UK Payment Industry Statistics (2026)
100+ UK payment statistics plus a downloadable industry report brand new for 2026 with market trends and analysis.
Last updated: March 2026
Contents
100 UK Payment Industry Statistics (2026) By Payments World
The United Kingdom has one of the most advanced payments ecosystems in the world. Over the past decade, the way consumers and businesses make payments has changed significantly as digital banking, contactless cards and mobile wallets have become widely adopted.
Today, billions of electronic payments are processed every year across debit cards, credit cards, bank transfers and mobile payment applications. At the same time, cash usage continues to decline as ecommerce and digital transactions grow.
Understanding these trends is important for merchants, fintech companies, payment processors and policymakers. Payment statistics help businesses understand how consumers prefer to pay and how the payments industry is evolving.
This page compiles 100 verified UK payment industry statistics, covering:
payment volumes
card usage
contactless adoption
mobile wallets
cash usage
ecommerce payments
cross-border transactions
open banking
payment fraud
The data is compiled from industry sources including UK Finance, the Office for National Statistics (ONS), Open Banking Limited and the Payment Systems Regulator.
For deeper insights into the UK payments market, you can also download the PaymentsWorld UK Payments Industry Report 2026, which includes additional charts, market analysis and commentary.
Overview of the UK Payments Industry
The UK payments industry has undergone a major transformation over the past decade. The widespread adoption of smartphones, faster payment infrastructure and digital banking services has reshaped how consumers and businesses transfer money.
Card payments, mobile wallets and bank transfers now dominate the payments landscape, while traditional payment methods such as cheques and cash continue to decline. Retailers increasingly prioritise digital checkout experiences as consumer expectations evolve.
In addition to changing payment methods, the payments industry has also been influenced by regulatory developments and fintech innovation. Initiatives such as open banking have created new opportunities for payment providers, fintech companies and merchants to build alternative payment solutions.
As ecommerce continues to expand and consumers adopt new technologies, the UK payments ecosystem is expected to continue evolving. Payment statistics provide an important snapshot of how the industry is changing and where future growth may occur.
UK Payment Market Statistics
The UK processes tens of billions of payments each year across cards, bank transfers, direct debit and cash. Debit cards remain the most widely used payment method, while real-time bank transfers through Faster Payments continue to grow.
The UK processed 48.8 billion payments in 2024.
Total UK payment volumes increased 1.9% year on year in 2024.
Consumers made 84% of all payments in the UK.
Businesses, government and non-profits accounted for 16% of UK payments.
UK businesses made around 7.6 billion payments in 2024.
Payments from businesses to individuals accounted for 40% of business payments.
Debit cards were the most used payment method, with 26.1 billion transactions.
Debit cards represented 53% of all UK payments.
Debit card transaction volumes increased 6% in 2024.
Credit and charge cards were used for around 5 billion payments in 2024.
Card Payment Statistics
Card payments dominate the UK retail payments market. Debit cards account for the majority of transactions, while credit cards remain important for larger purchases and ecommerce spending.
UK-issued debit and credit cards made 31.4 billion transactions in 2024.
This increased from 30.2 billion transactions in 2023.
There were 163.4 million debit and credit cards in circulation in the UK.
Total UK card transaction value exceeded £1 trillion in 2024.
Debit card spending reached £797 billion in 2024.
Credit card spending totalled £249 billion in 2024.
Credit card transaction value increased 5.3% year-on-year.
Since 2019, card transaction values have increased 26%.
Since 2019, card transaction volumes have increased 42%.
Contactless transactions accounted for 61% of card payments in 2024.
Contactless Payment Statistics
Contactless payments have become the dominant in-store payment method across the UK. Consumers frequently use contactless cards or mobile wallets for everyday purchases such as groceries, transport and hospitality.
UK consumers made 18.9 billion contactless payments in 2024.
Contactless payments grew 3.4% year-on-year.
The average contactless payment was £15.86 in 2024.
