Google Pay in Switzerland FAQ

With Google Pay, you can easily pay using an Android smartphone. Since May 2019, the technology group Google has also been offering its mobile payment system for Swiss cards.

1. How do I use Google Pay to pay?

Google Pay uses NFC technology. As such, you can use it to pay at any merchant which accepts contactless payments.

To make a payment with Google Pay, simply unlock your phone and hold it close to the POS terminal to make the payment. As long as your phone is unlocked, no additional code or other authentication is necessary.

2. Which phones work with Google Pay?

Google Pay is compatible with numerous smartphones from many different phone makers including Samsung, Google Pixel, Motorola and Sony.

To make contactless payments with Google Pay, your phone must support NFC and HCE technology.

3. Do I have to confirm Google Pay payments?

Payments with Google Pay are authenticated indirectly. Payments at contactless POS terminals can only be made when your phone’s system is unlocked.

You have to enter a PIN code or perform a finger print or face scan to authenticate payments made with your phone.

4. What are the requirements for using Google Pay?

Google Pay is available for both Android and iOS (iPhone, iPad). However, contactless payments can currently only be made using Android, with the iOS version limited to transfers, reminders and managing rewards.

In addition to an Android phone which is NFC and HCE enabled, you also need a credit card or prepaid card from a Google Pay partner issuer. You can only use your payment card with Google Pay if the card’s issuer has enabled that card for Google Pay.

5. Which credit cards work with Google Pay?

You have to add a payment card to Google Pay in order to use it. Currently, most of the Swiss payment cards which work with Google Pay are credit cards which use the Visa or Mastercard payment networks. The Debit Mastercard and Visa Debit debit cards from some Swiss banks also work with Google Pay.

Google Pay can be used with credit cards and prepaid cards from these Swiss card issuers:

• Bonuscard
• Cembra Money Bank
• Cornèrcard
• Migros Bank (including the Cumulus Visa credit card from Migros)
• Raiffeisen
• Postfinance
• Swisscard
• Swiss Bankers
• Topcard (including the Coop Supercard credit cards)
• UBS
• Valiant
• Viseca (Viseca issues credit cards for Bank Cler, as well as many cantonal banks and regional banks)

Most Swiss Debit Mastercard and Visa Debit debit cards support Google Pay. Banks with Google Pay compatible debit cards include:

• Bank Cler
• Basler Kantonalbank
• Freiburger Kantonalbank
• Graubündner Kantonalbank
• Luzerner Kantonalbank
• Migros Bank
• Postfinance
• St. Galler Kantonalbank
• Thurgauer Kantonalbank
• UBS
• Valiant
• Zürcher Kantonalbank

Cards from the Swiss neobanks Alpian, Neon, Radicant, Yapeal, Yuh, and Zak all support Google Pay. Swiss Google Pay users also have the option of using debit cards from popular UK financial services Revolut and Wise.

6. Are there limitations on payments made with Google Pay?

No, Google Pay does not have any special limits on transactions and spending. Only the line of credit and/or transaction limits which apply to the credit card, prepaid card or debit card which you use with Google Pay apply.

7. Where can I pay with Google Pay?

The vast majority of Swiss merchants which accept cards now accept contactless payments. That means you can use Google Pay to pay for most in-store purchases in Switzerland.

Google Pay is also accepted for payments at some online stores.

8. What does it cost to use Google Pay?

You do not pay extra fees to use Google Pay. You only pay the fees charged by your card issuer – the same fees you pay when you use your card directly.

9. How much does it cost to use Google Pay outside of Switzerland?

When you use Google Pay to pay for purchases from foreign merchants, you pay the fees that apply to your linked credit card or debit card. Be aware that using Google Pay to pay in foreign countries can be expensive. Many card issuers charge high fees for transactions with foreign merchants. In addition to the published foreign transaction fee, card issuers also add markups to currency exchange rates.

You can find more information in the guide to using cards for payments and withdrawals while traveling.

10. Do I earn reward points, miles or cash back when I use Google Pay?

Yes. If your credit card or prepaid card rewards you with the same points, miles or cash back, you earn these rewards just as you do when you use the card directly.

11. Is my card issuer charge fees when I use Google Pay to pay?

No. Unlike Apple – which charges card issuers fees when cardholders pay with Apple Pay – Google does not charge your card issuer a fee when you use your card to pay via Google Pay.

12. Is Google Pay secure?

Google Pay is relatively secure. Your credit card information is not store on your phone, nor in an app. It also is not stored by the merchants from which you make purchases.

Google Pay uses a virtual credit card number which is different from your actual card number. This is known as tokenization. The token virtual credit card information is transacted, while your actual card information is never shared.

If your phone is lost or stolen, you can freeze your Google Pay account without having to freeze your actual credit card, debit card or prepaid card.

13. What are the advantages of Google Pay?

Google Pay can be used to pay at any merchant which accepts your payment card and contactless payments, anywhere in the world. It is somewhat more user friendly than Swiss mobile wallet Twint. 

14. What are the disadvantages of Google Pay?

A Google account is required to use Google Pay. Data protection experts criticize the lack of transparency regarding which transaction data is passed on to the technology company Google.

Google Pay can only be used to pay at POS terminals which accept contactless payments. Contactless terminals are widely used in Switzerland and in most of Europe, but in the United States and other countries outside Europe, there may be merchants which are not yet equipped with these. In some countries, contactless payments are not popular, and contactless POS terminals are not widely offered. This is a disadvantage over Samsung Pay, which can be used with almost all POS terminals thanks to its MST technology.

15. Google Pay vs. Twint

Twint can be used on all iPhones and all phones which run Android. However, Twint’s acceptance is almost entirely limited to Switzerland. Google Pay, on the other hand, can be used in many countries.

A disadvantage of Twint compared to Google Pay is that in order to make a payment using your Android device, you first have to open the Twint app – which adds another step to the process. Google Pay is simpler and more straightforward. To pay, you simply unlock your phone and tap the terminal with your phone.

An advantage of Twint is that it is a Swiss financial services provider which is governed by Swiss privacy laws. Google is criticized by data protectionists for its extensive data collection.

More on this topic:
Compare Swiss credit cards now
Apple Pay in Switzerland FAQ
Samsung Pay in Switzerland FAQ