Starbucks will soon begin accepting Apple Pay

apple-pay-cards

Starbucks fans rejoice! The popular coffee chain will soon support Apple Pay. Jennifer Bailey, the head of Apple’s mobile payment arm, broke the news Thursday onstage at the Code/Mobile conference, telling Recode’s Ina Fried that the launch is planned for early next year.

Note that this will be different than the current implementation of Apple Pay in the Starbucks app, which only really allows you to re-fill your Starbucks Card. In-store support of the payments service will allow users to pay for their coffee using their iPhone or Apple Watch.

Bailey wouldn’t say whether or not paying with Apple Pay at Starbucks will score you loyalty points, but she did confirm that a few other retailers will also be integrating with Apple Pay in 2016—specifically fast food restaurant KFC and the popular family sit down chain Chili’s.

“[KFC] has a special place in my heart — it was my first job ever,” Bailey said. “We’re seeing a lot of support for quick-service restaurants with a need for fast payment.” And for sit-down places, she posits that services like Apple Pay may eventually cut down the need for servers.

Source: Recode