The average contactless transaction increased 1.7% compared with 2023.
There were 153 million contactless cards in circulation.
89% of UK payment cards support contactless technology.
76% of consumers use contactless payments at least monthly.
Contactless represented 76% of debit card transactions in late 2025.
Contactless represented 66% of credit card transactions in late 2025.
Contactless is now the dominant in-store payment method in the UK.
Mobile Wallet Statistics
Mobile wallets such as Apple Pay and Google Pay are becoming increasingly popular as smartphones replace physical wallets for many consumers.
57% of UK adults were registered for a mobile wallet in 2024.
This increased from 42% in 2023.
50% of UK adults use mobile payments at least monthly.
87% of mobile wallet users make payments regularly.
Among people aged 16–24, wallet registration reached 88%.
Among people aged 65+, wallet adoption increased from 14% to 25% between 2023 and 2024.
Digital wallet transaction share increased from 8% in 2019 to 29% in 2023.
Mobile banking is now the primary way most UK consumers access bank accounts.
75% of UK adults use mobile banking.
88% of UK adults use some form of remote banking.
Cash Payment Statistics
Although digital payments dominate the UK payments landscape, cash remains important for certain groups of consumers and for small-value transactions.
Cash payments fell to 4.4 billion in 2024.
Cash payments declined from 6 billion in 2023.
Cash accounted for 9% of all UK payments in 2024.
2024 was the first year cash represented less than 10% of payments.
Consumers made 4.3 billion cash payments.
49.4 million people used an ATM in 2024.
1.2 million UK adults rely primarily on cash.
That number fell from 1.5 million in 2023.
People relying mainly on cash represent just over 2% of adults.
Cash usage is forecast to fall to around 4% of payments by 2034.
Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) Statistics
Buy Now Pay Later services have grown rapidly in the UK, particularly among younger consumers and ecommerce shoppers.
25% of UK adults used Buy Now Pay Later in 2024.
BNPL usage increased from 14% in 2023.
28% of women used BNPL in 2024.
22% of men used BNPL in 2024.
36% of consumers aged 25–34 used BNPL.
11% of consumers aged 65+ used BNPL.
Fashion accounted for 46% of BNPL transactions.
The average BNPL fashion purchase was £114.
BNPL adoption among 55–64 year olds doubled between 2023 and 2024.
New UK BNPL regulations are expected to be introduced from 2026.
E-commerce Statistics
Online shopping continues to reshape the UK payments landscape as more retail spending shifts to ecommerce.
In September 2025, 50.5% of UK consumer card spending was online.
In 2019, the equivalent online share was 43.7%.
Domestic online spending reached 47.1% of card spend in 2024.
International online spending reached 61% of card spend.
Average monthly spend per cardholder in 2025 was 11.7% higher than 2019.
Online transaction volumes per consumer increased 35% since 2019.
Face-to-face transactions per consumer increased 20% since 2019.
Average transaction value declined as consumers made more frequent purchases.
27.2% of UK retail sales were made online in September 2025.
Ecommerce remains one of the fastest growing segments of UK retail.
Cross Border Statistics
International ecommerce continues to grow as UK consumers purchase goods from overseas retailers and global marketplaces.
3.8% of total UK card spending occurs online with international merchants.
Total cross-border spending represents 6.9% of card spending.
58% of transactions with international merchants occur online.
Ireland accounts for 28.5% of UK consumers’ online cross-border spending.
The United States accounts for 17% of UK cross-border ecommerce spending.
The rest of Europe accounts for 14.1% of cross-border spending.
Nearly 60% of cross-border ecommerce spend goes to these three regions.
Cross-border ecommerce continues to grow due to global online marketplaces.
Payment processors increasingly offer multi-currency checkout support.
International ecommerce is a key driver of payment infrastructure innovation.
Open Banking Statistics
The UK is widely considered a global leader in open banking adoption, enabling consumers to securely share financial data and initiate bank-to-bank payments.
The UK had 11.7 million active open banking users by early 2025.
