Guide

What is a wallet pass?

A wallet pass is a digital version of a card, ticket or coupon that lives in the wallet app already on a person’s phone. It can show a barcode, carry the details that matter, and change after it has been saved. This guide explains what passes are, how they work on iPhone and Android, and when they are the right tool.

Last updated September 29, 2026. Facts about Apple Wallet and Google Wallet were checked against Apple’s and Google’s own documentation, linked in the sources.

The short answer

A wallet pass is a digital card, ticket, coupon or ID that is saved in the wallet app on a phone: Apple Wallet on iPhone and Google Wallet on Android. Think of the things people used to carry on paper or plastic, such as a coffee shop loyalty card, a gym membership card, a concert ticket, a discount coupon or a gift card. A wallet pass is the same thing, on the phone.

Apple describes passes as digital replacements for information that might otherwise be printed on small pieces of paper or plastic, which let people take an action in the physical world, and which can be updated after they are added. Apple’s wallet app was originally called Passbook. Google’s developer documentation describes the same idea for Google Wallet.

A wallet pass is not…

An app. There is nothing to build, submit or ask customers to download. The pass goes into the wallet they already have.
A PDF or a screenshot. Those are fixed files. A wallet pass can be changed after it has been saved.
A payment card. Payment cards are a separate feature of the same wallet apps. A pass carries information and a code to scan, not money.

What’s on a wallet pass

Passes look different but are built from the same few parts. The wallet app lays them out for you, which keeps every pass readable, so most of the design work is choosing what goes in each part.

Branding. A logo, a background color and often a title, so the pass is recognizably yours.
Fields. Short labeled values, such as “Valid till”, “Points” or “Seat”. Apple groups them as header, primary, secondary and auxiliary fields, from most to least prominent.
An image. A banner or photo across the front of the pass. Apple calls it a strip and Google calls it a hero image.
A code. A QR code or barcode that a scanner or camera reads at the counter, the door or the gate.
A back. Longer information such as terms, opening hours, a phone number and links.
A unique identity. Each saved pass has its own ID, which is how the issuer knows whose pass it is and how updates find the right copy.

For sizes, limits and layout rules for each of these, see our wallet pass best practices guide.

Types of wallet passes

Both wallets group passes into types. The type decides which fields and images are available and how the pass behaves.

Apple has five pass styles: boarding pass, coupon, event ticket, store card and generic. Google has types for loyalty cards, offers, gift cards, event tickets, boarding passes and transit, plus a generic pass for anything that doesn’t fit, and some specialist types such as campus IDs and corporate badges.

What you want to issue	Apple Wallet style	Google Wallet type
A loyalty or stamp card	Store card	Loyalty card
A coupon or offer	Coupon	Offer
A gift card	Store card	Gift card
An event ticket	Event ticket	Event ticket
A membership card, ID or anything else	Generic	Generic

How wallet passes work

On Apple Wallet

An Apple Wallet pass is a small package with the extension .pkpass. It holds a description of the pass, its images and a digital signature. For Wallet to recognize the pass, it must be signed with a certificate issued by Apple and tied to the issuer’s Apple developer account.

The file is served with a specific content type, and Safari and Mail on iPhone add it directly to Wallet. Apple’s rule is that the person must always see and approve a pass before it is added, so a pass can’t be pushed onto someone’s phone. On a Mac, Safari uses iCloud to add the pass to the person’s iOS devices.

On Google Wallet

Google works through its API. The issuer creates a class (the template) and an object (one person’s pass). To let someone save it, the issuer builds an “Add to Google Wallet” link from a signed token. Once saved, the pass belongs to the person’s Google Account, so removing it on one device removes it across all their devices.

How updates reach a saved pass

Apple’s update flow has four steps. After a pass is added, the phone registers with the issuer’s server. When something changes, the server sends a push notification with an empty payload. The phone then asks the server what changed and downloads the latest version of the pass. The pass is replaced as a whole; there is no list of changes. Google’s update path is simpler for the issuer: call the API to change the pass object.

What a wallet pass can do

Be there when it’s needed. The pass is in the wallet app people already open at the counter or the gate. On Apple Wallet a pass can also be made relevant to a date or place, so it appears on the lock screen at the right moment, with up to ten locations per pass.
Change after it’s saved. A loyalty card can show a new balance, a ticket can show a new gate, and an offer can change. Apple’s own examples are a delayed departure on a ticket and the current balance on a store card.
Send a timely alert. Both wallets can raise a lock-screen notification, with different rules and limits, covered below.
Be scanned. Apple Wallet supports QR, PDF417, Aztec and Code 128 codes. Google Wallet supports QR, Code 128 and others.
Be personal. Each pass can carry the customer’s name, balance, seat or member number.
Follow the person. A pass added on an iPhone is added to a paired Apple Watch automatically. On Google, passes are saved to the person’s Google Account.
Expire. Both wallets can show a pass as expired at a set time.

