How to pay off your Apple Card

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Making Apple Card payments is as simple as its design.
Apple Card payments are as simple as its design.
Photo: Apple

The Apple Card is here, and it looks like a pretty good credit card (as these things go). But far more interesting than the MasterCard interest rates, or the minimal design of the card, is the software behind Apple Card.

You manage all aspects of the card — from payments to Daily Cash summaries — through the Wallet App you already have on your iPhone. You can even download a PDF of your transactions. Let’s check it out.

Apple Card and Apple Wallet

Your Apple Card in your Apple Wallet.
Your Apple Card in your Apple Wallet.
Photo: Apple

The Wallet app is what used to be called Passbook. It’s where all your Apple Card data is stored, along with all those used boarding cards, theater tickets and any other credit or debit cards you’ve added to Apple Pay. Unlike pretty much every banking app ever, the Apple Card section of the Wallet app looks great. It’s easy to use and easy to understand.

How to pay off your balance

Making payments is easy, as long as you have the money to do it.
Making payments is easy, as long as you have the money to do it.
Photo: Apple

For instance, paying off your outstanding balance is as easy as tapping the big black circle marked Pay, right there on the main screen. You’ll see a screen with a wheel that lets you dial in the amount you want to pay. You can crank it up to the maximum, to pay off the entire balance, or you can dial it back to make the minimum payment.

And this is where we start to see some of Apple’s lovely design. How do you know what the minimum payment amount is? Just dial the payment wheel down, and it’ll stop and turn red when it reaches the minimum payment amount.

To pay, just tap Pay Now, or set a scheduled payment to pay later. You will have to confirm your payment using Touch ID or Face ID. One thing to remember is that your outstanding balance doesn’t include pending transactions. That means you might make a maximum payment, and still find a balance on your card later, after pending transactions go through.

Pay your balance with Apple Cash

You can use your Apple Cash balance to pay off your credit card balance.
You can use your Apple Cash balance to pay off your credit card balance.
Photo: Apple

Payments are taken from your chosen default source. That will most likely be your bank account, but you also can choose to make a one-time payment using your Apple Cash balance. If you use Apple Cash regularly, you might have a decent balance built up in your Wallet. Just proceed as before, and when you reach the payment-authentication screen (above), toggle the Apple Cash button on. If you don’t have enough Apple Cash to cover the payment, the rest will be pulled from your default bank account.

Get a PDF statement

Having everything so readily available in the Wallet app is certainly convenient. But your accountant probably won’t be happy with a bunch of screenshots sent via iMessage.

To keep the beancounters happy, Apple Card makes PDF statements available as you view your balance. Just tap the Total Balance panel on the main screen, then scroll down. You will see your statements. Tap the one you want to view. Then, when viewing it, tap Download PDF Statement. The statement includes all your Apple Card payments, refunds and credits.

It’s all pretty straightforward. In fact, it might be worth getting an Apple Card just for this ease of use. You alway know just where you are, and you can pay off the balance at any time. And you will even get a weekly summary of your card activity. Smooth.

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