The ecosystem processes over 22 million open banking payments per month.
In November 2024, 3.12 million variable recurring payments were made.
Since 2018, the UK has processed nearly 400 million open banking payments.
The UK remains the global leader in open banking adoption.
Open banking payments are commonly used for account funding and ecommerce checkout.
Open banking enables instant bank-to-bank payments via Faster Payments.
Open banking can reduce payment processing costs for merchants.
Many fintech companies now offer open banking payment APIs.
Open banking is expected to grow further with variable recurring payment adoption.
Payment Fraud Statistics
Fraud remains one of the biggest challenges facing financial institutions and payment providers as digital transactions continue to grow.
UK payment fraud losses totalled £1.17 billion in 2024.
There were 3.31 million fraud cases in 2024.
Unauthorised fraud losses reached £722 million.
Authorised push payment (APP) fraud losses exceeded £450 million.
96% of APP scam payments were sent via Faster Payments.
Fraud detection increasingly relies on machine learning systems.
Payment providers use real-time transaction monitoring to detect suspicious activity.
Strong Customer Authentication has improved online payment security.
Ecommerce remains one of the largest targets for payment fraud attempts.
Fraud prevention remains a major investment priority for banks and payment providers.
Methodology
The statistics on this page have been compiled from publicly available industry reports, financial datasets and official research relating to the UK payments industry.
Primary sources include publications from UK Finance, the Office for National Statistics (ONS), Open Banking Limited and the Payment Systems Regulator, alongside other industry research where relevant. These organisations regularly publish data on payment volumes, consumer behaviour, transaction trends and financial fraud across the UK.
Where possible, the most recent available figures have been used. Some statistics represent annual totals, while others are derived from consumer surveys, payment network reporting or industry analysis.
Because payment data is reported by different organisations using slightly different methodologies, certain figures may refer to different reporting periods or measurement methods. However, all statistics included on this page reflect the latest publicly available information about the UK payments market at the time of publication.
The statistics are grouped into categories including payment market activity, card usage, contactless payments, mobile wallets, ecommerce payments, cross-border transactions, open banking adoption and payment fraud trends in order to provide a clear overview of how the UK payments ecosystem is evolving.
Download the Full UK Payments Industry Report
For deeper analysis, charts and insights into the UK payments ecosystem, download the PaymentsWorld UK Payments Industry Report 2026. The report includes:
UK payment market analysis
contactless growth trends
ecommerce payment insights
fraud statistics
charts and visual data
Sources
About Payments World
PaymentsWorld is an independent payments platform working with a diverse network of banks, payment providers and financial institutions to help businesses access reliable and competitive payment solutions.
The company works across a range of payment technologies including card processing, ecommerce payments, merchant services and digital payment infrastructure. By partnering with multiple providers across the financial ecosystem, PaymentsWorld helps businesses navigate the complex payments landscape and identify solutions that suit their operational and commercial requirements.
Alongside its commercial activity, PaymentsWorld conducts independent research into the UK payments industry. The platform publishes data-driven reports, statistics and market analysis covering topics such as payment processing trends, digital wallet adoption, ecommerce payments, open banking and fraud prevention.
This research is designed to provide clear insights into how the UK payments ecosystem is evolving and to support merchants, fintech professionals and industry stakeholders seeking reliable information about payment technology and market trends.
Conclusion
The UK payments industry is continuing to evolve as new technologies reshape how consumers and businesses transact. Digital payments now dominate the market, with debit cards, contactless payments and mobile wallets accounting for the majority of transactions.
At the same time, emerging technologies such as open banking and real-time payments are creating new opportunities for both consumers and merchants. These innovations are expected to play an increasingly important role in the future of payments.
For businesses, staying up to date with payment trends is essential. Consumer expectations continue to change, and companies must ensure they offer fast, secure and convenient payment options in order to remain competitive.
The statistics on this page highlight the scale and speed of change within the UK payments ecosystem and provide a clear view of where the industry is heading.
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