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Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System
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Consumers and Mobile Financial Services
March 2016

Accessible Versions

Figure 1. Usage of mobile banking and mobile payments by mobile phone type

Percent
2011 2012 2013 2014 2015
Mobile banking All mobile phones 22 29 33 39 43
Smartphone 43 50 51 52 53
Mobile payments All mobile phones 12 15 17 22 24*
Smartphone 23 24 24 28 28*

Note: For mobile banking, among respondents with a mobile phone and bank account and respondents with a smartphone and bank account, respectively. For mobile payments, among respondents with a mobile phone and respondents with a smartphone, respectively.

* Not directly comparable to prior years due to question change in 2015.  Return to table

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Box 1. Figure A. Internet access and mobile phone ownership

Percent
Smartphone Feature phone No phone
Home and away 80 14 6
Home only 60 27 13
Away only 45 31 23
No access 31 30 39
Total 67 20 13

Note: Among all respondents (n=2,510). Here and elsewhere in this report, totals may not add to 100 percent due to rounding and question non-response.

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Figure 2. Usage of different means of accessing banking services

Percent
Bank branch 84
ATM 75
Online banking 71
Mobile banking 38
Telephone banking 30

Note: Among respondents with a bank account, regardless of mobile phone ownership or access to the Internet (n=2,373). For mobile banking, the percentage here differs from the incidence rates elsewhere in this report because the latter are computed for those with mobile phones and bank accounts.

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Box 2. Figure A. Phone ownership by banking status

Percent
Smartphone Feature phone No phone
Fully banked 70 20 10
Underbanked 70 17 13
Unbanked 40 28 32

Note: Among respondents who were fully banked (n=1,941), underbanked (n=425), and unbanked (n=128).

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Box 2. Figure B. Mobile banking and payments use by banking status

Percent
Mobile banking Fully banked 39
Underbanked 55
Mobile payments Fully banked 20
Underbanked 34

Note: Among respondents with a mobile phone who were fully banked (n=1,762) and underbanked (n=382).

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Figure 3. Using your mobile phone, have you done each of these in the past 12 months?

Percent
Checked an account balance or checked recent transactions 94
Transferred money between your bank accounts 58
Received an alert (e.g., a text message, push notification, or e-mail) from your bank 56
Deposited a check to your account electronically using your mobile phone camera 48
Made a bill payment using your bank's online banking website or banking app 47
Located the closest in-network ATM or branch for your bank 36
Sent money to relatives or friends within the U.S. using your bank's app or mobile website 16
Sent money to relatives or friends outside the U.S. using your bank's app or mobile website 4

Note: Among respondents with a mobile phone and bank account who used mobile banking in the past 12 months (n=801).

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Figure 4. What was the main reason why you started using mobile banking when you did?

Percent
I liked the convenience of mobile banking 39
I got a smartphone 26
My bank started offering the service 19
I became comfortable with the security of mobile banking 7
There is no bank branch or ATM near my home or work 3
To receive fraud alerts or check my account for fraudulent transactions 3
Other 3

Note: Among respondents with a mobile phone and bank account who used mobile banking in the past 12 months (n=801).

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Figure 5. Activities that non-users of mobile banking would be interested in pursuing

Percent
If their bank offered mobile banking If their concerns with mobile banking were addressed
None, I don't want to use mobile banking 75 54
Check an account balance or recent transactions 17 35
Receive alerts (e.g., text message, push notification, or e-mail) from your bank 7 25
Download your bank's mobile banking app 11 22
Deposit a check electronically using a mobile phone camera 5 21
Transfer money between your bank accounts 5 19
Make bill payments using your bank's website or app 6 17
Locate the closest in-network ATM or branch 5 16
Send money to relatives or friends within the U.S. 1 5
Send money to relatives or friends outside the U.S. 0 2

Note: Among those with a mobile phone and bank account who did not use mobile banking in the past 12 months, for those whose bank offered mobile banking (n = 819) and whose bank did not (n=536).

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Box 3. Figure A. Branch activities among smartphone users

Percent
Deposit a check or cash 78
Withdraw cash/cash a check 64
Resolve a problem or question or get general information about products or services 24
Get specific information about your account (e.g., balance, recent activity) 22
Transfer money between accounts 19
Open or close an account 14
Get a cashier's check, certified check, or money order 13
Apply for a loan 7
Send/wire money to someone 3

Note: Among respondents with a smartphone and bank account who have visited a bank branch in the past 12 months (n=1,376).

