Apple Pay has become one of the most widely used contactless payment methods in the United States, but not every retailer has enabled it at checkout — and the answer is not always obvious until you are standing at the register with your phone out. This guide covers every major US retailer and answers the question definitively: does Ross take Apple Pay, does Dollar General take Apple Pay, does Home Depot take Apple Pay, does McDonald’s take Apple Pay, does Trader Joe’s accept Apple Pay, does Aldi take Apple Pay, does Hobby Lobby take Apple Pay, does HEB take Apple Pay, and more.
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Quick Reference — Does This Store Take Apple Pay?
| Store | Takes Apple Pay? | Notes |
| Ross Dress for Less | ✅ Yes | Contactless NFC terminals at checkout |
| Dollar General | ✅ Yes | Available at most locations; check your local store |
| Dollar Tree | ✅ Yes | NFC contactless payment accepted |
| Home Depot | ✅ Yes | All US Home Depot locations accept Apple Pay |
| McDonald’s | ✅ Yes | Drive-thru and in-store; widely supported |
| Trader Joe’s | ✅ Yes | All US Trader Joe’s locations accept Apple Pay |
| Aldi | ✅ Yes | Apple Pay accepted at Aldi US stores |
| Hobby Lobby | ✅ Yes | Apple Pay accepted; confirm at your local store |
| HEB | ✅ Yes | Texas grocery chain — Apple Pay accepted |
| Walmart | ❌ No | Walmart uses its own Walmart Pay; does not accept Apple Pay |
| Amazon Fresh / Whole Foods | ✅ Yes | Both accept Apple Pay |
| Target | ✅ Yes | Apple Pay accepted at all Target stores |
| Costco | ✅ Yes | Accepts Apple Pay at US warehouse locations |
| Kroger | ❌ No — varies | Kroger family stores use Kroger Pay; Apple Pay acceptance varies by banner |
| CVS | ❌ No | CVS uses its own CVS Pay; does not accept Apple Pay |
| Walgreens | ✅ Yes | Accepts Apple Pay |
Does Ross Take Apple Pay?
Yes — Ross Dress for Less accepts Apple Pay at its checkout registers. Ross updated its point-of-sale terminals to support NFC contactless payments including Apple Pay and Google Pay. To use Apple Pay at Ross: double-click your iPhone side button (or double-click your Apple Watch crown), authenticate with Face ID or Touch ID, and hold your device near the contactless reader at the register. The terminal will confirm with a beep and checkmark.
Note: Contactless payment availability can occasionally vary by individual store location if a terminal is malfunctioning. If Apple Pay does not work at a specific Ross register, ask the cashier for the NFC-capable terminal or pay with card.
Does Dollar General Take Apple Pay?
Yes — Dollar General accepts Apple Pay at most of its US store locations. Dollar General has been rolling out NFC contactless payment terminals across its network, and the majority of locations now support Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Samsung Pay.
Dollar General has over 19,000 stores across the United States. While the vast majority now accept Apple Pay, there may be individual older locations that have not yet updated their payment terminals. If Apple Pay is not working at your local Dollar General, check with the cashier — some stores have NFC enabled only at specific checkout lanes.
Does Dollar Tree Take Apple Pay?
Yes — Dollar Tree accepts Apple Pay at its checkout terminals. Like Dollar General, Dollar Tree has upgraded its payment systems to support NFC contactless payments across the majority of its locations. Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Samsung Pay are all accepted.
Does Home Depot Take Apple Pay?
Yes — Home Depot accepts Apple Pay at all of its US store locations. Home Depot was an early adopter of NFC contactless payments and supports Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Samsung Pay at its checkout terminals. You can also use Apple Pay on the Home Depot app and website for online purchases.
Using Apple Pay at Home Depot: Look for the contactless payment symbol (the wave/WiFi-looking icon) on the payment terminal. Tap your iPhone or Apple Watch to complete the payment. Home Depot’s self-checkout lanes also support Apple Pay. For online orders, select Apple Pay at checkout in Safari or the Home Depot app.
Does McDonald’s Take Apple Pay?
Yes — McDonald’s accepts Apple Pay at virtually all of its US locations, both in-store and at the drive-thru. McDonald’s was one of the major US fast food chains to broadly adopt Apple Pay early, and it works at the counter, at self-service kiosks, and at the drive-thru payment window.
Apple Pay also works in the McDonald’s app for mobile ordering — you can authenticate with Face ID or Touch ID within the app to pay for mobile orders. McDonald’s is one of the most reliably Apple Pay-compatible fast food chains in the US.
