# Apple Wallet Hacker Approved page: https://hackerapproved.com/p/apple-wallet/ 46 people recommended Apple Wallet in Hacker News comments, 8 had mixed feelings and 58 criticized it, November 2025 to October 2026. It was recommended in 9 of 12 months, in 14 threads. It does not meet the Hacker Approved badge rule. **Verdict:** Criticized more than recommended: critics most often cite Apple ads appearing in Wallet; those who recommend it cite storing tickets, boarding passes, cards and IDs with live updates and quick scanning. Summary written by Claude from the comments below. ## What people warn about - Confusing card selection and defaults (4 comments in the sample): "It's an annoying few extra seconds at each merchant to find and select the right card from the sub-menu" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49941599)) "there's no visual indicators that I can. I accidentally changed my default card on the first attempt." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48025050)) "My bank provides USD, EUR and other currencies on different cards with exact same cover. Maddening." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48029058)) - Apple ads inside Wallet (3 comments in the sample): "iOS has gotten reasonably good about tracking packages in wallet outside of any other app, but then again…" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=50251150)) "Apple needs guidelines to prevent Apple's own apps (Wallet, TV, Fitness, Books, Music..) from pushing intrusive ads" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46471277)) "the infamous ad for some movie on Apple TV injected into Apple Wallet earlier this year" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46316544)) - Limited state ID support (2 comments in the sample): "I’m still waiting for the day where 100% of state drivers licenses are supported in wallet" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=45903863)) "if you want a reasonable level of flexibility that you would expect elsewhere, you are SOL" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48024159)) - Concern over trusting Apple with IDs (2 comments in the sample): "cause the screenshot works fine without all these moving parts, and I even do that when traveling solo cause I don't trust the wallet" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49939211)) "putting our entire digital identification infrastructure in the hands of Google and Apple" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48817832)) ## Why people recommend it - Tickets and boarding passes update automatically (6 comments in the sample): "it automatically updates metadata (e.g., flight times, gates), and it’s nicer than just a picture" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48022318)) "having gate, seat, time updating automatically is such a huge improvement for travel" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48022303)) "Having boarding passes in Wallet which also update real time is so nice." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48021988)) - Easy to create passes from files (5 comments in the sample): "it beats digging through email to find some pdf and zooming in on some QR code when you have to present it" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48022011)) "Creating a new pass on my phone for the library took less time than logging into their app did." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49941078)) "My biggest use case is not actually creating passes for services which don’t provide them" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48022752)) - Stores cards, IDs and library cards (4 comments in the sample): "why carry a physical wallet anymore when your phone (and Apple Watch) can store all of your cards?" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48024814)) "I have my library card in Apple Wallet so I don't need to bother with the actual card." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46350030)) "This is wonderful, I’ve been waiting for this to add a library card to Apple Wallet." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48026232)) - Quick barcode scanning at checkout (1 comment in the sample): "it's a perfectly clear QR code rather than a picture so it'll be easier to scan" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48022837)) ## Other mobile payment apps people recommend - [Apple Pay](https://hackerapproved.com/p/apple-pay/): 58 recommend, 15 mixed, 43 criticize - [Wero](https://hackerapproved.com/p/wero/): 52 recommend, 22 mixed, 84 criticize - [Curve Pay](https://hackerapproved.com/p/curve/): 20 recommend, 1 mixed, 10 criticize - [Google Wallet](https://hackerapproved.com/p/google-wallet/): 17 recommend, 4 mixed, 33 criticize ## The badge A product earns the Hacker Approved badge when at least 10 people recommend it, recommenders outnumber critics at least 2 to 1 (mixed feelings count toward neither side), it was recommended in at least 4 of the 12 months and in at least 5 different threads, and no single thread supplies more than half of the people who recommend it. Health and money products are never badged. ## Cite as Hacker Approved, "Apple Wallet", https://hackerapproved.com/p/apple-wallet/ (46 recommend, 8 mixed, 58 criticize; Hacker News comments, November 2025 to October 2026). Counts updated 2 Nov 2026, with data through October 31, 2026.