Mobile Wallets have swiftly taken over as the most preferred mode of payment for Filipinos and people all over the world, particularly during the past year with the rise of the COVID-19 cases and the need for sanitation and distancing. But for some people, opting for digital payment is still a difficult concept to grasp, especially if you come from using mostly cash payments for your expenses.
To help with your burning questions, we present to you everything you need to know about the Mobile Wallets available in the Philippines.
Table of Contents
What are Mobile Wallets?
Before we get into it, you might be asking what exactly these Mobile Wallets are, and how they are different from the payment methods you’ve used before. A mobile wallet is defined as a form of payment program that lets individuals send or receive money utilizing their portable smartphones. It’s best known for its portability, accessibility, and overall convenience.
Why should you use Mobile Wallets?
As was mentioned before, benefits which come from Mobile Wallets come in the form of its portability, accessibility, and convenience. With Mobile Wallets, you won’t need to bring cash with you all the time with many establishments opting for a digital mode of payment, you also can keep track of your expenses more efficiently and be able to keep their receipts without the need of a printed one which is often hard to keep track of, furthermore mobile wallets is a safer way of paying (considering the virus and the pandemic) as compared to cash payments where you have to physically touch the object. In addition, there are many discounts and cashback offers if you pay through your e-wallets which is a huge deal if you’re trying to save up.
Which Mobile Wallets in the Philippines should you use?
Here are the varying e-wallet services available in the country and how each of them differ:
1. PayMaya
PayMaya is one the most popular e-wallets available in the Philippines. It offers storage for your money and receives your payments. In the app itself, one can also pay bills or transfer your funds to your bank account. One of the main strong suits of paymaya is its quick scan of the QR code through the app, no more using outside sources to cash in for your payments! Additionally, you can get a virtual Mastercard through Paymaya, which you can use for online shopping. There are also many cashback and rebate promos when you pay through the app. Keep note though that there may be a convenience fee added to cash in transactions, and you will need to maintain at least 100 php in your account to keep your virtual card.
2. DCPay Philippines (Coins.ph)
Coins.ph is a Philippine-based company formed in 2014, it is a mobile wallet that you can use even without a credit card or even a bank account. It is known as being one of the first to offer a digital coin trading platform for Filipinos, that and much more! You can store your money and pay your bills as well, and even buy Bitcoin and the like, and even sell them. The only drawback is when exchanging cryptocurrency into peso, it may be different to the rates internationally because of the fixed rate within the app, and extra charges may apply as well.
3. GCash
A digital wallet owned by Globe Telecommunications and one of the most commonly used finance apps in the country. Gcash is convenient and very fast, it lets you shop without a credit card, it offers credit, lets you invest money for as low as P50 and many more! Gcash’s setback comes from its cash in and cash out fees in some establishments which can often be unreasonable.
4. PayPal
Paypal is for those who are opting for international transactions, for it is one of the most used by foreign clients. It is the first to support online money transfers, and is one of the most secure in the game. But, users often complain about its customer service and how they may be lacking in that area.
5. GPay Network (PH), Inc. (GrabPay)
Grab, one of Southeast Asia’s top mobile technological companies, has extended their transportation company to their very own payment method. They are fairly new to the industry that is why its main drawback is how you can only send money through other grabpay accounts and only limited places are offered the services.
6. Moneygment
Allowing you to manage your budget, compute, and pay your taxes and expenses on top of its ability to send money is what Moneygment does best. It is focused on freelancing Filipinos, and aims to make life easier for them. It is very convenient and hassle-free, especially for OFWs and those without bank accounts. However, there are many reports regarding delays and app fees which may be discouraging to some.
7. BanKo
BanKo, owned by BPI and launched in 2009, lets you pay your bills, remit money internationally, send money, buy loads, and get loans for small businesses in NegosyoKo, all from your smartphone. Only problem reported with the app comes from its frequent crashing and registration process.
8. Dragonpay
Dragonpay is geared towards merchants who sell items online, this app is where they receive payments from their customers. One problem with Dragonpay is that it’s credit cannot be used at most shops and their technical support is often lacking.
9. ML Wallet
M Lhuiller’s mobile wallet application can be used for sending money, paying bills, and buying loads. Although problems occur because of the service’s non fixed fees which may be confusing to some.
10. CLiQQ
7-Eleven’s application, CLIQQ, allows users a convenient way of managing points, paying bills, and you get free wifi if you use their app and get points. The app is mostly geared towards avid 7-Eleven customers, and benefits may be lacking if you aren’t one of those people or if the system within the 7-Eleven in your area is offline.
11. ShopeePay
ShopeePay is sn e-wallet officially for Shopee and licensed by Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas. It strives to make online shopping faster and more convenient for its customers without having to use cards or COD. Refunds will now go directly to ShopeePay instead of Shopee Wallet. Since it is only used within the shopping app, it is very limited and can only be used for buying stuff within shopee.
12. Lazada Wallet
Much like how ShopeePay is used for Shopee, the Lazada Wallet is used to pay for shopping and goods on Lazada. They provide discounts and cashback promos to their users within the app, and provide cashless options for their users. They also are very limited and cannot be connected to other bank accounts.
13. Payoneer
Although Payoneer offers the same services as the other mobile wallets, it does things differently by having its customers apply for a Payoneer card first before being able to withdraw money out from their account. This is mainly done for security but can prove to be a hassle to some.
14. Denarii Cash
Geared more towards OFWs in the Middle East, Denarii allows them to send money to the Philippines without the added transaction fees. It also has the feature of directly paying the bills and expenses of their families in the country while being anywhere in the world, a huge benefit for the OFWs. But before availing of these services, an issue of an extensive application process is needed which may take a long time for some people.
15. Diskartech (RCBC)
Marketed as the first Taglish app and made by RCBC, Diskartech aims to assist its customers in reliable and convenient banking. They offer money transfers, loans, sending money, and much more! Although since they are a fairly new to the industry, technical problems and customer service are still the biggest reported problem with the app.
16. Trust Wallet
Trust Wallet follows the footsteps of coins.ph and lets its users access and have transactions pertaining to cryptocurrencies. The app is easy to navigate and hassle free even if you are new to the whole crypto business. Although there are still problems with customer service, it is sure worth checking out if you’re looking for an app to manage your crypto transactions!
