What is Microsoft Pay? Microsoft Pay Review, Features

Microsoft Pay is Microsoft's mobile payment and digital wallet service that allows users to make payments and store loyalty cards on certain devices.

About Microsoft Pay

Microsoft Wallet was launched in the United States on June 21, 2016. It was initially released to participants of Microsoft's Windows Insider program and subsequently released with the Windows 10 Mobile Anniversary Update on August 16, 2016. The service is only available for Windows 10 Mobile along with Microsoft's Wallet app updates.

The launch of the Microsoft Wallet service represented Microsoft's creation of its own in-house mobile payments platform, enabling it to bypass its previous third-party reliance on contactless payments on Windows-based smartphones. Microsoft's mobile operating system supported contactless payments for NFC phones as early as 2012 in Windows Phone 8 and the original Wallet app. However, in previous operating systems, Microsoft relied on third-party apps to promote mobile payments. Mobile operators had to support this by providing secure component SIM cards to customers. Additionally, in the United States, mobile operators AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon were required to use Softcard, a platform they jointly developed, to process payments. When Google purchased Softcard in early 2015 (and subsequently closed it), it left the Windows platform without a viable contactless payment system in the United States.

Microsoft Pay features and services

1. Meetings

Share your screen, change or blur your background, and use the same scene mode to put everyone in the same virtual space.

2. Call

Make and receive calls right in Teams with advanced features like group calling, voicemail, and call forwarding.

3. Collaboration

Easily find, share, and edit files together in real time using apps like Word, PowerPoint, and Excel.

4. Chat

Share your thoughts and show your unique personality. Send GIFs, stickers or emojis in one-on-one or group messages.