Most articles on this say: put the card in the Wallet and you can message guests whenever you like. It isn’t that simple. This guide covers what Apple’s and Google’s own documents say, as of November 2026, and what it means for your working day.
What is a loyalty card in the Wallet?
A Wallet loyalty card is a digital pass stored in the phone’s Wallet app. Apple calls this type a store card and intends it for loyalty, discount and points cards. Google calls them loyalty cards, which show points and rewards directly on the phone.
For your guests that means iPhone users use Apple Wallet and Android users use Google Wallet. Both cards look similar and show a code you scan.
Do guests have to install an app?
Nobody needs an app for your café. Apple says a pass can be added without any related app, handed out on the web, by email or in an app. Google lists websites, email and SMS. So the route is a link, a QR code or an NFC sticker.
The Wallet itself is the one requirement. On iPhone it’s part of the system. On Android, Google’s help pages point to the app in the Play Store if it’s missing. Give anyone who doesn’t want that another way, such as a card in the browser.
How does a new stamp reach the card?
A new stamp comes from a server: after a signal, the phone fetches the new version of the card. Apple’s process has five steps:
- The guest adds an updatable card to their Wallet.
- The phone registers with your provider’s server.
- You give a stamp, and the server sends an empty signal.
- The phone asks which cards have changed.
- It downloads the new card.
Two things matter in practice. Apple points out that these signals don’t always arrive and several may be merged into one. So if a stamp shows up late, nothing is necessarily broken. A guest with no signal sees it once the phone is back online. That’s why your team should check the count in your own scanning app, not on the guest’s phone.
Can you message guests whenever you want?
No. Both systems limit notifications, in different ways.
| Question | Apple Wallet | Google Wallet |
|---|---|---|
| What triggers an alert? | A field with a change message gets a new value, such as “New stamp: %@”. | A message set to notify, or a change to the points balance. |
| Free text like a push message? | No, an alert is always tied to a field change. | Yes, as a message that also appears on the back of the card. |
| Fixed limit? | The pages we read give no number. | Three alerts of each type in 24 hours, then an error. Google can also throttle if it sees too many. |
| What does the maker advise? | These alerts interrupt, so use them only for time-sensitive news. | Don’t overdo messages, or delivery may be throttled. |
| Alert near your place? | Up to 10 locations can be set, and the system decides. | Possible with precise, always-on location access. Google decides the timing and the text. |
| Can the guest turn it off? | Depending on the card, in that card’s settings. | Alerts require the guest to have them enabled. |
So a Wallet card is not a newsletter. The best alert is one the guest triggered themselves: “New stamp: 8 of 10”. Marketing also needs consent, and loyalty programmes and GDPR covers what applies in the EU.
What actually fits on the card?
Not much fits on the front, and text that’s too long simply disappears. On store cards with a square code, Apple allows at most four extra fields combined, and warns that fields may not show if there’s too much text. Google recommends alert titles under 29 characters, and body text under 40 characters collapsed and under 80 expanded.
- Front: “7 of 10” and the next reward: “Coffee on us”.
- Back: the rules in three sentences: One stamp per visit. Reward can be redeemed on your next visit. Can’t be combined with other offers.
- Alert on a stamp: “New stamp: 8 of 10”.
- Alert on a reward: “Your coffee is waiting. Just show this at the counter.”
- After the reward: “The next round has started.” In a café study, customers were most likely to drop out straight after a reward, so this line earns its place.
How does it work at the counter?
It’s as quick as reaching for a phone, as long as your team knows two lines. The guest opens the Wallet and shows the code, and you scan.
- “Do you have our card in your Wallet yet?”
- If not: “Just scan this code, it takes a minute. Today’s stamp goes straight on.” If there’s a queue, ask next time.
- If so: scan, confirm, and say “Two more until your coffee.”
Android guests can tap the code for a full-screen view, according to Google’s help pages. That often solves things on a cracked or dim screen.
What goes wrong in practice?
| Problem | Why it happens | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Stamp doesn’t arrive | No signal, or the update signal didn’t get through. | Check in your own app and look again later. |
| Guest sees no alert | Alerts are off, or the field didn’t change. | The card itself shows the count, and that’s enough. |
| New phone | Apple: iCloud syncs passes. Google: cards linked to the account follow the account. | Usually fine with the same login, otherwise add the card again. |
| Flat battery | No code, no scan. | Decide in advance whether you add the stamp later. |
| Guest deleted the card | That’s their right at any time. | Have them add it again. Whether stamps remain depends on the system. |
Could you build this yourself?
Technically yes, but rarely in the life of a café. For Apple you have to sign cards and run a server for updates. If your certificate expires, installed cards keep working but you can’t sign new ones or send updates. For Google you need an issuer account, and new accounts start in demo mode until publishing access is granted.
That’s why most places use a service. Ask four questions when you choose: Do stamps stay when the card changes? Who signs the cards and runs updates? How do guests sign up, without an app or a password? What data is stored, and where?
What does this look like day to day if you build nothing yourself?
With NFCeez, the service handles signing and updates. In the app you design the card once: colours, stamp symbol, logo, your texts for the front and back, the message when a stamp arrives and up to three rewards. Guests tap the stamp card on your Smart Page, confirm their email with a code and add the card to Apple Wallet or Google Wallet. Without a Wallet, there’s a card with a QR code in the browser. At the counter your team scans the code in the app, picks the number of stamps and confirms. Every new stamp triggers a Wallet notification. If you change rewards or design later, every stamp collected stays.
The limits: an offer on the card appears only for guests who agreed to it, at most once a week and only on days you’re open. So here too, the card isn’t a newsletter. NFCeez takes no payments and isn’t connected to your till. The digital stamp card page shows what the card looks like.
Your next step: write the wording for the stamp and the reward before you set anything up. Two short sentences matter more than the design.
How NFCeez does thisYour wording, in Apple Wallet and Google Wallet.You set the design, the rewards and the message for each new stamp. Guests sign up with a code sent by email, and your team stamps by scan.See how it works- Apple Developer: Getting Started with Apple Wallet
- Apple Developer: Adding a Web Service to Update Passes
- Apple Developer: Pass (locations, maxDistance)
- Apple Developer: PassFieldContent (changeMessage)
- Apple Wallet Developer Guide: Updating a Pass
- Apple Wallet Developer Guide: Pass Design and Creation
- Apple Support: Manage passes, cards and keys in Wallet on iPhone
- Google for Developers: Loyalty card overview
- Google for Developers: Trigger Push Notifications, Loyalty cards
- Google for Developers: Brand guidelines, Loyalty cards
- Google for Developers: Issuer onboarding, Loyalty cards
- Google Wallet-Hilfe: Kunden- und Geschenkkarten
- Google Wallet-Hilfe: Elemente in Google Wallet verwalten
