Apple originally announced the Apple Pay Cash feature at the Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) in June 2017 and it was rolled out with the iOS 11.2 update at the beginning of this month. This is a tutorial for people that want to learn how Apple Pay Cash works.
When you set up Apple Pay Cash, you will be asked to enter a debit card or select the one you have saved in the Apple Wallet app already. The reason why Apple asks you to use a debit card is so you can avoid having to pay credit card fees.
To add your debit card to Apple Pay Cash, you will need to enter the information in the Apple Wallet app. If your device is running on iOS 11.2, then you should see a card in the Apple Wallet app called Apple Pay Cash. Once you tap on that card, you will be asked to enter the debit card information -- which is done by hovering the camera above it or by manually typing it in.
If there is already a debit card saved in Apple Wallet, then your device will suggest using that account for Apple Pay Cash as the default. You can also set up Apple Pay Cash by going to the Settings app > Wallet & Apple Pay > Apple Pay Cash. You might have to add your first name, last name, date of birth and last 4 digits of your social security number when you add an Apple Pay Cash card.
Here is a video that Apple put together explaining how Apple Pay Cash works:
After a debit card has been added to Apple Pay Cash, then you can send money via text message through iMessage. The Apple Pay Cash icon will appear when you open the Messages app, tap on the compose bar and then tap on the App Store icon next to the compose bar. The sender and recipient both will need to have Apple Pay Cash to send money back and forth.
Once the money is sent, the Messages app will show the status as "Delivered" similarly as the confirmation of regular text messages. Tapping on the Apple Pay Cash message shows the transaction history. And you can also request a statement with a log of all your Apple Pay Cash transactions.
Apple verifies the identity of the sender with Touch ID or Face ID. If a recipient has not enabled the Apple Pay Cash feature, then an error message will appear saying "(Contact) cannot receive payments sent with Apple Pay at this time."
Once money is received in your Apple Wallet, you can use it for Apple Pay purchases in stores, apps and on the web. Or you can transfer Apple Pay Cash to your bank account. Apple Pay Cash transactions are processed by Green Dot and Discover Network.
Apple Pay Cash works on iPhones, iPads and Apple Watch devices (running on watchOS 4.2). On the Apple Watch, Apple Pay Cash is a new quick action under Scribble that appears when you reply to an iMessage. But it does not work on the Mac since the Messages app for Mac does not have the iMessage App Store integrated as of yet.
There is a way to remove the Apple Pay Cash shortcut from the Messages app on iPhones and iPads. You can do so by going to the App Store icon next to the compose bar and scrolling right. At the end of all the iMessage app icons, there is a button that says “More.” When you tap on “Edit” at the top right, you can remove the Apple Pay Cash feature from your “Favorites.” Once you remove it from your Favorites, then it will be moved down to the “More Apps” section. And tapping on the green plus button will add it back to your favorites again.
Another way to send money with Apple Pay Cash is with the Siri digital assistant. After you activate Siri, you can say “Hey Siri, send $25 to John.” Siri will respond to the command and confirm whether the details are correct. And you can request cash from a friend with Siri.
Interestingly, Apple released iOS 11.2 at about 4:30AM ET on Saturday December 2nd and Apple Pay Cash was not available right away. The reason why Apple rushed out the iOS 11.2 update late on the weekend appears to be because it needed to address a date bug that was causing some iPhones with apps that have local notifications to crash. It became known as the “December 2nd date bug.” And then Apple Pay Cash started being rolled out over-the-air on Monday December 4th. As of right now, Apple Pay Cash is limited to iOS users in the United States.
What are your thoughts about Apple Pay Cash? Do you plan to use this feature often? Please leave a comment!
READ MORE:
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- Apple iOS 11 Announcement: What Are The New Features?
- 26 Insanely Useful iPhone Tips That You May Not Know About
