Apple Pay Now Supported by Halifax, Lloyds, and Bank of Scotland in the UK [Updated]

apple_pay_phone_handA few banks out of the United Kingdom today have announced Apple Pay support for their customers, including Lloyds Bank, Bank of Scotland, and Halifax (a division of Bank of Scotland). Lloyds had previously told its customers that Apple Pay support would be coming "very soon" back in August.

The three new banks join a growing list of UK Apple Pay participating issuers including: American Express, MBNA, Nationwide, NatWest, Royal Bank of Scotland, Santander, Ulster Bank, First Direct, and HSBC.

Still listed on the Coming Soon section of the UK Apple Pay website are M&S Bank and TSB, and although Barclays confirmed "imminent" support of Apple Pay in the UK back in July, it has yet to join in support of the service.

Apple Pay officially launched in the UK on July 13 with more than 250,000 retail locations backing the contactless payments service. In the weeks following its announcement, the service has grown its roster of supporting retail partners and financial institutions, along with expanding the upper limit for transactions on the service to £30 per transaction instead of £20.

Update: M&S Bank has begun a roll-out process of support for Apple Pay, mentioning that some customers will be able to add their M&S Bank-issued credit and debit cards into Apple Pay during the roll-out.

Related Roundup: Apple Pay

Popular Stories

hikawa phone grip stand apple%402x

Apple Launches Second Limited-Edition iPhone Accessory in a Month

Friday November 21, 2025 3:53 am PST by
Apple has begun selling the Hikawa Phone Grip and Stand, a new limited-edition iPhone accessory designed with accessibility in mind. Designed by LA-based Bailey Hikawa to celebrate the 40th anniversary of accessibility at Apple, the grip uses magnets to securely snap onto any iPhone with MagSafe. Apple says it can be removed with ease, and doubles as a stand with two different viewing...
iOS 26

iOS 26.2 Adds These New Features to Your iPhone

Thursday November 20, 2025 10:50 am PST by
iOS 26.2 is currently in beta testing. The upcoming update includes a handful of new features and changes on the iPhone, including a new Liquid Glass slider for the Lock Screen's clock, offline lyrics for Apple Music, and more. In a recent press release, Apple confirmed that iOS 26.2 will be released to all users in December, but it did not provide a specific release date. Keep reading...
Apple Shopping Event 2025

Apple Announces 2025 Black Friday Event, Here's What You Can Get

Thursday November 20, 2025 6:28 am PST by
Apple's annual four-day Black Friday through Cyber Monday shopping event is returning on Friday, November 28 through Monday, December 1 in many countries, including the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom, Belgium, the Netherlands, Sweden, Thailand, and others. During the shopping event, customers can get an Apple gift card with...
iOS 26 on Three iPhones

iOS 27 Will Reportedly Have Two Key Upgrades

Sunday November 23, 2025 8:48 am PST by
iOS 27 will reportedly have two major elements: quality improvements and new AI features. In his Power On newsletter today, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said that iOS 27 will be similar to Mac OS X Snow Leopard, in the sense that Apple is focused on improving "quality and underlying performance" over adding new features. Gurman said there is one exception to this rule, though, as he expects...
maxresdefault

The MacRumors Show: iPhone 18 Pro Looks Like a Huge Upgrade

Friday November 21, 2025 9:10 am PST by
On this week's episode of The MacRumors Show, we talk through all of the new features and improvements expected to come to next year's iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max models. Subscribe to The MacRumors Show YouTube channel for more videos Apple's next-generation iPhones are less than ten months away and we already have a good idea about what to expect based on corroborated leaks, rumors,...
Apple Foldable Thumb

Foldable iPhone to Debut These Two Breakthrough Features

Wednesday November 19, 2025 7:26 am PST by
Apple's first foldable iPhone is expected to launch alongside the iPhone 18 Pro models in fall 2026, and it's shaping up to include two standout features that could set it apart from the competition. The book-style foldable will reportedly feature an industry-first 24-megapixel under-display camera built into the inner display, according to a recent JP Morgan equity research report. That...
ipad black friday 2025

The Best Early Black Friday iPad Deals

Thursday November 20, 2025 10:20 am PST by
Black Friday is just over a week away, and iPad deals have finally started to flood in at retailers like Amazon and Best Buy. Below we're tracking discounts on every current generation iPad, including lowest-ever prices on M3 iPad Air and M5 iPad Pro, plus steep markdowns on iPad and iPad mini. Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When you click a link and make a ...
General Black Friday Deals 25 Red

