Card and alternative payment share in e-commerce in 15 countries Latin America 2023

Wallets and other alternative payment methods were used the most in e-commerce in Colombia and Brazil, while payment cards were most often used in Ecuador. This is according to a distribution of e-commerce spending in 15 different countries in Latin America, separated by cards as opposed to other non-card digital payment methods. The 50 percent market share for alternative payments in Brazil is due to the sizable growth of Pix. Latin Americans across multiple countries use (credit) cards more frequently for online shopping than for offline purchases in brick-and-mortar stores.

Latin America is a large market for credit cards

In terms of the number of credit cards issued by country in Latin America, Brazil significantly outpaces other countries. It had approximately 400 million credit cards in circulation in 2022, a number far higher than the roughly 54 million credit cards in Argentina. Notable is the relatively high use of Visa in Mexico, Argentina, and Peru - with processed volume reaching over 30 percent of all payments in those countries, be they cash or digital. Mastercard is used relatively often in Brazil and Colombia.

Wallets to grow in physical stores

The market share of digital wallets in either POS or e-commerce transactions was lower in Latin America than the likes of Asia-Pacific or North America. Wallets accounted for nearly 70 percent of e-commerce transaction value in Asia-Pacific in 2023, compared to 21 percent in Latin America. Where Latin America differs from the rest of the world is its outlook: It is forecast to be the only region in the world by 2027 where in-store use of digital wallets is more common than its use in e-commerce.