Masterpass
Mastercard Click to Pay (formerly Masterpass) is Mastercard Incorporated's consumer-facing online checkout service that uses encrypted virtual card numbers to enable password-free, secure purchases at participating merchants across global markets.
- Company typePublic
- Founded1966
- HeadquartersBoston, United States
- Headcount5,001–10,000
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingSoftware
What Masterpass does
Mastercard Click to Pay, formerly branded as Masterpass, is a consumer-facing online checkout service operated by Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE: MA), the global payments technology company founded in 1966. The service enables online consumers to complete purchases without manually entering card details or passwords by leveraging encrypted virtual card numbers and one-time enrollment. Built on Mastercard's core payments infrastructure, Click to Pay incorporates bot detection, zero liability protection, and optional identity theft protection delivered through a partnership with Generali Global Assistance, Inc. Click to Pay was launched in 2020 as part of Mastercard's broader digital payments strategy and is licensed to use the industry-standard icon specification owned by EMVCo, LLC.
The product serves two primary customer segments: online consumers seeking faster, more secure checkout experiences, and online merchants looking to reduce cart abandonment through streamlined authentication. Distribution is achieved through three primary channels — direct consumer enrollment via Mastercard's website, merchant integration of the Click to Pay icon at online checkout pages, and enablement by card-issuing financial institutions. There is no direct consumer pricing; the service is free for Mastercard cardholders, and Mastercard monetizes Click to Pay through transaction fees charged to merchants as part of standard payment processing on its network. Mastercard's broader consumer payments portfolio includes complementary offerings such as contactless payments, payment passkeys, and the Digital First card program.
Click to Pay operates globally with a presence across North America, Asia Pacific, Europe, Eastern Europe/Middle East/Africa, and Latin America, leveraging Mastercard's existing merchant and issuer infrastructure. Customer support is delivered through phone (1-833-271-9871) and email ([email protected]), and marketing is primarily driven through the Mastercard website, educational content, and the icon's presence at participating retailer checkouts. As a sub-product of Mastercard Incorporated, Click to Pay revenue is not separately disclosed in the source material.
Masterpass firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Masterpass
- Legal name
- Mastercard Incorporated
- Website
- https://masterpass.com
- Company type
- Public
- Founded year
- 1966
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 5,001–10,000 employees
- Short description
- Mastercard Click to Pay (formerly Masterpass) is Mastercard Incorporated's consumer-facing online checkout service that uses encrypted virtual card numbers to enable password-free, secure purchases at participating merchants across global markets.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Masterpass industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Digital Payments
- NAICS
- Financial Transactions Processing, Reserve, and Clearinghouse Activities (52232)
- akta.pro primary industry
- General-Purpose Credit Card Schemes (FSAMAAAA)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Recurring Billing, Subscriptions & Tokenized Payments (CRAFALAH), Card Clearing & Settlement (Interchange, Network Settlement) (FSABAJAJ)
Keywords
Where Masterpass is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Boston
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Markets served
Masterpass business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Personnel, Operations
Revenue model
- Transaction Processing Fees: Masterpass generates revenue through transaction fees charged to merchants for each Click to Pay checkout processed through the Mastercard network. This is part of the broader Mastercard payment network revenue model.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels4 records
Masterpass product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Masterpass (marketed today as Mastercard Click to Pay) is Mastercard's consumer digital-wallet and online checkout service that stores Mastercard credentials and lets cardholders complete purchases at participating merchants without re-entering card details or passwords. The product secures each transaction through encrypted payment information, virtual card-number tokenization, and bot detection, and is delivered as the Click to Pay icon embedded at merchant checkout pages globally.
Product overview
Mastercard Click to Pay is a unified consumer-facing online checkout product that eliminates the need to manually enter card details or remember passwords. It is built on encrypted virtual card number technology and integrates bot detection for security. The product functions as a direct consumer solution available through participating merchants, representing a single streamlined payment authentication experience within the broader Mastercard payments ecosystem.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Mastercard Click to Pay (Masterpass) A secure online payment solution that lets consumers store Mastercard credentials once and complete purchases at participating merchants without re-entering card details or passwords, using encrypted virtual card numbers, bot detection, and Zero Liability protection. Available to Mastercard cardholders globally and embedded at merchant checkouts via the Click to Pay icon (EMVCo trademark).