Apple Black Friday Deals Available Now on AirPods, iPads, Accessories, and More

Friday November 21, 2025 8:48 am PST by
We're officially less than one week away from Black Friday, which will take place on Friday, November 28 in 2025. As always, this will be the best time of the year to shop for great deals, including popular Apple products like AirPods, iPad, Apple Watch, and more. In this article, the majority of the discounts will be found on Amazon. Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these...
Low Cost MacBook Feature A18 Pro

Report: Low-Cost iPhone, iPad, MacBook Coming Early 2026

Friday November 21, 2025 2:26 am PST by
Apple is planning to release new entry-level models across its iPhone, iPad, and Mac categories early next year, with an all-new affordable MacBook the most notable addition to the lineup. According to a new research report by Jeff Pu of GF Securities seen by MacRumors, Apple will launch the iPhone 17e – its second iteration of the "e" line – in the spring, likely along with a...

Top Rated Comments

0098386 Avatar
133 months ago
Just gave it a try in Mcdonalds. Cashier person asked me if I wanted to pay by card, pulled out phone "Gonna give this a try!". When it worked I squeaked. We laughed. I drunk the milkshake. I died a little.
Score: 15 Votes (Like | Disagree)
wsc9005 Avatar
133 months ago
Where in the UK do you live? all Tescos in central London accept Apple Pay.
London is essentially a different country :P

None of the Tesco stores in Edinburgh and Glasgow accept contactless.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Manatlt Avatar
133 months ago
Slowly moving from Barclays to Nationwide. Moving all of my money to them. Barclays has disappointed me with not supporting Apple Pay. The only major bank. Disgrace.

I enjoy Apple Pay so much
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
The Bogeyman Avatar
133 months ago
Haha I'm so glad I don't bank with Barclays! They really have shot themselves in the foot over this. Really hope that they lose loads of customers because of it. They lost me years ago due to their abysmal customer service.

Moaning aside, I have been using Apple Pay for a month or so, and I really like it. It always shocks cashiers who aren't expecting me to pay with my watch!

Someone asked about Shell petrol stations above, and I don't know about them, but in the UK, if the shop accepts contactless payments at all, they will accept Apple Pay with no bother. This means that they may not advertise it, but there are simply thousands of places you can use it. Although annoyingly not at Sainsbury's or Tesco.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
rbrian Avatar
133 months ago
London is essentially a different country :p

None of the Tesco stores in Edinburgh and Glasgow accept contactless.
Ah. First Direct looks good. Although says there's a £10 monthly charge to hold an account with them? I never understood banks charging for use of a bank account, why should I pay them to store my money? It's not a lot though and the £125 switch reward is quite enticing.
Or in the North East of England.

I asked our express store when they'll get contactless as its on a business park of 10,000 people. She said maybe this year but probably early next year.

Considering 80% of their custom is lunch time £3 meal deals, it's annoying they're taking so long.
I use the self checkout most of the time. The software has been updated - you can see the contactless option on the select payment page - but it's greyed out, obviously because the hardware isn't there. Tesco has many thousands of tills, it would cost quite a lot to upgrade them all, so I wouldn't hold your breath. M&S already did, but then they don't charge just prices, they charge M&S prices, so they can afford it.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Ap0ks Avatar
133 months ago
I just managed to register two MasterCard cards issued by Bank of Scotland, and Halifax. Hence maybe just few unfortunate ones? :(
I had to call through to verify my Halifax Clarity Mastercard and the agent said it wouldn't go through the MasterCard portal at the moment, apparently they have to contact Apple to push it through the system :( My Halifax Visa debit card worked fine though.

Ah. First Direct looks good. Although says there's a £10 monthly charge to hold an account with them? I never understood banks charging for use of a bank account, why should I pay them to store my money? It's not a lot though and the £125 switch reward is quite enticing.
Why would you not pay them to store your money? Somebody needs to buy the padlock :D

I think it's more to do with government regulation and them having to hold more money/ring-fence customer money which means they don't see a great margin in the retail banking divisions. I'm guessing they'd rather not have the investment division's profit subsidising retail banking when they could just get the money from customers.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)