Near-field communication (or NFC) has made contactless payment the easiest and safest way to check out with thousands of retailers, grocers, and service providers.
Companies like Apple rely on NFC to support their Apple Pay technology, which allows iPhone users to pay at cash registers or online using their Apple Wallet.
But does USPS take Apple Pay? Your question is answered below – and you might be surprised.
Does USPS Take Apple Pay?
The United States Postal Service does not currently accept Apple Pay or any other forms of NFC payment, either online or in post offices. Instead, customers are limited to more traditional forms of payment, like cash and credit cards. Current card readers are equipped with NFC, but USPS keeps that technology deactivated.
To learn some theories as to why USPS doesn’t accept Apple Pay and what forms of payment they do accept, keep reading!
Why Doesn’t USPS Take Apple Pay?
While USPS hasn’t formally stated why they do not accept Apple Pay, some Redditors have theories.
User u/rmiw said, “It wouldn’t surprise me if they had to do a lot more to get it turned on than others if they’re using their own custom system for it.”
USPS does have access to millions of people’s sensitive information, plus as a federal service, the organization’s list of regulations would be quite stringent.
This could definitely account for why the post office locations do not accept near-field communication (NFC) technology like Apple Pay.
Another commenter u/johnthrives made the point that “Their credit card machines are so old…”
This also checks out, as my local post office’s credit card machines processed basic debit card transactions incredibly slowly despite being outfitted for NFC and Apple Pay.
Between the high-speed machines needed and USPS being part of a federal system, it is not entirely unsurprising that the organization does not accept Apple Pay.
What Forms Of Payment Does USPS Take?
Despite their lack of cutting-edge payment methods, USPS accepts many other methods in post offices and online. These include:
- Good, old-fashioned cash
- Major credit/debit cards, like Visa, MasterCard, AmEx, and Discover (debit cards can receive up to $50 in cash back in $10 increments)
- Carte Blanche
- Diners Club
- JCB
- China Union Pay
- Personal checks (post offices only)
One of the last outposts for accepting personal checks, you can bring your checkbook if:
- Your name and address are printed on the check by the manufacturer
- You have a valid state-issued ID (the names must match)
Does USPS Take Samsung Pay?
Strangely enough, despite not accepting Apple Pay, some post office locations appear to accept Samsung Pay and Google Pay.
Additionally, some customers have reported more up-to-date kiosks in their post offices, and Samsung Pay users who have any of the above cards tied into their account and permitted to use them.
Does USPS Have Contactless Pay?
While it appears that the vast majority of post offices do not offer contactless pay, some do.
These locations, however, do not as of yet accept Apple Pay. Rather, Samsung phone users can pay with Samsung Pay.
Additionally, it seems that the clerks are caught off guard when Samsung Pay works.
One Redditor did comment that they had to enter their PIN and sign.
So while the NFC works, it’s not technically 100 percent “contactless,” because you do have to use the pin pad and a pen.
And another commenter ran into a bit of resistance when they successfully used contactless pay – the manager informed them it was against “company policy” to accept any smartphone payment method.
Perhaps that location forgot to disable NFC?
Can You Pay USPS With PayPal?
In June 2012 USPS and PayPal announced that customers would be able to check out online using PayPal.
The payment method is available only online, using USPS’s Click-N-Ship service.
This is a much-loved benefit as some customers prefer this method over using their cards directly, as PayPal – like Apple Pay – adds an extra layer of security to transactions.
Additionally, using PayPal to check out bypasses inputting an entire card’s-worth of financial information into the USPS website.
This was a convenient mash-up for consumers, as many e-commerce store owners already use PayPal to accept payment for their goods and services.
To learn more, you can see our other articles on if the USPS updates tracking numbers, if Walmart takes Apple Pay, and if Costco takes Apple Pay.
Conclusion
While USPS does not accept Apple Pay at this time, the organization clearly has all the pieces in place to do so.
Along with accepting major credit/debit cards and Paypal (online), USPS appears to accept Samsung Pay in some of their post office locations.
