Apple Pay, the contactless payment system introduced by Apple in 2014, has revolutionized the way we shop. With a simple tap of your iPhone or Apple Watch at the checkout counter, you can pay for your purchase quickly, easily, and securely without swiping a credit card or fumbling with cash. It‘s no wonder that Apple Pay has seen explosive growth in recent years.
Content Navigation show
However, not every retailer has chosen to get on board the Apple Pay bandwagon. One notable holdout is Dollar General, the ubiquitous discount chain with over 17,000 locations across the United States. Despite the rising popularity of touchless payments, Dollar General has yet to accept Apple Pay in its stores.
In this comprehensive guide, we‘ll take a closer look at Dollar General‘s stance on Apple Pay and what it means for shoppers. We‘ll explore:
- The history and growth of Apple Pay
- Dollar General‘s current payment options
- The benefits of contactless payments for retailers and customers
- Why Dollar General has resisted Apple Pay so far
- Alternative ways to pay touch-free at Dollar General
- The future outlook for Apple Pay at Dollar General
By the end, you‘ll have a clear understanding of where things stand with Dollar General and Apple Pay, along with expert insights on what to expect going forward. Let‘s dive in!
The Rise of Apple Pay
Since its launch in 2014, Apple Pay has quickly become one of the most widely accepted contactless payment methods worldwide. It allows users to load their credit card, debit card, or bank account information into the Wallet app on their iPhone or Apple Watch. Then, they can use their device to pay at any retailer equipped with a contactless reader.
Apple Pay utilizes near-field communication (NFC) technology to transmit payment info from your device to the reader. Importantly, Apple Pay doesn‘t share your actual card number with the merchant. Instead, it creates a unique token for each transaction, keeping your sensitive data secure.
The consumer response to Apple Pay was almost immediately positive. Within the first 3 days of launch, Apple Pay had over 1 million activations. By 2019, Apple CEO Tim Cook reported that Apple Pay was completing 1 billion transactions per month. The service is now available in over 60 countries worldwide.
Adoption among retailers has also steadily climbed. As of 2022, Apple Pay is accepted at over 85% of retailers in the United States, according to Apple. This includes major chains like Best Buy, McDonald‘s, Walgreens, and Target.
Here‘s a breakdown of Apple Pay acceptance by retail category in the US:
| Retail Category | % That Accept Apple Pay |
|---|---|
| Pharmacies | 95% |
| Supermarkets | 89% |
| Restaurants | 85% |
| Department Stores | 83% |
| Gas Stations | 74% |
| Home Improvement | 72% |
| Discount Stores | 63% |
As you can see, Apple Pay has made significant inroads across all major retail sectors. The notable laggard is discount stores, where only 63% accept the mobile wallet. This category includes chains like Dollar General that have been slower to adopt new payment technologies.
How Dollar General Shoppers Can Pay Now
So we‘ve established that Dollar General does not currently take Apple Pay. But what payment methods does the retailer accept? Here are your options for paying at Dollar General as of 2023:
- Cash
- Credit cards (Visa, Mastercard, Discover, American Express)
- Debit cards
- Checks
- Dollar General gift cards
- EBT/SNAP benefits (select locations)
Most Dollar General stores are equipped with standard card readers that can process chip cards and magnetic stripes. Some locations may also have contactless readers that allow you to pay by tapping a card with the contactless symbol.
However, Dollar General locations do not have NFC technology enabled to read mobile wallets like Apple Pay, Google Pay, or Samsung Pay. The company has confirmed this, tweeting in July 2020 that "Dollar General does not currently accept Apple Pay in our stores."
Interestingly, Dollar General did briefly experiment with a mobile payment app of its own called DG Go. Launched in 2018, DG Go allowed customers at select stores to scan their items and pay on their phone without going through a traditional checkout lane.
However, DG Go did not use NFC contactless technology. Instead, users had to link a payment method within the app and scan a QR code at a dedicated DG Go tablet register to complete their purchase. The DG Go payment feature was only ever available at a small number of pilot locations.
As of 2023, the DG Go app is no longer available for download. Dollar General has removed all references to it from their website and social media. It appears that the company has abandoned the DG Go experiment and isn‘t currently offering any mobile payment options.
The Benefits of Accepting Apple Pay
So why should retailers like Dollar General consider accepting Apple Pay? There are several compelling benefits for both stores and shoppers.
Speed and Convenience
Contactless payments are significantly faster than traditional methods like cash or card swipes. According to a study by PYMNTS, the average Apple Pay transaction takes just 6.7 seconds, compared to 11.7 seconds for a chip card and 13.1 seconds for a magnetic stripe swipe. This can add up to serious time savings when multiplied across hundreds of customers per day.
Hygiene and Safety
The COVID-19 pandemic dramatically accelerated the shift towards contactless payments, as consumers and businesses looked to minimize potential virus transmission through surfaces. With Apple Pay, there‘s no need to physically touch a payment terminal or exchange cash and coins. This focus on hygiene is likely to remain a priority even as the pandemic recedes.
