Google Wallet comes to India on Android phones: All the details

Google Wallet

After ‘accidentally’ listing it on Play Store last month, Google has  finally launched Google Wallet in India. The Wallet app is different from Google Pay. Google Wallet is a secure, private digital wallet on Android that gives you quick access to loyalty cards, passes, tickets, keys, or IDs that you choose to store on it.

Do keep in mind that the Google Wallet app cannot be used to make any payments. For that, Google already has the popular Google Pay app.

According to a report by PTI, Ram Paptala, GM and India engineering lead, Android at Google, said “Google Pay is not going anywhere. It will remain our primary payments app. Google Wallet is specifically tailored for non-payment use cases.” Google Pay does have NFC technology which can be used to add any card but that doesn’t extend to the Wallet app in India.

Why do you need a Wallet app then?

For many other things, the Wallet app can be useful. For example, you can store your boarding passes for flights. It can be used to store event tickets/movie tickets. Furthermore, it can also be used to store digital car keys. Google has partnered with the likes of Air India, MakeMyTrip, Dominos, BMW, PVR-Inox among others.

Pixel device users can add their boarding pass to their Google Wallet by simply taking a screenshot and tapping "Add to Google Wallet."

Google is also partnering with Kochi Metro, Hyderabad Metro, VRL Travels, and Abhibus, so travellers can easily store their transit tickets.

Furthermore, users can  create new passes in Wallet from any image containing a barcode or QR code, like airline boarding passes, luggage tags, or parking receipts.

Will it work just on phones?

Yes, in India the Google Wallet will not be compatible with smartwatches or other wearables. It will work only on Android phones. In other countries, Google Wallet does work on wearables as well.

We checked on the Google Play Store whether the Wallet app is available to download but it hasn’t been listed as of now in India. However, we do expect it to roll out soon.

Also read: Google Pay joins Paytm, PhonePe to offer international UPI service