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How to Pay for Gas Without Leaving Your Car

Dec 1, 2020

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The old days of sliding a credit card into a gas pump are slowly going away. While that’s still an option, many places support tap-to-pay with phones. However, there’s an even newer feature that lets you pay from your car.

Tap-to-pay with NFC is still relatively new for gas stations, but this method is already being surpassed. A growing number of locations actually support your ability to pay from an app in the comfort of your car. You simply enter your pump number and you’re ready to start pumping.

There are several different apps you can use to do this. The gas station chains that support the feature have their own apps. However, Google Pay, which is available for iPhone and Android, combines a couple of these into one interface. We’ll show you how to use the feature.

Google Pay

The Google Pay app is for much more than just mobile payments. It can be used to order food, split bills with friends, track your spending habits, and much more. One such “more” is paying for gas.

RELATED: What Is Google Pay, and What Can You Do With It?

Open the Google Pay app on your iPhone or Android device. On the main “Pay” tab, scroll down and select “Get Gas.”

Next, select one of the participating gas stations. You can tap the directions icon to launch Google Maps and navigate to the location. However, if you’re already at the gas station, it will automatically be detected and open.

When you’re at the gas station, you’ll be asked to select your pump number. Scroll through the numbers until you’ve selected your pump and then tap “Continue.”

A confirmation page will ask you to confirm your pump number and tap “Continue to Payment.”

Next, you’ll need to unlock Google Pay with your password, PIN, fingerprint, or other screen-lock method.

Now you can select your payment method, which will be one of the methods you’ve already added to the Google Pay app. Tap “Continue” after you’ve made your selection.

It will take a few seconds for the pump to be “Activated.” After that, the screen will say that your pump is ready. You can now get out of your car, choose a fuel grade, and begin pumping.

Once you’ve finished pumping, a notification will appear telling you how much you just spent. The transaction will also appear in your “Recent Activity” on the “Insights” tab.

That’s all there is to it!

First-Party Gas Station Apps

If your local gas station isn’t showing up in Google Pay, or if you simply prefer not to use Google’s service, many gas stations have their own apps for the same purpose.

The process of using these first-party gas station apps will be notably similar. You’ll need to create an account and provide a payment method, such as a credit card. When you arrive at the gas station, the app will ask you to enter the pump number that you’re at.

Here are a few of the most popular U.S. gas station chains that support app payments:

BP (Android, iPhone)
Chevron (Android, iPhone, iPad)
Exxon Mobile (Android, iPhone)
Shell (Android, iPhone)

Paying for gas has never been easier. The days of fiddling with your wallet or tapping a phone are over. If you’re looking to save time or limit touchpoints, this is a great feature to start using. Check to see if your frequent gas stops are supported!