What is a digital wallet pass?
A digital wallet pass is a loyalty card that lives in the wallet app built into the phone. On iPhone that is Apple Wallet. On Android it is Google Wallet. The pass carries the member number as a barcode. Some passes also use NFC, so the member taps the phone at the till.
An Apple Wallet loyalty card uses the store card format. Apple says a store card can display a balance or point accumulation. A Google Wallet loyalty pass is built from two parts. The class is a shared template for the whole program, and each member gets an object with their own details.
The pass is a window onto the program. The ledger, the rules and the member record stay in the loyalty platform. The pass shows whatever the platform last sent it.
How do Apple Wallet and Google Wallet loyalty passes compare?
Both wallets show a branded card with a barcode. The rules behind each one differ, and those rules shape what a program can do with the pass.
| Rule | Apple Wallet | Google Wallet |
|---|---|---|
| Loyalty format | Store card | A shared class plus one object per member |
| How members add it | A button in an app, a web download or an email | A button or link on Android, the web, email or SMS |
| Sign-up inside the wallet | A rewards pass that opens a sign-up form | Program search in Wallet, then the brand's join page |
| How updates reach the pass | The issuer pushes, the phone downloads the new pass | The issuer edits the object or the class |
| Alerts on change | A change message per field, for time-critical news | Up to 3 a day per pass, on tier and points fields |
| Prompts near a store | Up to 10 locations and 10 beacon IDs | Up to 10 locations per class and 10 per object |
| At the till | Barcode, or NFC with an Apple entitlement | Barcode, rotating barcode, or NFC through Smart Tap |
| Add and remove signals | The phone tells the issuer when it starts and stops taking updates | Save and delete callbacks, sent best effort |
How does a wallet pass stay up to date?
On iPhone, Apple's servers sit between the phone and the issuer's server. When a member adds a pass, the phone registers the pass with the issuer's server and hands over a push token. When the balance changes, the server sends a push. The phone asks which passes changed, then downloads the new version.
On Android, the issuer edits the pass through the Google Wallet API. A change to one member's object reaches that member. A change to the class affects all users who hold a pass built from it.
Either way, a pass is only as fresh as the feed behind it. The loyalty platform has to send an update each time a balance or a tier changes.
What are the rules for wallet pass alerts?
Both wallets limit alerts. On iPhone, a field can carry a change message that pops up when its value changes. Apple's design guidelines keep change messages for time-critical news. They also say to never use a change message for marketing.
Google sets hard limits. An issuer can send a maximum of 3 messages that trigger a push notification to a pass in 24 hours. Updates that alert the member carry the same cap of 3 in 24 hours. They fire only on a short list of fields, such as the tier and the points balance. Members must have Wallet alerts turned on, and Google controls the text on the lock screen.
Location prompts work the same way. Apple takes up to 10 locations per pass, and Google takes 10 per class plus 10 per object. On Android, Google decides how close a member has to be before the alert shows. Treat the pass as a quiet channel, and send offers and campaigns through the app or email.
What can a wallet pass do, and what needs an app?
A pass does a few jobs well. It identifies the member at checkout with no login. It shows the balance and the tier at a glance. It comes up near a store, and it links to the app. On iPhone, a link on the back of the pass launches the associated app, or opens the App Store if the app is missing.
The layout is fixed. An Apple store card shows up to four secondary and auxiliary fields on one row. On Apple Watch, the pass drops the strip image and the back of the card. A rewards catalog or a redemption flow will not fit. Members who want to browse and redeem still need the app or the website.
How does a member enroll through a wallet pass?
There are three ways in.
- Join, then add. The member signs up on the web or in the app, then taps the Add to Apple Wallet or Add to Google Wallet button. Apple also lets a pass download from a web page or arrive in an email.
- Join inside Google Wallet. Members search for the loyalty program in Google Wallet and join on the brand's own mobile page. Google requires a mobile-friendly sign-up that fits on one page and runs over HTTPS. The page has to stay up at least 99.9% of the time. Once the account exists, the page sends the pass straight back to Wallet.
- Join inside Apple Wallet. A rewards pass opens a sign-up form inside Wallet. Wallet sends the member's details to the issuer, which returns a personalized pass. Apple's developer guide limits this flow to NFC-enabled reward cards.
Google adds an upgrade path. A card that a member types in by hand is a static pass. The brand cannot see it or update it. Once the join flow is live, the brand can ask Google to upgrade users from static passes to its own live pass. Track each route on its own, so the enrollment rate shows which one brings members in.
How do you measure a wallet pass program?
Start with adds and removals. Google can call the issuer's server when a pass is created or deleted. Google sends these calls on a best-effort basis, and some arrive twice, so remove duplicates with the nonce in each message.
On iPhone, the phone registers each pass that takes updates when the member adds it. An unregister call stops updates to that device. Apple's guide says the device ID exists to allow efficient communication with the issuer's server. It was never meant as a list of installed passes, so treat the Apple count as an estimate.
Next, track use at the till. Give the wallet pass its own barcode value or prefix. Then the POS integration logs which purchases came from a pass.
Last, test for lift. Members choose to add a pass, so pass holders differ from other members before the pass does anything. Hold back a random group from the wallet invite and compare like with like, as in control group testing.
How long does a bulk pass update take?
For illustration, a program has 2 million members, and 600,000 of them hold a Google Wallet pass. On the first of the month, points expire and 240,000 of those balances change. Google's FAQ puts the rate limit at 20 requests per second. Sent one pass at a time, the run takes 12,000 seconds. That is 3 hours and 20 minutes.
Two choices shape that run. If each update alerts the member, it uses one of the 3 alerts that pass gets that day. A message meant for every member belongs in the class instead. One change there reaches all 600,000 passes.
How GRAVTY handles digital wallet passes
GRAVTY is Loyalty Juggernaut's loyalty platform. Its integration catalog includes an Apple Wallet connector that handles pass issuance and updates. Members add their loyalty card to Wallet. Tier and program details on the pass stay current as their status changes. The scope of each connector is set per deployment. GRAVTY has 150+ system integrations, and it runs 500M+ members in production.
Frequently asked questions
Do members need the brand's app to use a wallet loyalty pass?
A member can add and use a wallet pass without the brand's app. Apple passes install from a web page or an email. Google passes install from any link, including one sent by email or SMS. The app helps, because it can offer the pass right after sign-up.
Can a wallet pass show a live points balance?
Yes, a wallet pass shows the latest balance once the issuer's server sends an update. The loyalty platform has to trigger that update after each earn or redemption. If it does not, the pass keeps the last balance it received.
Can members redeem points from a wallet pass?
Members redeem by scanning the pass at checkout, and the loyalty platform posts the redemption. The pass only identifies the member. Choosing a reward happens at the till or in the app.
Does Apple Wallet support NFC loyalty passes?
Yes, Apple Wallet supports NFC loyalty passes once Apple grants the issuer a special entitlement. The phone sends a payload of up to 64 bytes to an Apple Pay terminal. Barcode passes need no entitlement.
What happens when a member deletes a wallet pass?
Deleting the pass removes the card from the phone, and the membership stays intact. In Google Wallet, the pass is unlinked from the member's account and kept, so the same button adds it back. Apple advises keeping an Add to Apple Wallet button in the app for members who removed the pass.
Can one pass work in both Apple Wallet and Google Wallet?
Each wallet needs its own pass, built to its own format. Apple uses a signed pass file with a type ID and a serial number. Google uses a class and an object created through its API. One member record in the loyalty platform can feed both.