Quantifiable outcome
- Consumers can checkout faster without entering card details or passwords
Companies that use Masterpass
Customer profileSegments2 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Masterpass technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
AI capability1 record
Feature5 records
Masterpass partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Two partnerships are on record, tiered core and supporting.
- EMVCo, LLCcoreEMVCo, LLC is the owner of the Click to Pay icon trademark, which Mastercard uses under permission. EMVCo manages technical standards for payment technologies including the Click to Pay specification.
- Generali Global Assistance, Inc.supportingGenerali Global Assistance provides the Mastercard ID Theft Protection service that is available to Click to Pay enrolled cardholders. Cardholders need to register for this service which provides identity theft protection benefits.
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Masterpass competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Adyen: Global payment processor serving enterprise merchants with unified online and in-person checkout. Competes for merchant checkout decisions that determine whether Click to Pay (or alternatives) gets surfaced at the point of sale.
- Stripe: Large-scale online payments platform serving merchants with checkout APIs and fraud tooling. Adjacent rather than directly competitive, but influences the same merchants' checkout roadmap and could embed competing password-free experiences.
- Block (Square): Payments and commerce platform with online checkout, wallet, and merchant services. Competes in the broader online checkout ecosystem and could bundle wallet-based experiences that rival Click to Pay.
Direct peers
- PayPal: Dominant online checkout wallet with pre-stored payment credentials and broad merchant acceptance. Competes with Click to Pay for the same online checkout moment and target consumer pain points (friction, password fatigue, security).
- American Express: Global card network with its own online checkout offering for Amex cardholders. Competes with Mastercard Click to Pay for online transaction share and brings comparable brand recognition and premium-cardholder positioning.
- Apple Pay: Apple's digital wallet for online and in-app checkout using biometric authentication and stored cards. Targets the same password-free online checkout use case as Click to Pay and competes directly at participating e-commerce merchants.
- Amazon Pay: Amazon's online checkout wallet leveraging stored Amazon credentials at third-party merchants. Competes for the same online checkout conversion objective with a different funding and authentication model.
- Discover Click to Pay: Discover's implementation of the EMVCo Click to Pay standard for Discover cardholders. Offers a near-identical password-free checkout experience, competing for the same online merchants and cardholders.
- Visa Click to Pay: Visa's competing implementation of the EMVCo Click to Pay standard, offering the same password-free online checkout experience to Visa cardholders at participating merchants. Directly comparable product, customer base and merchant integration model.
- Google Pay: Google's digital wallet offering stored-card online checkout across web and Android. Competes head-on with Click to Pay for online checkout conversion and consumer enrollment at participating merchants.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Masterpass social profiles
Digital presenceMasterpass financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Masterpass leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
Masterpass funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Masterpass M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Masterpass
What does Masterpass do?
Masterpass (marketed today as Mastercard Click to Pay) is Mastercard's consumer digital-wallet and online checkout service that stores Mastercard credentials and lets cardholders complete purchases at participating merchants without re-entering card details or passwords. The product secures each transaction through encrypted payment information, virtual card-number tokenization, and bot detection, and is delivered as the Click to Pay icon embedded at merchant checkout pages globally.
Is Masterpass a public or private company?
Masterpass is a public company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.
When was Masterpass founded?
Masterpass was founded in 1966. It employs 5,001 to 10,000 people.
Where is Masterpass based?
Masterpass is headquartered in Boston, United States, in the North America region.
How does Masterpass make money?
One revenue line is on record: transaction Processing Fees.
Who are Masterpass's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Adyen, Stripe and Block (Square). Direct peers are PayPal, American Express, Apple Pay, Amazon Pay, Discover Click to Pay, Visa Click to Pay and Google Pay.
Does Masterpass have an API?
No public API is recorded for Masterpass.
What industry is Masterpass in?
Masterpass's product category is Digital Payments. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSAMAAAA, General-Purpose Credit Card Schemes, with a secondary code of CRAFALAH, Recurring Billing, Subscriptions & Tokenized Payments. Its NAICS code is 52232.