Apple Pay vs In-App Purchases (IAP) : Know The Difference

If you are an iOS or tvOS streaming app developer, you must be familiar with In-App purchases and Apple Pay. Wait, No? Then, read this blog, as we are going to tell you what is Apple Pay, what is In-App Purchases or IAP, and how they differ from each other. Let’s start with Apple Pay.

If you go to an Apple store intending to buy a new Mac, and then realize you have not brought your wallet or cards, what will you do? Well, if you live in a country that supports Apple Pay, then you can simply pay using your iPhone.

Apple Pay is a secured digital payment and wallet service offered by Apple. In short, for a consumer, it is just like the UPI payment system of India, but technically it is a bit different. It functions based on an NFC chip that is built-in within the iPhones. It was first launched in 2014.

Apple Pay can be used for real monetary transactions in online purchases, e-commerce, Apple’s partner stores, and many other places. It is just like using your mobile or smartwatch in place of cash or card.

Apple Pay is an online payment app, currently available in around 69 countries of the world, including the following countries:

Japan and South Korea

Apple Pay usually uses Face ID or Touch ID for authentication. Also, the application uses the “Tokenization” method to keep your credit card numbers safe. As said previously, Apple Pay works with the help of an NFC chip pre-installed within iPhones and smartwatches. Hence, it can work with any store that accepts NFC-based contactless payments.

So, any new user would first need to add and verify their credit or debit card details, which will be used to deduct or add money to and from their bank accounts. When the users visit any store accepting Apple Pay, they just need to hold out their iPhones or Apple watches near the NFC-based payment system to complete the transaction. You don’t usually put any PIN for such transactions. However, you will be authenticated using your Touch ID.

Apple Pay can be used for multiple purposes, including:

Apple Pay is currently supported by the devices given below:

iPhone 6, 6s, 6 Plus, 6s Plus

iPhone 11, 11 Pro, 11 Pro Max

iPhone 12, 12 mini, 12 Pro, 12 Pro Max

iPhone 13, 13 mini, 13 Pro, 13 Pro Max

iPhone 14, 14 Plus, 14 Pro, 14 Pro Max

Apple Pay can also be used over Macs and iPads using Touch ID and Face ID authentication.

Apple Pay does not have any usage fees. It is just a medium of payment that does not charge any additional fees.

Nowadays, many apps offer paid features, additional paid content, or other premium services that need to be bought separately. This additional content can be bought using the in-app purchases feature. Not all apps will offer in-app purchases. However, streaming and gaming apps usually offer a lot of in-app purchase options.

Sometimes, premium ad-free plans are also included as in-app purchases. There are many more applications of IAP. But the point is, it is completely different from Apple Pay. Because Apple Pay deals wi