LG Pay - Everything you need to know

How does LG Pay work?

LG Pay works very similarly to other mobile payment services. Your payment card information is stored in a secure token and can only be accessed temporarily by single-use passwords. You can use face unlock, fingerprint, or a PIN code. The app then uses a virtual card number at the payment terminal in place of your actual card number. The process adds a bit of extra security. Google and Apple use encrypted servers, but all of them use the single-use password method with virtual card numbers.

Country availability and supported devices

Unfortunately, LG Pay is only available in two countries, the United States and South Korea. LG is apparently working on expanding further, but progress is a little slow and we haven’t heard anything new in a while. Even in the US, the service only launched in late 2019 on a single device. This may be a long roll-out for you international folks.

Currently, LG Pay (with its WMC technology) works on the following devices:

• LG G8x 
• LG V60

Yes, it’s quite the short list, but we expect it to expand as LG releases more phones.

How to set up LG Pay

Thankfully, the setup process is fairly simple and there aren’t a ton of steps. You can add payment cards, gift cards, and loyalty cards to LG Pay directly through the app. We’ll go over each method below.

Add a debit or credit card to LG Pay

• Open the LG Pay app on your device. If you don’t have it, you can download it from Google Play.
• Hit the Plus button in the top right corner.
• Line up your credit or debit card with the camera rectangle for LG Pay to automatically enter the card number and expiration date. On the next screen, add your CVC/CVV code and hit Next.
• Optional – Tap Enter manually to enter your card details yourself. Hit Next when you’re done.
• LG Pay will then ask for your billing address and zip code. Fill in the information as requested by the app. Also, double check and make sure the Name on card section is accurate. Hit Next when you’re done.
• Note – If LG Pay doesn’t support your bank, you will receive a notice at this point letting you know that your card cannot be added to LG Pay with a link to the supported issuers. If you do not receive this notice, continue forward.
• The app will show you a terms of service agreement. You have to scroll all the way to the bottom at least once before you can tap the Agree button.
• LG Pay must now do a card verification step. Select whether to receive the code via email, SMS, or by calling your bank. We recommend the SMS method as it is the easiest and least obtrusive method. Tap the method you want to continue.
• Enter the verification code box in the app and tap the Verify button. Please note, it can take a while to receive a verification code. Be patient.
• Finally, make sure the Add to LG PayQuick option is toggled if you want to access this card quickly in the future and tap the Done button.
• You may now use your card for purchases through LG Pay. We will explain how to set up LG PayQuick in the How to use LG Pay section below.

Add a gift card to LG Pay

• In the LG Pay app, tap the Gift cards icon on the home page.
• Tap the Plus button in the top right corner.
• If you have a gift card already, tap the Save gift card option. The tutorial to purchase a gift card is below.
• Scroll through the list to find the retailer for your gift card. There is a search bar as well for your convenience. Select the retailer to continue.
• Note – If the retailer of your gift card isn’t listed, it’s not supported. There is nothing else you can do at this time. If you did find your retailer, please continue.
• Enter in the card details as requested. Hit the Done button to save the card.
• To use the card, open it in the LG Pay app and have the cashier scan the barcode.
• Note – LG Pay cannot keep track of your card balance and it can only track transactions made within LG Pay. You can check out LG’s FAQ for more information about gift cards.

Purchase a gift card on LG Pay

• Repeat the first three steps of Add a gift card above, but this time, select the Purchase gift cards option.
• A list of retailers will pop up. Browse the list (or search) for the retailer you want and tap it.
• On the next screen, fill out the details, including amount and whether this gift card is for you or for someone else.
• If you select “For Myself” – Enter the amount and tap the Buy button in the bottom right corner. Enter your fingerprint or PIN code for LG Pay to complete the purchase. The card is now available in the LG Pay app. Simply open the app, find the card, and have the cashier scan the barcode.
• If you select “For someone else” – Enter in the recipient’s name and mobile phone number along with a brief message (all required). Tap the Buy button in the bottom right.
• The app will show you what you’re about to buy and where you intend on sending it. Make sure all the details are correct and make sure you’re aware that gift cards are non-returnable and non-refundable. Hit the Buy button.
• Enter your fingerprint or LG Pay PIN code to complete the purchase. The recipient will receive an MMS with instructions on how to redeem and active their new gift card.
• Note – The recipient has 30 days to receive and activate the card. LG Pay will resend the gift card code. If they don’t redeem it in 30 days, it becomes your gift card. Click here for LG’s FAQ on gift cards.

Add a loyalty card to LG Pay

• Open the LG Pay app and tap the Loyalty option on the home page. Tap the Plus button in the top right corner.
• A camera UI will open up. Center your loyalty card’s barcode in the camera rectangle until the app recognizes it. If you’re having trouble, you can tap the Enter manually button where you enter the numbers from beneath the barcode yourself.
• In either case, on the next screen, give your loyalty card a name. We recommend just using the store name for ease of use. Double check the card number section to ensure everything is correct. You can also select a card color and add a note. Optionally, you can also tap the Photo icon in the rectangle image at the top to add a photo of your loyalty card.
• When you are done, hit the Save button.
• To use the card, open LG Pay, tap the Loyalty option on the home page, and tap the Loyalty card you need. Once there, tap the magnifying glass icon. This enlarges the barcode large enough to be scanned by a cashier and also maxes out the screen brightness for maximum contrast.