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Figure 6. Using your mobile phone, have you done each of these in the past 12 months?

Percent
Paid a bill using your mobile phone's web browser or an app 65
Purchased a physical item or digital content remotely by using your mobile phone's web browser or an app 42
Paid for something in a store using your mobile phone/app (e.g., Starbucks, Apple Pay) instead of cash or a physical payment card 33
Sent money to relatives or friends within the U.S. (e.g., Venmo, PayPal, Google Wallet, your bank's app) 25
Paid for parking, a taxi, car service (e.g., Uber), or public transit 20
Made a donation or other payment using a text message 12
Sent money to relatives or friends outside the U.S. (e.g., Western Union or USPS SureMoney, your bank's app) 5

Note: Among those with a smartphone who used mobile payments in the past 12 months (n=406).

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Figure 7. Please tell us if any of the reasons below are why you do not use mobile payments

Percent
It's easier to pay with cash or a credit/debit card 80
I'm concerned about the security of mobile payments 67
I don't see any benefit from using mobile payments 65
I don't trust the technology 47
I don't really understand all the different mobile payment options 36
I don't have the necessary feature on my phone 36
It's difficult or time consuming to set up or use mobile payments 34
I don't need to make any payments or someone else pays the bills 25
The places I shop don't accept mobile payments 22

Note: Among respondents with mobile phones who did not use mobile payments in the past 12 months (n=1,802).

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Figure 8. Assuming that the reason(s) why you do not currently use mobile payments was addressed, would you be interested in doing any of the following activities with your mobile phone?

Percent
None, I don't want to use mobile payments 74
Paying for something in a store using your mobile phone/app instead of cash or a physical payment card 17
Paying for parking, a taxi, car service, or public transit 12
Purchasing a physical item or digital content remotely by using your mobile phone's web browser or an app 12
Paying a bill using your mobile phone's web browser or an app 12
Sending money to relatives or friends within the U.S. 6
Making a donation or other payment using a text message 5
Sending money to relatives or friends outside the U.S. 2

Note: Among respondents with mobile phones who did not use mobile payments in the past 12 months (n=1,802).

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Figure 9. How safe do you believe people's personal information is when they use mobile banking?

Percent
Mobile banking user Not a mobile banking user
Very safe 16 2
Somewhat safe 55 23
Somewhat unsafe 19 29
Very unsafe 3 28
Don't know 6 18

Note: Among respondents with a mobile phone and bank account, for those who used mobile banking (n=801) and those who did not use mobile banking (n=1,343) in the past 12 months.

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Figure 10. Which one of the following security aspects are you most concerned with?

Percent
All of the stated concerns 37
My phone getting hacked or someone intercepting my data 25
Losing my phone or having my phone stolen 13
Companies (merchants, banks, third parties) not providing sufficient security to protect my mobile transactions 7
Someone using my phone without permission to access my account 4
Malware or viruses being installed on my phone 2
Companies misusing my personal information 2
Other 1
No concerns/I think it is safe 8

Note: Among respondents with a mobile phone (n=2,244).

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Figure 11. Willingness to provide information using mobile phone

Percent
I am willing to allow my mobile phone to provide my location to companies I shop with regularly so that they can offer me discounts, promotions, or services based on where I am. I am willing to answer security questions or provide additional information to my bank or credit union when I log into mobile banking so my bank can enhance the security of my mobile transaction.
Strongly agree 6 32
Agree 35 42
Disagree 33 13
Strongly disagree 26 12

Note: Among smartphone users (n=1,680).

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Figure 12. Do you receive each of the following kinds of alerts?

Percent
Low balance 52
Payment due 43
Deposit or withdrawal 43
Statement available notification 38
Fraud 36
Credit card balance 22
Saving reminders 7
Other 5

Note: Among respondents with a mobile phone and bank account who used mobile banking in the past 12 months and who receive alerts (n=437). Respondents may receive alerts from their financial institution via push notification, text message, or e-mail.

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Figure 13. Share of respondents that already do or would like to use mobile phone for any of the following purposes

Percent
I already do I would like to
Track your finances, purchases, or expenses 33 14
Compare prices when shopping 33 23
Receive and manage discount offers and coupons 25 25
Receive offers and promotions based on your location 19 22
Organize, track, and store gift cards, memberships, loyalty and reward points 14 22

Note: Among respondents with mobile phones (n=2,244).

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Last update: February 14, 2017