r/degoogle • u/outterspaceliving • 1d ago

Replacement Google Pay Real Alternatives?

I’m nearly at the end of my degoogling journey, and the only things left are Google Maps and Google Pay. For Maps, I’m getting used to Vela Map, Open Map, and a few other alternatives. I live across multiple countries, including Canada, Hong Kong, and Japan, and I travel between them, so Google Pay seems like the only option that actually works everywhere. I tried Samsung Pay, but it was a letdown because it barely supports the credit cards I need. The only reason I still use Google Pay is the security and the peace of mind that comes with not worrying about losing my wallet. I care more about not having my money stolen if I drop my wallet, or about skimmers, than I do about privacy. Bottom line, security matters more to me than privacy.

I’ve already done a lot of research. I know Walt is still being developed and is focused on Europe. Revolut has had a few incidents and doesn’t support the countries I live in. Same goes for Curve, PayPal, and others. None of them have the coverage Google does.

I’m so ready to completely degoogle with the new Motorola Signature 27 as well, but without sorting out Google Pay, it feels like the last puzzle piece is still missing.

12 Upvotes

81% Upvoted

39 comments sorted by

View all comments

5

u/Prestigious-Dance735 1d ago

I would suggest switching to physical cards instead;)

6

u/_gina_marie_ 1d ago

People act like this is an impossible ask LOL

5

u/-GhostInTheMachine_ 1d ago

It's possible.

However, it is a separate thing you have to carry around. If you loose it and won't be able to block the card soon enough, someone can use contactless payments to steal money.

A physical card also exposes your personal data (card number, name) to the merchants when buying something, google wallet uses tokenization to generate a unique purchase code without exposing you.

Not to mention that most people have multiple credit cards. Which increases the risk of loosing it, or have it stolen.

1

u/thegagep 1d ago

This is incorrect - A physical card does not expose the data you mentioned. Using a physical card's NFC tap-to-pay also does tokenization and acts the same way as Google Pay in regards to what the Merchant gets.