Mobile wallets account for almost two thirds of contactless payments

Almost 840m mobile wallet and contactless card payments made on Irish cards in first six months of 2026 

There were 153 contactless payments per person in Ireland on Irish cards in the first half of 2026, up from 143 in H1 2025

Over 1.2bn payments worth €50bn were made on Irish cards — including both physical and digital — in the first six months of the year, according to the Banking and Payments Federation. 

Almost 840m mobile wallet and contactless card payments were made during the period, valued at almost €16bn. The number and value of contactless payments increased by 7.3% and 12.9%, respectively, between H1 2025 and H1 2026.