A study prepared by Capterra points to Mexico as the country with the highest digital wallet adoption. International study: Use and trends of digital wallets 2022 compared the use, advantages and disadvantages of digital wallets in six countries, including Mexico.

Capterra, a firm that helps companies find the right software for their needs, ensures that 85% of international digital wallet users use it to pay.

68% of users of this technology internationally stated that they started using it less than 2 years ago. Additionally, 78% of this same group, international digital wallet users, indicated a high level of satisfaction with the experience of using this technology.

For this study, Capterra launched an online survey in Australia, France, Germany, Mexico, Spain and the United Kingdom during October 2022. 6,034 participants were selected for this survey based on the following criteria: residents of one of the countries mentioned above, over 18 years of age and smartphone users.

The use of digital wallets internationally is not the same in the countries studied. On average, 50% of consumers in the six countries say they use a digital wallet and 25% do not use one but are interested in starting one.

Mexico is the country with the highest digital wallet adoption with 70% of users using the technology, followed by the UK with 57% and Spain with 56%. On the other hand, only 30% of smartphone users in France use a digital wallet, being the country in the study with the lowest adoption.

The country with the highest percentage of digital wallet users paying with them is Mexico (91%), followed by Spain (89%) and France (89%). Businesses wishing to join this trend should be prepared to accept this form of payment and have a point of sale terminal that is compatible with contactless payments.

The second use of digital wallets is to store transportation tickets such as planes, trains or buses with an international average of 35% of digital wallet users. This feature has the most user adoption in the UK and Australia (both at 48%), followed by Germany (39%). Mexico is last in this usage with only 16% usage.

The third most common use of digital wallets internationally is to store tickets for events such as concerts or visits to museums with an international average of 29% using this technology.

Mexico leads in the number of users using digital wallets and using them as a form of payment, but the percentage of using other functions is lower compared to other countries surveyed. On the other hand, countries such as Australia or the UK use more digital wallet functions, such as transportation tickets or event tickets.

Advantages and disadvantages

There are 3 main advantages pointed out by international digital wallet users.

• Average 77% indicating more comfortable.
• On average 46% said they don’t need to carry their traditional wallet with them at the risk of losing it.
• An average of 34% say it’s easy to track their usage.

The three main disadvantages of using a digital wallet according to international users are:

• On average 46% indicated a greater dependence on smartphones.
• An average of 41% confirmed that if their phone is lost or stolen, a lot of sensitive information is at risk.
• An average of 38% indicates if the smartphone runs out of battery, payment methods cannot be accessed.

Of the international segment that uses digital wallets as a means of payment, 65% indicated that they feel more in control of their identity and the rest confirmed that they feel less in control of this technology as their data is shared between companies.

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