Compared with the alternatives

Most businesses choose a wallet pass over one of three alternatives. Here is how they differ on the things that matter day to day.

	Paper or plastic card	PDF or emailed QR code	Standalone app	Wallet pass
Customer has to install something	No	No	Yes, and usually create an account	No, it uses the wallet already on the phone
Can be changed after it’s issued	No	No, you send a new file	Yes	Yes
Can send an alert	No	Only by another email	Yes, if the customer allows notifications	Yes, within each wallet’s limits
Easy to find at the counter	Only if it wasn’t left at home	Only if the customer can find the email	Only if the customer opens the right app	In the wallet app, next to their other cards and tickets
What you have to build	Print and hand out cards	A file and an email	An app for iPhone and Android	A pass design (no code with a builder)

What a wallet pass can’t do

Wallet passes are a strong fit for many jobs, but they are not magic. Knowing the limits up front avoids disappointment.

You can’t add a pass for someone. The person has to open the link or scan the code and approve it. Your job is to make that step easy.
Updates aren’t guaranteed on Apple Wallet. Apple says a phone may be offline or the person may have turned updates off for the pass. Keep the real balance or status on your own server and treat the pass as a display of it.
Notifications are limited. Google allows at most three messages that trigger a push notification per pass per 24 hours, and may throttle a sender it considers spammy. Apple advises reserving change messages for time-sensitive information.
Design freedom is limited. The wallet lays out the pass. You choose the content, colors and images, not the arrangement.
Passes can be removed or shared. People can delete a pass whenever they like, and a pass or its link can be forwarded. Don’t rely on the pass alone as security; check the code against your own records.
The wallets differ. For example, Apple can bring a pass up on the lock screen near a place you set, which Google’s generic-pass notifications don’t offer.

Who uses wallet passes

Any business that already hands out something small and useful can use a pass. A few common ones, with guides to each:

Restaurants and cafes use stamp cards and offers.
Gyms and studios use membership cards with expiry dates.
Event organizers send personalized tickets.
Retailers run loyalty, coupons and gift cards.
Salons and spas reward repeat visits and remind clients to rebook.
Associations and clubs and schools and nonprofits issue member, volunteer and supporter cards.
Any business selling gift cards can send them as passes.

What it takes to issue passes

If you build passes yourself, you need accounts and credentials on both platforms:

Apple: an Apple Developer Program membership (99 USD per year), a registered Pass Type ID, and a Pass Type ID certificate. Passes must be signed with an Apple-issued certificate, and every pass and update goes through that signing.
Google: a Google Wallet API issuer account, and a Google Cloud service account whose key signs the “Add to Google Wallet” links. New issuer accounts start in demo mode, where passes can only go to admins, developers and listed test accounts, until publishing access is granted.
Both: a web service to keep passes up to date, and the design work for each wallet’s images and layout.

Frequently asked questions

Is a wallet pass the same as a mobile app?+

No. A wallet pass is saved into the wallet app that is already on the phone, Apple Wallet on iPhone or Google Wallet on Android. Apple’s own guidance is that customers do not need your app to add your passes, and that a pass should not require a companion app.

Do customers need to download anything to add a pass?+

On iPhone, no: Apple Wallet is built in. On Android, the pass is saved to Google Wallet, and if the Google Wallet app isn’t installed the phone prompts the person to download it as part of adding the pass.

What is the difference between an Apple Wallet pass and a Google Wallet pass?+

They work differently behind the scenes. An Apple Wallet pass is a signed file that is added to the phone and updated through a push-notification flow. A Google Wallet pass is created through Google’s API and saved to the person’s Google Account. To the customer both look like a card or ticket in their wallet, and a builder can publish one design to both.

Can a wallet pass be changed after someone has saved it?+

Yes, on both wallets. Apple replaces the pass with the latest version when your server signals a change, and Google lets you update the pass through its API. Apple notes that updates are not guaranteed to arrive, for example if the phone is offline or the person turned updates off for that pass.

Can you send notifications from a wallet pass?+

Yes, with limits. On Apple Wallet a notification appears when a field that carries a change message is updated, and Apple advises using them only for time-sensitive news. On Google Wallet you can send at most three messages that trigger a push notification per pass in a 24-hour period.

Is Apple Wallet the same thing as Passbook?+

Yes. Apple’s developer guide describes Wallet as the app formerly known as Passbook.

How much does it cost to create wallet passes?+

Issuing passes yourself on Apple Wallet requires an Apple Developer Program membership, which costs 99 USD per year. With WalletPassBuilder you don’t need one: the plan is $49 a month or $490 a year with 1,000 pass credits included, and new accounts get 20 pass credits free.

Sources

Apple’s newer developer pages load dynamically, so where a number comes from Apple it is taken from its Wallet Developer Guide and support pages. If Apple’s or Google’s current documentation differs, follow theirs.