Does Trader Joe’s Take Apple Pay?
Yes — Trader Joe’s accepts Apple Pay at all of its US store locations. Trader Joe’s checkout terminals support NFC contactless payments including Apple Pay and Google Pay. This is consistent across all Trader Joe’s stores nationwide.
Trader Joe’s does not have self-checkout, so all Apple Pay transactions go through a staffed checkout lane. Simply hold your iPhone or Apple Watch near the terminal when prompted to pay. Trader Joe’s is one of the most reliably Apple Pay-compatible grocery chains in the United States.
Does Aldi Take Apple Pay?
Yes — Aldi US stores accept Apple Pay. Aldi has NFC contactless payment terminals at its checkout registers and supports Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Samsung Pay. Note that Aldi’s self-checkout and staffed checkout both support Apple Pay, though Aldi’s checkout process is notably fast-paced — have your device ready before items are scanned.
Aldi Europe (Germany, UK) and Aldi US operate somewhat differently, but US Aldi locations across all states accept Apple Pay as standard.
Does Hobby Lobby Take Apple Pay?
Yes — Hobby Lobby accepts Apple Pay at its store checkout registers. Hobby Lobby updated its payment terminals to support NFC contactless payments. Apple Pay and Google Pay are both accepted at the majority of Hobby Lobby locations in the United States.
One note on Hobby Lobby payment: The chain does not accept Visa credit cards (they stopped accepting Visa to avoid transaction fees), but they do accept Apple Pay when linked to a non-Visa card (debit cards, Mastercard, American Express, Discover). If your Apple Pay default card is a Visa credit card, set an alternate card as default before shopping at Hobby Lobby.
Does HEB Take Apple Pay?
Yes — HEB, the Texas-based grocery chain, accepts Apple Pay at its store locations. HEB’s checkout terminals support NFC contactless payments including Apple Pay and Google Pay. The HEB app also supports Apple Pay for digital transactions and the HEB curbside pickup service.
Does Walmart Take Apple Pay?
No — Walmart does not accept Apple Pay. Walmart uses its own proprietary payment system called Walmart Pay (accessed through the Walmart app), and the company has consistently declined to enable Apple Pay at its checkout terminals. This is a deliberate business decision — Walmart has invested in its own payment infrastructure and does not want to direct payment processing fees to Apple.
To pay with your phone at Walmart, you need to use the Walmart app’s Walmart Pay feature, which scans a QR code at checkout. Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Samsung Pay are all declined at Walmart registers.
Does CVS Take Apple Pay?
No — CVS Pharmacy does not accept Apple Pay. CVS uses its own payment system called CVS Pay (integrated into the CVS app) and has declined to enable NFC contactless payments from third-party wallets. This has been CVS’s position since Apple Pay launched in 2014 — CVS was part of a retailer coalition (MCX) that tried to build its own competing payment system.
If you want to pay with your phone at CVS, you need to use the CVS app’s built-in payment feature. For Apple Pay users, the only option at CVS is to pay with a physical card.
How Apple Pay Works at Retail — Quick Setup Guide
How to Use Apple Pay in a Store
- Double-click the side button on iPhone (or the Digital Crown on Apple Watch) to open Apple Pay
- Authenticate with Face ID, Touch ID, or your passcode
- Hold the top of your iPhone (or Apple Watch face) near the NFC contactless payment reader
- Wait for the beep and checkmark — payment is complete
How to Tell if a Store Takes Apple Pay
- Look for the NFC contactless symbol on the payment terminal — a sideways WiFi-looking icon
- Look for the Apple Pay logo or Google Pay logo near the terminal
- Ask the cashier — most know whether their terminals support Apple Pay
- Check the Apple Maps store listing — Apple Maps often shows whether a business accepts Apple Pay
Apple Pay Not Working — Common Fixes
- Make sure NFC is enabled on your iPhone: Settings → Wallet & Apple Pay → ensure it is set up
- Hold the very top edge of your iPhone to the terminal, not the middle
- Check that your default payment card has not expired or been flagged
- Try a different terminal at the same store — some individual terminals may not have NFC enabled
- Restart your iPhone if Apple Pay is not activating when you double-click the side button
Stores That Do NOT Accept Apple Pay — Summary
| Store | Alternative Payment |
| Walmart | Walmart Pay (via Walmart app QR code) |
| CVS | CVS Pay (via CVS app) |
| Kroger (most stores) | Kroger Pay (app) — some banners may vary |
| GameStop | Does not accept Apple Pay — card or cash only |
For the official Apple Pay setup guide and supported banks, see Apple Support — Apple Pay: Supported banks and countries. For a full list of stores where Apple Pay is accepted, see the Apple Pay merchant directory — where you can use Apple Pay.