Security
Apple Pay offers advanced security features that traditional payment methods can‘t match. It uses tokenization to encrypt transaction data, meaning that your actual card number is never shared with the merchant. Apple Pay is also protected by Face ID or Touch ID on your device, adding an extra layer of authentication. In the event that your iPhone is lost or stolen, you can remotely lock or erase it using Find My iPhone.
Customer Preference
Contactless payments have been steadily gaining popularity for years, and that trend has only accelerated since the pandemic. According to a 2022 survey by American Express, 69% of merchants reported that customers have asked for contactless payment options. Failing to offer this in-demand feature could put retailers at a competitive disadvantage.
Lower Costs
While there are some upfront costs associated with upgrading payment terminals to accept Apple Pay, it can save retailers money in the long run. Contactless transactions are often faster and more efficient than cash or card payments, which can help reduce labor costs. They also tend to have lower fraud rates, minimizing losses from chargebacks and disputed transactions.
Why Doesn‘t Dollar General Take Apple Pay?
Given the clear benefits of offering Apple Pay, why has Dollar General resisted adopting this popular mobile wallet? The company has not provided a detailed explanation, but retail experts have theorized a few potential reasons:
Fees
Processing fees for mobile wallet payments are often higher than those for traditional credit card transactions. As a discount retailer focused on cutting costs and maximizing efficiency, Dollar General may be hesitant to accept a payment method with larger fees that could eat into its margins. However, Mastercard and Visa have been working to bring contactless fees in line with chip card fees.
Priority on Cash Transactions
Dollar General serves many low-income communities where cash is still the preferred way to pay. A 2019 report by the FDIC found that 16% of Dollar General‘s customers are "unbanked," meaning they don‘t have a bank account. These individuals rely on cash for most purchases and may not be able to take advantage of Apple Pay even if it was offered.
Technology Upgrades
Accepting Apple Pay requires merchants to have NFC-enabled payment terminals and to meet certain security standards. Upgrading equipment and software across all 18,000+ Dollar General locations could be a significant undertaking. The costs and logistics of such a rollout may be daunting for a retailer that has historically been slow to embrace new technology.
Promoting the DG Go App
Some have speculated that Dollar General‘s brief foray into mobile payments with the DG Go app was an attempt to capture the benefits of contactless checkout without relying on third-party wallets like Apple Pay. By promoting its own app as the only mobile payment option, Dollar General may have hoped to maintain more control over the process and customer data. However, the limited rollout and eventual shelving of DG Go suggests this strategy didn‘t pan out.
It‘s worth noting that Dollar General isn‘t the only major holdout when it comes to Apple Pay. Other discount retailers like Walmart, Lowe‘s, and Home Depot have also chosen not to accept it. However, these chains all offer their own successful mobile payment apps as an alternative – Walmart Pay, Lowe‘s Pay, and HomeDepot Pay.
The Future of Contactless Payments at Dollar General
As Apple Pay and other mobile wallets continue to gain steam with shoppers, will Dollar General change its stance? Recent years have seen a steady progression of major retailers getting on board, from 7-Eleven to Costco to Target. Even former holdouts like Walmart and Lowe‘s now accept Apple Pay online, even if not in their stores.
A 2022 survey by Boston Retail Partners found that 76% of retailers now accept some form of contactless payment, up from 58% in 2019. Among those not currently accepting, 57% plan to do so within the next 1-2 years. As contactless payment technology becomes table stakes, Dollar General may find it difficult to resist the tide.
"Retailers risk losing customers if they fail to offer convenient payment options, and that includes contactless methods like Apple Pay," warns Anita Solak, VP of Retail at Publicis Sapient. "In the post-pandemic era, shopper expectations for speed, safety, and ease of use are higher than ever. Dollar General will likely need to evolve to stay competitive."
Offering Apple Pay could also help Dollar General reach new customer segments beyond the cash-centric audience it currently serves. As the retailer expands into more diverse markets and product categories, catering to tech-savvy shoppers will only become more important.
There are some positive signs that Dollar General is open to digital transformation. In 2022, the company partnered with DoorDash to offer on-demand delivery from over 10,000 locations. It has also been aggressive in building out its online presence and mobile app, even if the app doesn‘t yet include payment functionality.
At the end of the day, whether or not Dollar General accepts Apple Pay will depend on if the company decides the benefits outweigh the costs. With many of its competitors already on board and customer demand for contactless payments climbing, it may only be a matter of time before you can tap your iPhone to pay at your local Dollar General.
In the meantime, shoppers who prefer touch-free transactions can still use contactless credit cards or opt for curbside pickup at many Dollar General locations. As retailers and consumers alike continue to embrace digital payment technologies, the future of shopping looks increasingly contactless.
