Walmart will begin adding tap-to-pay at select U.S. stores on August 24, allowing shoppers to use Apple Pay, Google Pay and other digital payment technologies. The retailer plans to extend the service to all Walmart and Sam’s Club locations by the end of 2026 and to its gas stations by mid-2027. The move ends Walmart’s long resistance to NFC-based payments, which it had declined while promoting Walmart Pay and Scan-and-Go. The issue drew wider attention after YouTuber MrBeast highlighted the lack of a tap option, while younger consumers increasingly came to expect phone-based contactless payments, Emarketer principal retail analyst Sky Canaves said at the time. Walmart said the change is intended to give customers and members more choice and make everyday shopping easier. Apple Pay is accepted at more than 85% of U.S. retailers, making Walmart’s previous policy unusual among major merchants. The retailer previously joined other major merchants in developing CurrentC, an alternative mobile-payment system that was shut down in 2016.