The 11th annual Global Payments Report was just released, which gives an inside look into the evolving global payments landscape. The report revealed that while Americans are still primarily card users, the adoption of digital wallets is rising, and in many parts of the world, they’ve already surpassed other payment methods, both online and in-store.
Growth of Digital Wallets
Recently, WorldPay (which is now owned by Global Payments) released the 11th annual Global Payments Report, which serves as a guide to the always-evolving payments landscape. Specifically, it provides insights about how both businesses and consumers transact across more than 40 global markets.
One of the most important insights that the report details is that the use of digital wallets is growing. Over the next five years (from 2025 to 2030), digital wallet spending is forecasted to grow 10% annually across online and in-store.
Even in 2025, before this massive projected growth, digital wallets already accounted for 40% of all U.S. online spending and 17% of in-store spending.
By 2030, the report projects that $4.1 trillion of U.S. spending will take place through a digital wallet, which is a huge 64% increase from 2025.
Gen Z Leading the Charge
While people of all ages use digital wallets for their purchases, younger generations like Gen Z are driving the shift to these types of payments. This makes sense, as younger generations like Gen Z are also far and away the most likely to make online purchases on their mobile devices.
According to the report, digital wallets are already the most-used online payment method for 39% of people between 18 and 24 years old, and 41% of people between 25 and 34 years old.
But while younger generations certainly use these methods more, it’s also not unheard of for older generations to use them, as well. In fact, 33% of people between the ages of 34 and 44 use digital wallets as their most frequent payment method. Finally, 9% of respondents older than 65 say that digital wallets are their preferred choice when shopping online.
Cards Still Leading the Way
However, despite the growing adoption of digital wallets, they still fall behind cards in the American market. Direct card use accounts for 49% of all online spending and 71% of in-store spending in the USA in 2025.
While debit cards are used, credit cards are certainly more popular. In fact, 2025 saw Americans spend twice as much online with credit cards as they did with debit cards, and even in-store, credit card spending was 43% higher than debit card spending.
Even though cards aren’t going anywhere, the study did find that they may lose some of their market dominance in the USA. Forecasts show that by 2030, the direct use of cards for online shopping may fall from 49% to 43%, and fall from 71% to 64% for in-store shopping.
Difference Between US and Global Payment Methods
However, while the American market still favors cards over digital wallets, that isn’t the case everywhere. In many parts of the world, digital wallets have already surpassed cards and other payment methods.
For example, in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region, digital wallets accounted for 77% of online spending and 62% of in-store spending in 2025. Also, globally, 56% of online spending is through digital wallets, as well as 33% of in-store spending.
So while digital wallets still have some room to grow in the USA, they’ve already taken the top spot in some regions.
As the insights from this research show, alternative payment methods like digital wallets are here to stay, and ecommerce brands need to offer support for them going forward. This is especially true if you operate in markets where traditional payment methods like cards aren’t as popular, such as in APAC.
But even in the USA and other Western markets, digital and mobile payments are on the rise, and the last thing you want to do is drive people away when you don’t support their preferred payment methods.
