Contactless payments have increased in 2025 while cash withdrawals have decreased.
Research from Banking and Payments Federation Ireland reveal over €30 billion worth of contactless payments were made last year.
More than 60% of all contactless payments last year were made using smartphones. In total, over 1.6 billion contactless payments were made in shops, restaurants and other retail outlets, worth more than €30 billion.
Contactless payments made up almost 90% of all card payments at tills, and nearly two-thirds were done through mobile wallets like Apple Pay or Google Pay instead of physical cards. Compared with 2024, the number of contactless payments rose by 7%, while their total value increased by 13%.
The number of cash withdrawals fell by just over 7% to €82.2 million.
