Google Pay has gained popularity during the pandemic, as it gives users the ability to make contactless payments and money transfers. Many businesses have adopted google pay as a contactless payment option for clients. Has H-E-B done the same?
H-E-B does not accept Google Pay in their stores, website, or application. That’s probably because Google Pay’s charges are too high, and the fact that it may be a direct competitor to H-E-B Go. Also, not all H-E-B stores have the technology required to process NFC payments.
In this article, I will share some potential reasons for H-E-B not using Google Pay (and similar products), what H-E-B offers instead, and more. Read on for details.
Why H-E-B Does Not Accept Google Pay
H-E-B has not made a statement about this, so we can only speculate at this time. There are a few plausible reasons why H-E-B might not be prepared to or does not want to use Google Pay as a payment option:
- The necessary technology might not be available across all H-E-B Stores. H-E-B has over 420 stores across Texas and Mexico. While H-E-B is known to have the technology required to use Google Pay as a payment option, that may not be true for all stores. Some smaller stores or stores in remote areas might not have the infrastructure required to process NFC payments.
- Accepting Google Pay may introduce competition for H-E-B Go. Many of the company’s larger stores have introduced H-E-B go as a mobile payment option. Allowing the use of Google Pay would mean taking away the exclusive feature of mobile payments from the H-E-B go application and introducing competition. It may be so that the company expects allowing Google Pay and similar apps as payment methods would be a detriment to the success of the H-E-B go app.
- The charges associated with Google Pay may be too high. H-E-B is not satisfied with the charges associated with using Google Pay for payments.
H-E-B on Using Google Pay and Similar Products
When complained to by an unhappy customer about not having enough contactless payment opinions, H-E-B’s official Twitter account responded with:
“Hi there. We appreciate your feedback on payment options, and while we don’t have Apple/Google Pay, we are doing a number of things to minimize contact at the register, including eliminating the screen touch to confirm your payment amount and the need to sign for your purchase.”
In August 2021, H-E-B had a similar response to another customer. However, they claimed that they were looking into using Google Pay and Apple Pay. No further updates have been received as of now.
Why Google Pay Is a Great Payment Option
Google Pay (formerly known as Android Pay) is a mobile payment platform. It allows users to link their credit or debit cards to their accounts and make fast, easy, and contactless payments.
Several reasons make it a great payment option:
- Payments can be made to any service that displays the Gpay logo.
- The app can also be used to transfer money to other people.
- Using Google Pay as a payment option provides customers with a great degree of digital security. You can rest assured that all payments made using this app are inherently secure; the application is owned and operated by Google.
- The method of payment is entirely contactless. Users don’t have to touch anything other than their mobile screens during the entire process. This is especially important in current times due to the covid pandemic and rapidly rising health concerns. Contactless payment options have seen a massive surge in demand, and Google Pay is no exception.
- Google Pay does not charge users for payments made through Debit Cards.
H-E-B Go
H-E-B Go is the company’s mobile application. It is a multi-purpose application, but what we are interested in is the fact that the app allows contactless payment. The application also requires the use of a card for a payment to be made.
Additionally, the app provides further benefits in terms of safer shopping by acting as a scanner. Customers can simply scan items themselves and fill their carts. Once they are done, they can check out their items themselves at any designated self-checkouts within the store.
The payment method is different from Google Pay and other NFC utilizing platforms as H-E-B Go carries out the payment process by validation through QR code.
Unfortunately, H-E-B Go is not available in all stores. To learn more about H-E-B Go, go here.
The Payment Options Available at H-E-B
As mentioned above, NFC payment options are not available at H-E-B. This includes Google Pay and Apple Pay. PayPal is unfortunately not an option either.
Here’s a comprehensive list of the available options:
- Cash
- Credit Cards
- Debit Cards
- Personal checks
- Some gift cards
Conclusion
Unfortunately, H-E-B does not accept Google Pay currently. It’s not evident why, but it may be due to some stores lacking the required infrastructure or the availability of Google Pay undermining the success of H-E-B Go.
Contactless payment has become more important than ever with the pandemic, and customers are requesting the availability of such payment options to stay safe.
If the H-E-B store you usually visit supports H-E-B Go, you can use the mobile application to scan your items yourself, checkout at a designated self-checkout point, and pay through mobile; all without high-risk contact.
