How to Connect Loyalty, Vouchers & Offers with Google Wallet?
Mobile wallets aren’t just payment tools anymore, they’ve become one of the best ways to engage customers. By 2026, over 5.3 billion people will be using digital wallets. That’s half the planet with always-on access to your offers and rewards.
The big shift? Wallets aren’t static coupon holders anymore. They’re dynamic engagement hubs with push notifications, geo-triggers, and live loyalty benefits.
What is a digital wallet?
A digital wallet is a secure app that stores payments and passes, loyalty cards, coupons, tickets, and gift cards, so customers can access them from their phone or smartwatch.
- Apple Wallet on iOS devices
- Google Wallet on Android devices
For loyalty and promotions, wallets matter because they combine ease of use with constant visibility. Passes appear on a customer’s lock screen, update in real time as balances or rewards change, and can trigger reminders when a customer is near a store or when a reward is about to expire. Unlike email coupons that get buried or plastic cards that get forgotten, wallet passes live in a space customers check multiple times a day. This dramatically increases redemption rates, reduces friction, and strengthens long-term loyalty.
Think of wallets as a promotion container on your customer’s phone, one that doesn’t need an app download.
Why Google Wallet loyalty features stand out?
While Apple Wallet provides powerful pass functionality, Google Wallet is taking a more event-driven, API-first approach that makes it particularly attractive for loyalty use cases. Several recent innovations highlight this:
- Post-tap loyalty sign-ups (new!): After checkout, users get prompted to join your program right from Wallet.
- Location-aware notifications (new!): Wallet can push geo-based reminders for nearby offers.
- Live loyalty benefits (new!): Customers see points earned, next reward, and tier progress after each purchase.
Passive Discovery on Google Maps (coming soon): Your loyalty offers show up when users browse Maps. - Wallet-assisted loyalty enrollment: Customers can find and join your program directly in Google Wallet.
- Value-added modules: Show personalized recommendations and deals inside the pass.
- Automatic Gmail import (new!): Loyalty cards, gift cards, and tickets are auto-imported from Gmail then upgradable to full API-powered passes.
Core features of Google Wallet for loyalty & incentives
Google Wallet currently supports four primary pass types relevant for brands: loyalty cards, gift cards, offers, and in-store payments. Each has specific advantages for engagement:
- Loyalty cards give customers instant access to their points, rewards, and purchase history. Because they update dynamically, a customer can see progress toward their next reward in real time.
- Gift cards can be stored, redeemed, and even nudged with reminders when a customer is near a store. For retailers, this ensures gift balances are used instead of forgotten.
- Offers let brands deliver discounts and coupons that live in Wallet. These can expire automatically, trigger location-based reminders, and refresh with new deals.
- In-store payments combine loyalty and offers into the checkout flow. A single tap can apply discounts, redeem rewards, and complete the payment.
How to integrate with the Google Wallet API?
From an engineering perspective, Google Wallet loyalty is built on two objects:
- LoyaltyClass: the template that defines your program (branding, structure, fields, store locations).
- LoyaltyObject: the customer-specific card that contains their ID, points balance, tier level, and barcode.
To integrate, you start by enabling the Wallet API in your Google Cloud project and creating a LoyaltyClass for your program. Then you generate a LoyaltyObject for each customer. Distribution happens through “Save to Google Wallet” links, QR codes, SMS messages, or email buttons. When a customer taps the link, their Wallet instantly saves the pass with all the data you’ve defined.
The true value comes from updates. Using the API, you can PATCH LoyaltyObjects with new balances, tier progress, or reward eligibility. Google Wallet then surfaces these changes as push notifications, up to three times per day per pass, ensuring your program remains front of mind.
Go here for the full dev guide >
How to issue Google wallet passes with Voucherify APIs?
This is where Voucherify comes in. Voucherify acts as the source of truth for all loyalty data, gift cards, and promotions, while Google Wallet becomes the delivery and engagement layer. With Voucherify’s API-first design, you can connect loyalty and coupon workflows directly into Wallet without rebuilding your tech stack.
