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Smartphone instead of card and wallet? Mobile payments in Norway are gaining momentum
Norway is one of the leaders of digital transformation in Europe. stock.adobe.com/licencja standardowa
One third of all payments in Norwegian stores are now made using peer-to-peer (P2P) mobile phones, writes Norges Bank in a new report on financial infrastructure.
Norway is one of the leaders of digital transformation in Europe, and mobile payments are becoming an everyday reality for an increasing number of citizens. Year after year, not only the number of users of payment apps is growing, but also the value of transactions made using smartphones.
Although mobile payments for purchases in Norway became possible more than a decade ago, according to the central bank, they only started gaining momentum in 2025. Data from Norges Bank's annual survey shows that in the spring of this year, 30 percent of payments in the country of fjords were made using mobile phones, compared to 20 percent last year. At that time, an increase from 13 percent in 2023 was also recorded.
– The high use of new mobile payment services indicates that users perceive them as efficient and secure. They will probably ultimately occupy a dominant position among payments at points of sale – writes the Central Bank of Norway.
The most popular mobile payment app in Norway is Vipps.Source: Trygve - stock.adobe.com - editorial use only
Cash always safe
Norges Bank points out that in the past year, a number of new mobile payment solutions have been introduced, including Trumf Pay and Vipps for NFC contactless transactions. After merging with Danish MobilePay in 2022, Vipps MobilePay also serves users in Sweden and Finland. Additionally, DNB and the Eika group have made Apple Pay available to their customers.
Data from 2025 shows that 66 percent of payments in stores will still be made using physical payment cards, 2 percent with cash, and 2 percent in other ways. The mobile payments market in Norway is experiencing steady growth, with a projected annual growth rate (CAGR) of 10.1 percent in the years 2025-2030.
Although cash is becoming less common, the Norwegian government emphasizes its importance in the context of crises and cyberattacks. The obligation to accept cash in stores and the recommendation to keep a cash reserve at home are intended to ensure safety in the event of digital system failures. Additionally, Norges Bank itself warns that relying solely on mobile payments may prevent consumers from making purchases for such mundane reasons as lack of coverage, a dead battery, or technical problems with a given app.
Sources: Norges Bank, NTB, MojaNorwegia.pl