To use a virtual card in your mobile wallet (Apple Wallet or Google Pay), add it via your banking app's "Add to Wallet" button, or enter its details (number, expiry, CVV) manually. Once added, use it for contactless in-store payments by opening your wallet and tapping your phone, or select it for online checkouts.
Turn on a virtual card on the Google Wallet website
Activate your virtual debit and credit card in our app to pay online, in-store, in-app or with Scan to Pay. It's free and secure. Your virtual card is the ultimate in digital convenience, and it's waiting for you on our app. It's specially designed for safer online shopping and scan to pay purchases.
To use a virtual card in a store, first add it to your digital wallet (Apple Pay, Google Pay) by entering the details, then use your phone's tap-to-pay (NFC) at checkout; alternatively, some merchants allow manually typing the virtual card number and security code into the POS terminal. The most common method is linking to a digital wallet for secure tap-to-pay at modern terminals that support it, providing enhanced security over traditional cards.
Using Your Digital Wallet
Look for a symbol at the checkout counter that indicates your digital wallet is accepted. Then, open your digital wallet app, select the card you want to use, and hold your phone near the payment terminal. You'll either need to enter your PIN or use your fingerprint to confirm the payment.
A virtual credit card is a card number that's tied to your traditional credit card account but isn't the same as the number on your physical card. This helps protect you from credit card fraud.
Some merchants where the card is accepted include:
Yes, you can tap with a virtual card by adding it to a mobile wallet like Apple Pay or Google Pay, then using your phone to tap the contactless reader at checkout, which uses the card's details securely without needing the physical card. Alternatively, some virtual cards allow manual entry of the card number, expiration, and CVV directly at the terminal.
Virtual credit cards are generally for online use only. As an alternative, you may be able to use a card stored in a digital wallet for in-store transactions (note that not all establishments accept digital wallets). Like virtual credit cards, digital wallets use tokenization to protect your actual credit card number.
You can pay with Google Wallet wherever you find the contactless or Google Pay symbols on the payment terminal screen or cash register.
You can use digital wallets to make purchases online or to tap your device to pay in stores. Virtual card numbers are unique numbers that are different from your physical card number but are still linked to your credit card account. They're primarily for online use—to make online shopping safer and more convenient.
Yes, you can use a virtual card in stores, primarily by adding it to a digital wallet like Apple Pay or Google Pay for contactless tap-to-pay, or sometimes by manually entering the card number at the reader if the retailer supports it, though they're generally designed for online use and may not work for swiping or inserting like physical cards.
Virtual cards are issued for online payments only – you can't add them to digital wallets to pay for physical purchases at points of sale (POS). Digital cards are digital versions of physical cards, so you can add them to digital wallets for use at POS.
Virtual debit or credit payment cards are accessed only through mobile phones. They have all the properties of a physical card, including the 16-digit number, a CVC, expiry date, and a PIN code.
Virtual cards don't have a PIN code.
Yes, virtual cards are typically safer than physical cards because they create a buffer between merchants and your real credit card account information. This helps limit the impact of data breaches and protects against fraud and misuse.
The 2/3/4 rule is a guideline, primarily used by Bank of America, that limits how many new credit cards you can get: no more than 2 in 30 days, 3 in 12 months, and 4 in 24 months, helping to prevent over-application and manage hard inquiries on your credit report. While not universal, it's a useful benchmark for responsible card application, though other banks have different rules (like Chase's 5/24 rule).
How to use digital wallets
Yes, tapping your card is generally considered safer than inserting it because it uses tokenization and encrypted one-time codes, preventing your actual card details from being exposed to the terminal and reducing the risk of skimming, keeping your card in your possession at all times, and often requiring biometric authentication with mobile wallets, though both methods are secure due to EMV technology. While both tap and insert (chip) use strong EMV security, tapping avoids physical contact with potentially compromised readers and keeps your data encrypted for each transaction, making it a superior choice for security and hygiene.
Hold your Android device near the card reader and wait for the checkmark. Pay with your default card or select another. Google Pay will handle the rest.