- Rewards and cashback emerge as the strongest driver of UPI app choice in India
- Amazon Pay records highest satisfaction followed by Google Pay and Paytm
- Retention, not adoption, to drive the second wave of UPI growth
NEW DELHI, 22 July 2026: India’s UPI ecosystem, now processing over 66 crore daily transactions, is witnessing a fundamental shift in what drives consumer loyalty. According to findings by Empower India basis primary and secondary research, including a study by Kantar 89% of UPI users consider rewards and cashback when choosing a payment app, while 83% willing to switch apps for better rewards. Additionally, 94% consider rewards important when switching apps with 88% actively comparing UPI apps to identify better, highlighting that rewards are no longer promotional incentives but a core factor influencing payment decisions.
Among users who switched apps, 59% cited poor rewards and benefits as the top reason for leaving their previous platform — compared to those who cited ease of use (64%), trust and support (61%), and payment convenience (28%). This suggests that rewards have evolved from being an acquisition tool into a critical retention lever for digital payment platforms.
Commenting on the findings, K. Giri, Director General, Empower India, said: “India has successfully built one of the world’s most sophisticated real-time payment infrastructures. The next chapter of UPI’s growth, however, will be defined less by adoption and more by engagement. Our research shows consumers increasingly expect tangible value from every transaction, making rewards an integral part of the digital payments experience rather than a marketing add-on. As competition intensifies, customer retention will increasingly be driven by platforms that combine trusted payment experiences with meaningful everyday value.”
The findings also evaluated customer satisfaction with rewards across leading UPI platforms.
- Amazon Pay emerged as the highest-rated platform, with 74% of its users saying they were “very satisfied” with the rewards they receive.
- In comparison, PhonePe and Google Pay performed strongly on trust and security
- Paytm scored high on ease of use.
- 87% of Amazon Pay users also said they chose the platform because of the everyday value delivered through its rewards and cashback, compared with 73% for Google Pay.
- 50% of Amazon Pay users cited cashback on everyday payments as a key reason for using the app, compared to 38% for PhonePe and 35% for Google Pay.
- On ease of redeeming rewards, PhonePe and Amazon Pay performed comparably (68%), closely trailing Google Pay’s 70%, suggesting that redemption convenience is becoming a competitive strength across the ecosystem.
Beyond platform comparisons, the findings conclude that India’s UPI ecosystem has entered a new phase of maturity. Core capabilities such as speed, reliability, security and merchant acceptance are now baseline expectations rather than sources of competitive advantage. As these functional differences narrow, customer preference is increasingly being shaped by the ability of platforms to deliver consistent, relevant and easy-to-use rewards that create tangible everyday value.
The research suggests that the next phase of UPI growth will be driven by retention rather than adoption, reinforcing the RBI’s vision of a mature and inclusive digital payments ecosystem. As competition intensifies, platforms will increasingly differentiate themselves not through payment functionality alone, but by building stronger customer relationships through meaningful rewards and superior user experience. In an ecosystem where switching costs are low, sustained loyalty will belong to platforms that consistently deliver value beyond the transaction.