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Google Wallet will now let you add physical transit cards and balances with NFC

2026-09-08 | original
read original get Google Pixel 9a smartphone → more articles
Why This Matters

Google Play Services v26.35 lets Android users transfer physical transit cards and their balances into Google Wallet via NFC, removing the need to carry a separate card for public transport. It's a small but practical step toward making the phone the default fare payment device, following Apple's similar Wallet capabilities. The same release also brings Play Store UI tweaks and developer-facing changes.

Key Takeaways
Worth a Look

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Aamir Siddiqui / Android Authority

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TL;DR Google has released v26.35 of the Google Play Services.

It brings support for adding physical transit cards and balances to Google Wallet.

The Play Store will also get a new navigation bar and an improved “Similar Apps” section.

Google has released a new version of Google Play Services, bringing a useful new feature to Google Wallet alongside several developer-oriented features.

The latest version of Google Play Services (v26.35) adds a handy feature for frequent transit card users: you can now add your physical transit cards and balances to the Google Wallet app using NFC. This means you will soon be able to use your NFC-compatible Android phone to tap and access public transport without carrying a physical transit card.

It’s worth noting that this feature uses NFC, so you won’t be able to add transit cards to the Wallet app on phones without an NFC chip. The update also introduces a new “Add a card” success screen with an improved UI in the Wallet app.

Here’s the full changelog for Google Play Services v26.35: Account Management [Phone, Wear] Improvements to Supervision. [Phone] A new infrastructure within the Kids Auth Module to manage and display regulatory compliance notices on Android.

Location and Context [Phone] This update adds safety status information to shared locations in the location sharing API.

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Explore topics: google wallet google play services nfc transit cards google play store
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