Pixel owners have been reporting tap-to-pay failures in Google Wallet since the middle of last month. The issue appears intermittently or makes the feature entirely non-functional, often becoming apparent only when users attempt to pay. Affected devices span most of the Pixel 9 lineup and later, including the Pixel 10 Pro.
The root cause remains unknown. Some phones fail to detect an NFC terminal when Google Wallet is open, so the device never transmits payment data. Google has not acknowledged the problem, leaving users without an official fix.
In the meantime, users have found several workarounds. Restarting the phone seems to be the most dependable, though it is inconvenient at checkout. Other options include closing and reopening Wallet, clearing the app's cache, or using a smartwatch with Google Wallet instead.