Australia card payments slow as GlobalData sees $790b in 2026

Contactless use in public transport is helping sustain everyday card activity.

Australia’s card payments market is slated for $789.9b this 2026, driven by near-universal banking access, a well-developed POS acceptance network, and rising contactless usage.

The total card payment value in Australia registered $742.3b in 2025, equivalent to a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 10.3% from 2021, according to GlobalData.

However, growth is expected to moderate over the forecast period of 2026 through 2030, showing a shift from rapid adoption-led expansion to steadier growth, even as enabling factors—such as increasing POS penetration, rising ecommerce demand, and digital-only bank competition—continue to underpin card usage.

“Australia’s card payments market continues to expand, but growth is moving into a more mature phase,” Shivani Gupta, Lead Banking and Payments analyst at GlobalData, said in the report.

She said rising contactless payments, particularly in public transport, improved merchant acceptance solutions for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), and broad access to basic bank accounts are supporting continued card usage. 

Gupta also said reforms by the Reserve Bank of Australia could further encourage card payments.

Debit cards remain the most commonly used payment card type in Australia, reflecting consumers’ preference to manage spending carefully amidst economic uncertainty. Credit and charge cards continue to play an important role, particularly for larger purchases, despite higher inflation, rising interest rates, and competition from buy now, pay later (BNPL) services.

GlobalData said rewards programmes, including discounts, cashback offers, and instalment payment features, continue to support credit card usage.

Regulatory changes are also expected to affect the market. In March 2026, the Reserve Bank of Australia completed its review of merchant card payment costs and announced the removal of surcharges on eftpos, Mastercard, and Visa cards, including credit, debit, and prepaid cards, from 1 October 2026.

The central bank also introduced lower interchange fee caps, including for foreign-issued cards, and new transparency requirements for major payment networks and large acquirers.

According to GlobalData, the reforms are intended to simplify pricing, improve competition, and reduce business costs, particularly for SMEs, whilst making card payments easier for consumers at checkout.

Gupta said Australia’s payment card market would continue to benefit from established payment infrastructure, strong consumer confidence in contactless payments, and regulatory reforms. 

However, she noted that geopolitical uncertainty, inflation, and competition from mobile wallets and BNPL services r main key challenges for the sector.