The integration works in two main ways:
- Direct creation and Save-to-Wallet links: Voucherify issues unique loyalty, gift vouchers, or coupon codes. Your backend takes the code, creates a Google LoyaltyObject with the code embedded (in accountId and barcode.value), and generates a Save-to-Wallet JWT link. The link is sent to the customer via email, SMS, or displayed on-site. Once the customer saves it, Wallet shows the live loyalty card.
- Gmail auto-import and upgrade: Google can automatically import loyalty emails into Wallet. To upgrade these into full API-managed passes (so you can push updates), your backend creates a LoyaltyObject that matches the identifier from the imported pass. Once matched, any Voucherify-driven updates flow into the customer’s saved card.
In both cases, you can use third-party wallet pass providers (e.g., PassKit, Badge, WalletPasses) who abstract the heavy lifting.
Keeping data in sync: earning and redemptions
Wallet doesn’t update itself automatically, the synchronization depends on webhooks. Voucherify issues webhooks whenever points are earned, tiers are upgraded, or coupons are redeemed. Your backend consumes those events and PATCHes the Google LoyaltyObject with the updated balance or status. This ensures the customer’s pass is always up to date.
For redemptions, the flow is reversed. When a customer presents a Wallet pass, the POS scans the barcode. That code is sent to Voucherify’s Redemptions API, which validates and processes the redemption. Voucherify then triggers another webhook so your backend can update Wallet again, reflecting the reduced balance or redeemed reward.
In short: Voucherify is the ledger, Wallet is the window. All changes move through webhooks.
Benefits of managing Google wallet passes with Voucherify
By combining Voucherify’s API-first Promotion Engine with Google Wallet’s engagement layer, brands unlock a set of powerful benefits:
- Instant issuance at key moments: Automatically generate a loyalty card when a customer signs up, reaches VIP tier, or makes their first purchase. Each pass comes with a secure code and a one-tap Add-to-Wallet link.
- Omnichannel reach: Distribute Wallet passes through email, SMS, QR codes, mobile apps, or social ads, meeting customers wherever they interact with your brand.
- Personalization and security: Every pass is unique, tied to an individual customer, and protected by Voucherify’s validation rules. Passes can include customer names, balances, and tier status in real time.
- Automated updates: With event-driven triggers, Wallet passes update instantly after purchases or redemptions. Customers see new balances or rewards directly on their lock screen.
- Actionable analytics: Voucherify tracks adds, redemptions, ROI, and engagement, letting you run A/B tests on offers, expiry rules, or personalized messages.
Secure incentive experimentation at scale with Google Wallets and Voucherify
Because Wallet passes update dynamically, they’re ideal for A/B testing. You can run experiments on:
- Discount type (% off vs fixed value).
- Urgency (48-hour flash promo vs 2-week offer).
- Personalization (named offers vs generic messages).
- Notifications (with vs without push reminders).
Location nudges (geo-triggered vs static).
Finally, mobile wallet passes aren’t just convenient, they’re controllable. With Voucherify you can enforce single-use barcodes, redemption rules, budget caps, time-bound access, or even event-driven deactivation. For example, a coupon can be automatically revoked if a refund is requested, or throttled if redemptions spike unexpectedly.
Ready to beta test Apple & Google Wallet passes with Voucherify?
We’re kicking off a limited beta for brands that want to experiment with Google Wallet loyalty cards, offers, and vouchers. If you're ready to test wallet-ready promotions, run A/B variants, and help us shape our templates, tracking, and controls – this is your chance.
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Talk to our team to join the beta
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FAQs
With its powerful API-first architecture, Voucherify can be quickly integrated into any existing systems and scaled effortlessly as the business grows. It's perfect for brands that want to take full control of their promotional strategies, without the limitations of cookie-cutter solutions and ready plug-ins.
