Questions about budget and payments in Japan (page 2 of 2)

Yeah, it works well pretty much everywhere with the iPhone—I do that most of the time. Worst case, if it doesn’t work or works poorly, you just pull out your card for contactless.

So, does that mean (and this would answer my question) that you can add the card to your iPhone, top it up with a Visa linked to your iPhone (like Revolut, for example), and still keep using the ICOCA as a physical card?

Yes, you can also add ICOCA to your iPhone wallet, just like Suica and Pasmo.

So, does that mean (and that would answer my question) that you can add the card to your iPhone, top it up with a Visa linked to your iPhone (like Revolut, for example) and still keep using the ICOCA as a physical card?

To finally try to answer your question, yes, you can actually have virtual IC Cards on your iPhone. They top up via Apple Pay, down to the exact yen, which is a huge advantage over the physical card.

There’s no interaction possible between the physical card and the iPhone, except in two cases.

You can transfer a physical card to your iPhone, keeping the balance, but the physical card becomes unusable. I learned this the hard way—I tried it with my ICOCA, and it worked, but then no more ICOCA: goodbye, platypus…

You can track the spending on your physical card via dedicated apps on your smartphone using NFC.

Note that the iPhone also supports, in addition to Japanese IC Cards, T-Money for Korea, Octopus for Hong Kong, and a bunch of Chinese transit cards…

Thanks for your reply.

So, if I understand correctly, once the card is on the iPhone, you can’t use it physically anymore. Is that right?

I didn’t get the expression "exit the platypus..." Sorry!

So, if I understand correctly, once the card is on the iPhone, you can't use the physical one anymore. Is that right?

Yes. Actually, if you have both—a physical and a virtual one—it’s better to finish using the physical one and then switch to the virtual, because 1) the physical becomes unusable after the transfer, and 2) the balances don’t combine.

I didn’t get the phrase "exit l’ornithorynque..." Sorry!

An IC card looks like this:

Ok, thanks 😎😎😎

hi we also have Revolut and honestly, it's the best—it works everywhere, and the exchange rate is better than at exchange bureaus. Plus, you pay directly in yen with the card. no issues with withdrawals either.

Thanks. We loaded our Revolut cards and got some cash to top up our ICOCA cards. We're all set. Well, I hope so!

after the Revolut card, the premium one with the best benefits is the Metal one. Same for withdrawals, foreign exchange fees, and revpoints

nos Revolut

To pay in ¥, it's best to open an account... in ¥. That way, you can keep better track of your spending and, most importantly, avoid the currency exchange fees Revolut adds on weekends.

Absolutely, I exchanged my money into yen and paid in yen—no fees because I have the metal card, and no fees on weekends or for withdrawals. And I found the exchange rate was better with Revolut than going to exchange bureaus. I was also able to pay for Uber rides and public transport directly in yen, which was super easy.

Thanks. That’s what I did too. I have the free “basic” card, but it’s enough for me.