They're both called a wallet, they both live on the same phone, and people ask us all the time whether they do the same thing. They don't — and once you see what each one is actually built around, it's obvious why keeping both makes sense.
Google Wallet is built around paying
Google Wallet's main job is tap-to-pay: your bank and credit cards, held to strict payment-network rules, charged over NFC at the terminal. It does that job very well. Loyalty cards and passes exist in Google Wallet too, but they're a side room, not the main hall.
And because payments come first, the cards inside are mostly locked down. A saved pass looks the way the issuer (or the import) made it, and you can change only a small handful of details afterwards. If the brand came in wrong, the color feels off, or the card is missing the note you actually need at the counter — that's usually how it stays.
ONEWallet is built around everything else
ONEWallet doesn't process payments at all. It's built for the rest of your pocket — loyalty cards, memberships, coupons, gift cards, boarding passes — and its core promise is the opposite of locked down: every card is fully yours to shape.
Open any card in the editor and everything on it can be changed:
- Name and brand — call it what you actually call it.
- Card number — edit it, or re-scan it with the camera.
- Photos — attach front and back images of the physical card.
- Color — pick the card's color so it's recognizable at a glance.
- Code format — switch the display between barcode (CODE 128 and more) and QR.
- Membership tier — a second line like "Executive Member" or "Gold".
- Notes, expiration date, and location — the PIN hint, the deadline, the store it belongs to.
In Google Wallet you carry the card you were given. In ONEWallet you carry the card you designed.
Why the customization matters
A wallet app lives or dies at the counter. When every card is the same template, you scroll and squint. When each card has its own color, its own photo, and the name you gave it, the right one is findable in a second — and the tier line means you're not digging through email to prove you're a member.
The expiration date and location fields quietly do the rest: ONEWallet can remind you before a coupon dies, and surface the right card when you walk into the store.
So which one should you use?
Both. Genuinely. Keep your bank cards in Google Wallet and tap to pay with it. Move everything else into ONEWallet, where each card can look and behave the way you want it to. Different jobs, one pocket — and a physical wallet you finally get to leave at home.