Now that you are loaded up and ready to go, let’s learn how to actually use LG Pay to make purchases.

How to use LG Pay

LG Pay works a lot like Samsung Pay. There are two methods to open the app and prepare it to make purchases. There is a bit of setup here, so we’ll go over that first.

Setup LG PayQuick

LG PayQuick is a software add-on that comes native with LG Pay. It lets you pull a software tab from the bottom or sides of your screen to quickly activate LG Pay. You simply slide the tab out, enter your fingerprint or PIN code, and complete your purchase.

We highly recommend using this method. It’s quite easy to set up. Open the LG Pay app, tap on your credit or debit card, tap the 3-dot menu button, and select Add to LG PayQuick. From here, the software pull tab is activated on the bottom of the screen by default and it’s available in any app, the lock screen, and the home screen.

You can configure LG PayQuick by opening the LG Pay app, tapping the 3-dot menu on the home page, selecting Settings, and then finally, tap on LG PayQuick. From here, you can move the tab to the side of the screen instead of the bottom and decide some other stuff.

Everything above is only needed one time as a preliminary set up and you’ll never have to do it again to make purchases. Let’s actually use LG Pay now.

Method 1 – LG PayQuick outside of the app (preferred)

• Pull the LG PayQuick tab out from the side or bottom of the screen as you configured it in the previous steps. Select the card you want to use if you have multiple payment cards.
• Enter your PIN or fingerprint authentication as shown on the screen.
• From here, you have 50 seconds to actually use LG Pay. Tap it to the NFC icon on any terminal with an NFC icon or hold the phone over the magnetic stripe reader on non-NFC payment terminals until the app does its thing.
• After that, you may put the phone back in your pocket and use the payment terminal to complete your purchase as usual. Please note, you still have to do things like enter your PIN for debit card purchases on the payment terminal and not in the LG Pay app.

Method 2 – LG PayQuick inside the app

• You an initialize LG Pay within the app without adding the pull tab as described above. Simply open the LG Pay app, tap the card you want to use, and then tap the blue LG PayQuick button in the bottom right.
• Enter your fingerprint or PIN code as requested by the app.
• From here, you have 50 seconds to actually use LG Pay. Tap it to the NFC icon on any terminal with an NFC icon or hold the phone over the magnetic stripe reader on non-NFC payment terminals until the app does its thing.
• After that, you may put the phone back in your pocket and use the payment terminal to complete your purchase as usual. Please note, you still have to do things like enter your PIN for debit card purchases on the payment terminal and not in the LG Pay app.

Again, we highly recommend using the first method because it is much easier, much quicker, and much more ergonomic than opening the app every time.

LG Play supported banks

Let’s talk briefly about supported banks. LG Pay is very new to the space so the number of banks it supports are rather slim. At the time of this writing, LG Pay currently supports the following banks:

• Chase – The app supports most credit and debit cards from Chase.
• Citizens Bank – LG Pay supports all credit cards from here.
• HSBC – All Mastercard credit and debit cards work.
• SECU – All Visa credit and debit cards work.
• PNC Bank – Most credit and debit card accounts should work.
• Regions – Consumer credit and small business debit cards should work.
• US Bank – Most credit and debit cards should work.
• Virginia Credit Union – All Mastercard credit and debit cards should work.
• Others – There are about two dozen other, smaller establishments that work with LG Pay at this time. Click here to see the complete list as of the time of this writing.
• If you are reading this and we haven’t updated it in a while. You can check the current list of supported banks by opening the LG Pay app and then clicking the 3-dot menu button, then Support, and finally Supported issuers.

The process of adding banks is painfully long. You can help facilitate the process by calling or emailing your bank and asking them to support LG Pay. LG is doing what it can to sign as many banks and credit unions as possible, but its ultimately consumer demand that helps push the envelope faster.

Other tips and tricks

LG Pay is fairly basic at the time of this writing. However, there are some little extras you can engage with. Here is a short list of extra stuff you can do.

• Check out LG promotions – Tap the 3-dot menu button in the LG Pay app and select Promotions to see any current LG promotions with LG Pay.
• Check gift card order history – Open the LG Pay app and navigate to the Gift cards section. Tap the 3-dot menu button and tap Order history. You can also view this by tapping the 3-dot menu button,  then Settings, then Gift card order history.

We expect this list to expand as LG improves the service over time. Check back for more updates in the future!

LG Pay is new to the space and it obviously isn’t going to act as mature as the existing payment services. However, with its WCM technology and ease of use, it’s a welcome entrant into the space and the only competitor we have to Samsung Pay’s MST tech. Did we miss anything? Tell us about it in the comments and we’ll try to add more information on the next update!