Glossary

Wallet pass

Definition

A wallet pass is a digital card — a boarding pass, ticket, coupon, or loyalty card — stored natively in Apple Wallet or Google Wallet on a phone. Passes can be updated remotely by their issuer and can trigger lock-screen notifications based on time or location.

What a wallet pass gives you

Persistence, mainly. Once added, the pass sits in the phone's wallet alongside payment cards, survives browser history clearing, and is reachable in a couple of taps without typing a URL.

The other advantage is push. An issuer can update a pass remotely — a new stamp count, a changed reward — and surface a lock-screen notification, including when the customer is near the venue on iOS.

What issuing passes actually requires

Apple Wallet passes must be cryptographically signed with a certificate tied to a paid Apple Developer account, currently $99 per year. Google Wallet requires an approved issuer account. Neither is a switch a platform can simply turn on.

That approval overhead is why wallet support tends to appear on more expensive loyalty plans, and why some platforms charge per pass issued.

Wallet pass vs. a web-based card

A web-based loyalty card is a page the customer opens in their browser. There is no install, no approval chain, and it works identically on iOS and Android — but it has no lock-screen presence, so it relies on the customer opening a link.

To be direct about it: Bioflow's loyalty cards are web-based today. Customers join from your public profile and open their card in the browser, with nothing to install. Wallet pass issuance is on the roadmap and is not shipped — if lock-screen notifications are a requirement for you right now, a wallet-native platform is the correct choice and we would rather you knew that before signing up.

Frequently asked questions

Does Bioflow issue Apple Wallet or Google Wallet passes?

Not today. Bioflow's loyalty cards are web-based — the customer opens their card in a browser with nothing to install. Wallet pass issuance is planned but not shipped, and we would rather say so than imply otherwise.

Is a wallet pass better than a web-based loyalty card?

For notifications and for staying findable on the phone, yes. For getting a customer enrolled in ten seconds at a busy counter, the web card is usually better — there is no install prompt and no platform difference between iOS and Android.

Do wallet passes work on both iPhone and Android?

Yes, but as two separate integrations. Apple Wallet and Google Wallet are different systems with different certificates, formats, and approval processes, so a platform can support one and not the other.

Can a wallet pass be updated after the customer adds it?

Yes. That is the core feature — the issuer pushes an update and the stamp count or reward changes on the customer's phone without them doing anything.

Related terms

Digital stamp card

A digital stamp card is a loyalty card held on a customer's phone instead of on paper, where each qualifying visit or purchase adds one stamp and reaching a set number of stamps unlocks a reward. It replicates the classic buy-nine-get-one-free punch card without the card to lose.

QR code loyalty program

A QR code loyalty program uses scannable codes instead of cards or POS integration to identify customers and record loyalty activity. The customer holds a unique member code, and the business scans it at each qualifying visit to award a stamp or points.

Digital loyalty program

A digital loyalty program is a system that tracks a customer's repeat purchases electronically and grants rewards when they hit defined thresholds. It covers stamp cards, points balances, tiers, and cashback — the common factor is that the business, not the customer, holds the record.

No install, no app store, no approval queue

Customers open their loyalty card straight from your Bioflow profile.

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