iOS 16 finally allows you to use the Apple Pay payment feature on websites in other browsers like Chrome, Edge and Firefox, not just Safari.
- What’s happening? Apple is now permitting people who have the iOS 16 or iPadOS 16 beta installed on their iPhone or iPad to use other mobile web browsers in conjunction with Apple Pay, like Google’s Chrome, Microsoft’s Edge and Mozilla’s Firefox. This feature is unavailable in the latest macOS Ventura beta.
- Why care? The move makes Apple Pay more widely available to those who prefer a non-Apple web browser. iOS 15 and earlier prevent you from using any other browser aside from Safari when making web payments with Apple Pay.
- What to do? If you’re using the iOS 16 or iPadOS 16 beta on your device, the next time you’re about to make an Apple Pay payment on a website be sure to try this in the Chrome, Edge or Firefox browser.
iOS 16 makes Apple Pay work in Chrome, Edge and Firefox
Steve Moser on Twitter reported that Apple Pay works with Google’s Chrome, Microsoft’s Edge and Mozilla’s Firefox browsers on the iPhone in the fourth beta of iOS 16 and iPadOS 16. One of the screenshots he shared shows a “Continue with Apple Pay” option on a checkout page in Edge.
The Verge notes this change may have been implemented in earlier betas, with an older post on Reddit showing someone using Apple Pay on Firefox in iOS 16 beta 2.
On the latest iOS 16 beta Apple Pay works in Edge, Chrome and I assume any third party browser. On iOS 15 Apple Pay only works in Safari. pic.twitter.com/x7zV5xCuiC
— Steve Moser (@SteveMoser) July 30, 2022
Why Apple Pay doesn’t work on third-party Mac browsers
Apple Pay is not available in Chrome, Edge and Firefox in the latest macOS beta. Moser speculates this might have something to do with these browsers using their own rendering engines on macOS. On iOS, Apple requires that all web browsers use the WebKit rendering engine like Safari does. Apple’s requirements are less stringent on the macOS side of things so those same browsers use their own rendering engines on the Mac. Read: How to set up and use Apple Pay with Apple Watch
Apple has most probably limited Apple Pay to WebKit-powered browsers as a security precaution. As a result, Moser notes, Apple Pay support for Mac payments outside of Safari may not arrive anytime soon. Since browsers are free to use their own unique rendering engines on macOS, that’s exactly what they have been doing.
Since Microsoft Edge for macOS is based on Chromium like Google Chrome, both those browsers use the Blink rendering engine. As for Mozilla Firefox for macOS, it too uses its own rendering engine, dubbed Gecko. Chrome, Edge, Firefox and Safari for iOS, as we mentioned earlier, all use the WebKit rendering engine like Safari.
EU will put an end to this practice
It’s unclear if this is Apple’s reaction to the European Union’s Digital Markets Act, which goes into effect in spring 2023. As The Register reported earlier this year, the Digital Markets Act will, among other things, will forbid platform operators such as Apple, Google and Meta from forcing developers of web-browsing apps to only use Apple’s rendering engines. Read: 3 ways to change the default browser on macOS