Danmarks Nationalbank reports that more than 90% of in-store payments were digital and 9% were cash in 2025; it lists Dankort, international cards and MobilePay among common methods.
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Europe Market guide
Denmark
Payments
Denmark combines Dankort and international cards with MobilePay, bank transfers and digital wallets. Assess each merchant route separately; wallet use is not a payment-network share.
Payment methods to assess
- Dankort
- Visa / Mastercard
- MobilePay
- Bank transfer
Infrastructure
Payment Ecosystem
Payment categories to assess in Denmark; actual availability and use vary by provider and channel.
Real-Time Payments
Account-to-account transfer systems and interoperable services; participant, availability and settlement terms vary by market.
Cards
Credit and debit card payments processed over Visa, Mastercard, and local networks.
E-Wallets
Mobile-wallet products may support transfers or merchant checkout; funding and acceptance vary by provider.
Bank Transfer
Credit and debit transfers between accounts, subject to the bank and scheme product.
Buy Now Pay Later
Deferred or instalment payment products where a provider offers them at checkout.
Cash
Physical currency and cash collection where offered.
Rail Profile
Real-Time Rail Deep Dive
Instant bank transfers are available; merchant products vary
Check participant coverage, operating hours, confirmation and settlement terms for this specific service. Network availability alone does not establish a merchant product.
How payments flow
Instant bank transfers are available; merchant products vary
Availability and settlement depend on the product
Confirm participant coverage, merchant access, confirmation events, settlement and fees with the provider.
Card Payment
Authorisation and settlement terms vary
Arrows show the card authorisation request, not the movement of settled funds. Authentication depends on channel and scheme rules. MDR varies by card type and acquirer. Dispute losses depend on scheme rules and the merchant agreement.
Payment route (Mobile Wallet)
Product-specific acceptance
Funding source, merchant availability, fees and settlement depend on the wallet product and provider contract.
Deep Dive
Denmark Payments — Full Breakdown
Denmark is a highly digital payment market, but a merchant decision cannot be reduced to a single wallet or card share. Dankort, international Visa and Mastercard cards, MobilePay, Betalingsservice and bank transfers serve different customers and payment tasks. The relevant question is which routes a particular checkout, invoice or recurring-payment flow needs.
Danmarks Nationalbank reports that more than 90% of in-store payments were digital in 2025, while cash accounted for 9%. It separately reports that 31.6% of transactions using Danish-issued cards were made through a mobile wallet in 2025. A card stored in Apple Pay or Google Pay is still a card transaction; this statistic does not measure MobilePay's share of all payments.
Cards: Dankort and international schemes
Dankort is Denmark's domestic card scheme. Danmarks Nationalbank says it remains central to retail payments, although its use has declined relative to international cards. A co-branded card or wallet can support different routes; ask the acquiring provider which route it can use for the merchant's channel, card mix and customer devices.
The Nationalbank reported DKK 661 billion of card payment turnover in 2024. This is total card value, not merchant revenue or a Dankort-only figure. It should not be used to infer a particular acquirer's fee.
MobilePay and bank transfers
MobilePay is a merchant and consumer payment product distinct from a card stored in a mobile wallet. Check the merchant's actual integration, confirmation and reconciliation method. Instant bank transfers are also available in Denmark, but availability of an instant transfer does not prove that a specific merchant can offer it as checkout.
Betalingsservice is relevant to recurring bill payment. It is not interchangeable with a one-off MobilePay checkout or a card-present purchase.
Merchant evaluation
Ask prospective providers for a route-by-route example using the same Danish and international cards, ticket sizes, channel and transaction count. Request the statement fields that distinguish Dankort from international card transactions and show refunds, disputes and fixed charges.
For MobilePay or bank transfer, ask where funds first arrive, what confirms the payment, when settlement is usable and which reference allows order or invoice matching. Contracted merchant fees must be compared directly; EU consumer-card interchange limits do not set a universal merchant discount rate.
Scope
The national figures above describe different denominators: in-store payment method share, Danish-issued card wallet use and total card turnover. They cannot be combined into one market-share chart. No merchant fee or provider ranking follows from them.
Frequently asked questions
Is MobilePay the same as a card in Apple Pay or Google Pay?
No. MobilePay is a separate payment product. The Nationalbank's 31.6% figure counts transactions using Danish-issued cards through mobile wallets such as Apple Pay and Google Pay; it should not be reported as MobilePay's merchant share.
Does every Danish card payment use Dankort?
No. Danmarks Nationalbank reports both Dankort and international card use. The route used for a card payment depends on the card, wallet, point of sale or online integration, and the merchant's acquiring arrangement.
Sources & methodology (4)
In 2025, 31.6% of transactions made with Danish-issued cards used mobile wallets; the card-wallet share by value was 22.6%.
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Dankort remains central to Danish retail payments, though use has declined relative to international cards; the report distinguishes Dankort from MobilePay and bank transfers.
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Card payment turnover reached DKK 661 billion in 2024.
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Source types explained in our Methodology.
Compliance
Regulatory Framework
Payments in Denmark are governed by Finanstilsynet (Danish Financial Supervisory Authority).
Authorisation
Requirements depend on the payment activity and legal entity.
AML Framework
Check the current activity-specific AML/CFT, customer-identification and reporting obligations with the relevant authority and contracting provider.
Payment Data
Check the applicable data-handling and cross-border transfer rules for the activity, legal entities and processing locations.
Intelligence
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Last updated: October 23, 2026