you? Sadly, Walmart currently doesn’t use Apple Pay for making payments either online or in-store. It instead uses its own digital payment method called Walmart Pay and uses a QR code to make a purchase using connected funds.

The reason? In a report published by Business Insider, Walmart is said to have a contractual obligation to Merchant Customer Exchange (MCX) which uses MCX’s mobile payment system that helps them avoid the 2% credit card fee that they can be hit with if they start accepting Apple Pay as a payment option. Hence, it sticks to its own digital wallet method and discards the other contactless digital wallets, too, like Google Pay or Samsung Pay.

“The Walmart app was built to make shopping faster and easier,” said Neil Ashe, president of Walmart Global eCommerce, at the launch of its app. “Walmart Pay is the latest example—and a powerful addition—of how we are transforming the shopping experience by seamlessly connecting online, mobile, and stores for the 140 million customers who shop with us weekly.”

Another reason that Walmart executives shared while discarding Apple Pay, Samsung Pay, and Google Pay as payment options was that they found different constraints while working only on certain devices or payment types after evaluating other mobile options. For example, Apple Pay requires iPhones, and Google’s own tap-and-pay services, Android Pay, and Samsung’s Samsung Pay require Android phones.

So, let’s find out what payment options really work at Walmart.

Why Doesn’t Walmart Accept Apple Pay?

Considering the popularity of Apple products such as iPhones and its watches, you may find it surprising that Walmart has shunned these options as it is the best option for Apple owners, but there are a few reasons for it.

1. Processing Fees

Although Apple claims it doesn’t charge any fee to anyone to use its technology, this claim doesn’t stand true. It does ask the card issuer to make certain charges on their behalf.  This means if Walmart uses Apple Pay as an payment option, they would have to face additional processing fees based on the card that’s used through the Apple Pay digital wallet.

The processing fees could also be high, depending on the card, which would, in turn, cut into Walmart’s profits. Hence, Walmart saves all that money on each sale. 

2. Walmart Pay

By launching Walmart pay, they have limited their competition by making it impossible to use any other digital payment methods. However, their own digital wallet connects to all your cards so that you can shop easily.

How To Pay At Walmart Using Walmart Pay?

If you find contactless and cashless payment methods the best way to buy goods, then Walmart comes with its Walmart Pay app that makes your life easy, and it can also be downloaded on your Apple iPhone. Here’s how you use its app to make payments: 

1. When the time comes to make your payments, click on the Walmart Pay app and navigate to the Services tab in the navbar.
2. Tap on Walmart Pay which will generate a QR code.
3. At the checkout lane, you can scan the code to transfer funds from your account to the store.
4. Once the funds are transferred from your account to the store, the transaction will be complete.

Another way of making payments at Walmart is through money orders.

What Is a Walmart Money Order?

A Walmart money order is a prepaid check that can be used to make payments. You can purchase a money order by paying cash of the equivalent amount upfront at Walmart’s in-store Money Center.

To generate your money order, you’ll need a valid government-issued photo ID if you’re making purchases over $1000.

What is the Walmart Money Order Limit?

The Walmart daily money order limit is $3,000, which can be bought individually at Walmart for an amount up to $1,000 each. That means you will be required to buy three money orders worth $1,000 each to reach the daily limit.

How To Use a Walmart Money Order?

A Walmart money order can be used in exactly the same way as a check. When you go to purchase the money order from Walmart, you will be required to complete a form that asks you to fill in your details, along with the details of the receiver. After that, it can simply be used by the person it’s been bought for by sending it to them in the mail or delivering it by hand. 

Or, if you are a recipient of a money order, you can simply use it at the store.

How To Fill Out Walmart Money Order?

Here are the steps to fill out a Walmart money order in-store:

1. Enter the recipient’s name in “PAY TO THE ORDER OF“.
2. Enter your name and signature under “PURCHASER, SIGNER FOR DRAWER“.
3. Enter your address (not the recipient’s) under the “ADDRESS“.
4. Remove the detachable stub which serves as the receipt for your money order.

Can You Cash The Money Order?

Yes, you can cash your money order at your local Walmart store if it has been issued by them. But to cash your money orders, you will have to pay a fee upto $3 for amounts up to $1000 and $6 for anything above $1000. 

You’ll also need to make sure that you bring your ID that matches the details in the recipient form. That means you can’t send anyone else on your behalf to cash out for you.

Here, Walmart offers you two options for cashing out. You can either claim the amount in cash, or you can ask the amount to be loaded onto a Walmart MoneyCard. If you don’t have a Walmart MoneyCard, you’ll need to pay $3 dollars to buy the card.

Other Payment Methods Acceptable At Walmart

If digital payments don’t appeal to you or if they don’t work at the time of your transaction, you can resort to other payment methods. Apart from using the Walmart Pay app and Walmart money orders, you can also make your payments using the methods given below.

1. EBT
2. Credit Cards- Visa, MasterCard, Discover, American Express
3. Debit Cards
4. Walmart Gift Cards
5. Capital One Walmart Credit Cards
6. Affirm

While you have quite a few payment options out there to make purchases at Walmart but still want to use Apple Pay as the payment method, we have a clever hack for you. There are companies out there that function as middlemen between retailers who avoid using Apple Pay. You can simply use an additional app called Ibotta, which helps you make payments using Apple Pay.

How Does Ibotta App Help You Pay With Apple Pay At Walmart?

Apple Pay works exceptionally well with the Ibotta app that allows you to set it as the app’s default payment method for when you’re shopping at Walmart.

You can use the Ibotta app to make your purchase at Walmart once you have Apple Pay set as the default.

To know how this hack works at Walmart, read on further:

1. Open the Ibotta app at check out and enter your amount on the Walmart section of the Ibotta app.
2. Select pay using Apple Pay, and a barcode will appear that you can show to the cashier to scan.
3. By using this app, you buy an “instant” Walmart gift card using Apple Pay.
4. So you link your Apple Card to Apple Pay and use Ibotta to pay at Walmart.

Will Walmart accept Apple Pay any time soon?

In the foreseeable future, it’s unlikely that Walmart will accept payments from Apple Pay. According to a MacRumors interview, Erin Hulliberger, a Walmart spokesperson, said, “Walmart Pay is the exclusive form of mobile payment accepted at Walmart, and [they] have no plans for that to change” any time soon.

Conclusion

While we hope that Walmart will start accepting Apple Pay in the near future, Walmart Pay is the most convenient way to pay at any Walmart store. However, you can always resort to other options of payment mentioned above.

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