Which QR wallet should merchants accept in Japan?
PayPay first: it had 75 million registered users in August 2026 and handles most code payments. Rakuten Pay, d払い, au PAY and Merpay reach the customers of Japan's large points and telecom ecosystems.
In detail
PayPay first. It had 75 million registered users in August 2026 and processed 8.88 billion payments in 2025, more than 20% of all cashless transactions in Japan. LINE Pay closed in Japan in April 2025 and its users were moved toward PayPay, which strengthened its lead.
The other wallets
- Rakuten Pay, tied to the Rakuten points ecosystem.
- d払い (d-barai), from the NTT docomo group.
- au PAY, from the KDDI group.
- Merpay, linked to the Mercari marketplace.
Each is backed by a large points or telecom ecosystem, which is why their users stay loyal even when PayPay dominates.
How big QR payments are
Code payments reached ¥16.6 trillion in 2025, or 10.2% of cashless value, second only to credit cards. They grew fast in a few years and changed Japanese commerce, from small shops to large retail.
What it means for payment operators
For merchants, PayPay covers most QR users, and a second wallet adds customers loyal to a points ecosystem. Operators can connect these wallets through local providers and enable them per merchant next to JCB and international cards, so each merchant offers the wallets that match its audience.