How did mobile payments do on Black Friday?
To look at the Top 20 free financial apps for the two dominant smartphone platforms, you’d think everyone was using mobile payments to do their holiday shopping. On Google Play, the Android Pay app continued its steady climb up the rankings to claim the No. 3 spot. In early November it stood at No. 10.
Apple Pay is not “app-based” — though at least one app exists to help you find Apple Pay-friendly locations. Infoscout reported 2.7% of iPhone users paid with Apple Pay on Black Friday.
Capital One Wallet, a separate app from the credit card and banking app, also entered the Top 20 for both iOS and Android.
Peer-to-peer payment apps remain popular, with PayPal, Venmo, and Square Cash essentially holding their positions in the Top 20. (Square Cash sent out a notification today that credit cards can be used to send money as well.) Xoom Money Transfer, a remittance service recently bought by PayPal, stands at No. 18 in the Android rankings, meaning three of the Top 20 finance apps for Android — Venmo is the third — are owned by PayPal. Wow.
One surprise was the app U by BB&T, which catapulted into the Top 20 with its mid-November update to version 1.4. The new app brings cashback rewards into the mix.
The democratization of investing was also evident in the rankings. Stash Invest — tagline: “Got $5? Now you can invest!” — a startup that got some high-powered media coverage upon its launch in October, entered the iOS rankings at No. 18, a spot ahead of competitor Acorns. Stash Invest has not yet launched on the Android platform, where Acorns owns the No. 14 spot.
The rankings, retrieved from App Annie at around 9 AM Eastern today, appear below.
iOS | Google Play |
1. Chase Mobile | 1. Credit Karma |
2. Bank of America Mobile | 2. Chase Mobile |
3. PayPal | 3. Android Pay |
4. Credit Karma | 4. Bank of America Mobile |
5. Wells Fargo Mobile | 5. Wells Fargo Mobile |
6. Capital One Mobile | 6. PayPal |
7. Venmo | 7. Capital One Mobile |
8. U by BB&T | 8. U by BB&T |
9. Square Cash | 9. Google Wallet |
10. Mint | 10. Citi Mobile |
11. Amex Mobile | 11. GEICO Mobile |
12. Discover Mobile | 12. Venmo |
13. Citi Mobile | 13. Square Cash |
14. GEICO Mobile | 14. Acorns |
15. USAA Mobile | 15. Discover Mobile |
16. Western Union Money Transfer | 16. Amex Mobile |
17. Capital One Wallet | 17. Western Union Money Transfer |
18. Stash Invest | 18. Xoom Money Transfer |
19. Acorns | 19. Money Network |
20. US Bank Mobile | 20. Progressive |