Is Google Pay(Tez) a well-designed app? — UX Case Study

Published in

UX Planet

6 min readFeb 9, 2020

Google Pay (Previously known as Tez) has become one of the top payment apps in India in a really short time. It transfers money from a user’s bank account directly to the recipient and thus acts as a replacement for a bank card, in a similar manner to Android Pay or Apple Pay. This mobile payments app is based on the India’s Unified Payment Interface (UPI) standard — a government-backed system launched in 2016 to encourage digital payments. Google Pay has amassed 67 million monthly active users in India and has processed transactions worth $110 billion in the last year.

Let’s Begin

1. Onboarding & Setup

I don’t expect much from a payment app but it’s by Google. So, let’s start with my mood level at 10 points.

The Onboarding is simple. Enter the phone number and you get logged in via OTP. Even there’s an option of language selection and use of separate google pin which is good.

Adding your bank account is also super easy. It’s seamless with contextual permission being asked. Go on, I allow you to view my messages and calls.

Good, you showed which account is linked along with the UPI ID. And… it’s Activated.

I like the simplicity. (+10 points)

2. First Impressions

The first impression could blow you out. It looks beautiful and uncluttered. My experience with other payment apps is everything but beautiful.
Good work GPay Team!

The image on the top looks beautiful. But, I don’t know why there’s this image of a rickshaw and a car. Does it make any sense, not to me though! Let’s ignore that.

Overall, it looks pretty. (+10 points)

3. Make a payment

Let’s start making a payment. There’s a floating action button above the Businesses for a new payment. I had to search through the screen to find it. I believe there could be a better way.

Case 1 — Send money to a friend (first time)

My friend, Kunu asked me to send him some money. Let’s search for his name. What! It says ‘Can’t find anything’. But, I could see the app installed on his phone. Let me search again. ‘Can’t find anything’ !!

Kunu (screams): “Did you not save my number!”
Me : Yes, I did. It’s there in my contacts.
Kunu : Then why the heck there’s ‘no results found’.

It’s because Google Pay saves your contact as per the Google Account Name. And Kunu’s Google Account Name is ‘EDM box’. That’s why there was no result when I searched for ‘Kunu’. But if I search ‘EDM box’, I could see it.

I know what’s in your mind (“Who keeps the Google Account Name as EDM box!!” 😂). But, please don’t judge. He’s passionate about this and now he’s a professional DJ with a few original tracks on SoundCloud.

Contacts should be saved as per my Contact List, not the other way. It’s a really bad experience if I can’t even find my contact. (-20 points)

Okay, let me send him money. But why is this asking me for the location! Maybe they are tagging location with my transaction. Let’s just do it. The confirmation screen provides a clear message about the successful transaction. I like that. And… I got a reward as a scratch card.
Oops, “Better Luck Next Time”. (+5points)

Case 2 — Send money to a friend (previously transacted)

I want to send money to my buddy Suvasish for the amazing lunch at Roots (Btw, it’s my favorite restaurant in Bengaluru). We have made transactions in the past. So, it’s easy to find, right on my home screen.

That’s so simple. (+5 points)

4. Making a payment to a business

Generally, all the brick and mortar stores have this QR Code at their cash counter.

So, there should be a QR Scanner on the home page. But, where is it? Don’t tell me it’s on the new payment page. Yes, it is.

I later got to know the google lens look-alike icon on the top left corner is the QR Code scanner which is almost inaccessible with one hand, especially with a tall device.

Businesses play an important role in revenue for such an app. Putting a QR Code in a prominent place could have made it easier to pay. (-5 points)

And the Businesses section for previously transacted ones could be used for stores and businesses I frequently pay like a particular tea shop or dosa joint which currently appears in the ‘People’ section.

5. Paying Bills

It’s convenient to pay bills and mobile recharge. You could see the plans. A search bar in bill categories like electricity could have been great. Going through a long list like this is a pain. Also, Overall, it’s good. (+10 Points)

6. Checking Balance

Lastly, I want to check my balance. It’s an important feature if you consider people who are concerned about their financial status, that’s almost all the Indians. But, where to find the check balance. Maybe it’s on my profile page. No… It’s not there. It takes 4 taps and a sherlock to find where it is.

It’s this way — Home>Profile>Payment Methods>Bank Details>View Balance

Or you could find it when you scroll the full home page which was undiscovered till today (I have been using it since 2017).

(-5 Points)