Why Some Major Retailers Don’t Accept Apple Pay
The retailers that do not accept Apple Pay — most notably Walmart and CVS — have made deliberate business decisions rather than technical ones. When Apple Pay launched in 2014, a coalition of large retailers called MCX (Merchant Customer Exchange) tried to build a competing mobile payment system called CurrentC, which would have allowed retailers to bypass credit card network fees and collect customer data directly. Walmart and CVS were among the most committed MCX members and declined to enable Apple Pay as part of that commitment. CurrentC ultimately failed and was shut down in 2017, but Walmart and CVS had by then built their own proprietary payment apps (Walmart Pay and CVS Pay respectively) and maintained those rather than switching to Apple Pay. The financial motivation is significant: Apple charges a small fee on each Apple Pay transaction (collected from the card issuer rather than the merchant), while Walmart Pay and CVS Pay allow those retailers to route payments through lower-cost ACH bank transfers. For consumers, this means checking which payment app a specific retailer prefers before relying on Apple Pay at checkout.
Apple Pay at Gas Stations
Gas stations are a common question for Apple Pay users. Most major gas station chains in the US now support Apple Pay at the pump — Shell, BP, Chevron, ExxonMobil, and most other major brands have rolled out NFC-capable pump terminals that accept Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Samsung Pay. The acceptance varies by individual pump terminal and location: newer pumps typically have the NFC reader on the terminal face, while older pumps at some locations may require you to pay inside at the cashier. Speedway, Circle K, Casey’s, and Pilot Flying J have also broadly adopted Apple Pay at their locations. Murphy USA (often located at Walmart stores) does not accept Apple Pay at the pump, consistent with Walmart’s broader policy. For any specific gas station, look for the NFC contactless symbol on the pump terminal or check the station’s app.
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Bottom Line
| Ross | ✅ Yes — NFC contactless accepted |
| Dollar General | ✅ Yes — most locations |
| Dollar Tree | ✅ Yes |
| Home Depot | ✅ Yes — all US locations |
| McDonald’s | ✅ Yes — in-store and drive-thru |
| Trader Joe’s | ✅ Yes — all locations |
| Aldi | ✅ Yes — US locations |
| Hobby Lobby | ✅ Yes — but Visa credit cards not accepted |
| HEB | ✅ Yes |
| Walmart | ❌ No — use Walmart Pay app instead |
| CVS | ❌ No — use CVS Pay app instead |
| How to use Apple Pay | Double-click side button → Face ID → tap terminal |
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Ross take Apple Pay?
Yes — Ross Dress for Less accepts Apple Pay at its checkout registers. Ross updated its point-of-sale terminals to support NFC contactless payments. Double-click your iPhone side button, authenticate with Face ID or Touch ID, and hold your device near the contactless reader at the register.
Does Dollar General take Apple Pay?
Yes — Dollar General accepts Apple Pay at most of its US locations. Dollar General has rolled out NFC contactless payment terminals across the majority of its 19,000+ stores. A small number of older locations may not yet have updated terminals.
Does Home Depot take Apple Pay?
Yes — Home Depot accepts Apple Pay at all of its US store locations, including self-checkout lanes. Home Depot was an early adopter of NFC payments and also accepts Apple Pay on its website and app for online purchases.
Does McDonald’s take Apple Pay?
Yes — McDonald’s accepts Apple Pay at virtually all US locations, at the counter, at self-service kiosks, at the drive-thru, and in the McDonald’s app for mobile orders. McDonald’s is one of the most reliably Apple Pay-compatible fast food chains in the US.
Does Trader Joe’s accept Apple Pay?
Yes — all US Trader Joe’s locations accept Apple Pay. Trader Joe’s checkout terminals support NFC contactless payments. There is no self-checkout at Trader Joe’s, so all transactions go through staffed checkout lanes.
Does Hobby Lobby take Apple Pay?
Yes — Hobby Lobby accepts Apple Pay. However, note that Hobby Lobby does not accept Visa credit cards. If your Apple Pay default card is a Visa credit card, switch to a debit card, Mastercard, Amex, or Discover as your default before shopping at Hobby Lobby.
Does Walmart take Apple Pay?
No — Walmart does not accept Apple Pay. Walmart uses its own Walmart Pay system (QR code via the Walmart app). Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Samsung Pay are all declined at Walmart registers. This is a deliberate business decision by Walmart to keep payment processing in-house.
