Visa: 52.60% Mastercard: 23.70% American Express: 19.60% Discover: 4.00%
The four major credit card networks – Visa, Mastercard, American Express, and Discover – dictate where credit cards and debit cards can be used. They are not created equal, however. Visa and Mastercard boast a significant advantage in terms of worldwide acceptance, while Amex and Discover supplement their payment facilitation business by issuing cards directly to consumers. Card network rental car insurance , extended warranty , and fraud liability policies vary widely as well.
The card network market share statistics listed below will give you a sense of the hierarchy that exists in the card network space. Networks are compared based on credit card market share, debit card market share, purchase volume, cards in circulation, and monthly spending.
Credit Card Market Share by Purchase Volume
(Source: SEC filings from Visa, Mastercard, American Express and Discover)
Credit Card Networks Based on Purchase Volume (in Billions)
Year
Visa
Mastercard
American Express
Discover
Total Purchase Volume (In Billions)
2021 $2,405 $1,085 $897 $182 $4,569 2020 $1,939 $841 $708 $143 $3,631 2019 $2,089 $910 $841 $146 $3,986 2018 $1,956 $811 $778 $139 $3,684 2017 $1,777 $743 $708 $129 $3,357 2016 $1,549 $693 $700 $121 $3,064 2015 $1,343 $652 $721 $118 $2,834 2014 $1,213 $607 $688 $116 $2,624 2013 $1,079 $560 $637 $110 $2,386 2012 $981 $534 $591 $106 $2,211 2011 $889 $508 $543 $100 $2,040 2010 $809 $479 $479 $93 $1,860 2009 $764 $477 $424 $88 $1,752 2008 $824 $547 $471 $92 $1,934 2007 $807 $548 $459 $90 $1,905 2006 $742 $509 $407 $86 $1,744
(Source: SEC filings from Visa, Mastercard, American Express and Discover)
Credit Card Market Share by Outstanding Balance
Network
Market share
Visa 41.70% Mastercard 27.41% American Express 10.17% Discover 7.13% Others 13.59%
(Source: Nilson Report, 2022)
Credit Card Market Share by Number of Cards in Circulation
(Sources: SEC filings from Visa, Mastercard, American Express and Discover)
Number of Cards in Circulation (in Millions)
Year
Visa
Mastercard
American Express
Discover
Total Number of Cards (In Millions)
2021 361 274 56 61 752 2020 353 246 54 60 713 2019 337 243 55 59 694 2018 337 231 54 57 679 2017 340 211 50 53 654 2016 335 200 48 51 634 2015 328 191 58 53 630 2014 304 191 55 57 607 2013 285 178 53 64 580 2012 277 178 52 62 569
(Source: SEC filings from Visa, Mastercard, American Express and Discover)
Average Credit Card Spending by Network
Info
Visa
Mastercard
American Express
Discover
Overall
Annual $6,625 $3,960 $15,904 $2,986 $6,073 Monthly $552 $330 $1,325 $249 $506
(Sources: SEC filings from Visa, Mastercard, American Express and Discover)
Global Credit Card Market Share by Purchase Volume
Network
Purchase Volume (in Billions)
Market share
UnionPay $6950.06 44.33% Visa $5141.02 32.79% Mastercard $2759.71 17.60% Others $828.49 5.28%
(Source: Nilson Report, 2022)
Back To Top
Was this article helpful?
Yes No
Important Disclosures Disclaimer: Editorial and user-generated content is not provided or commissioned by financial institutions. Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone and have not been approved or otherwise endorsed by any financial institution, including those that are WalletHub advertising partners. Our content is intended for informational purposes only, and we encourage everyone to respect our content guidelines . Please keep in mind that it is not a financial institution’s responsibility to ensure all posts and questions are answered.
Ad Disclosure : Certain offers that appear on this site originate from paying advertisers , and this will be noted on an offer’s details page using the designation "Sponsored", where applicable. Advertising may impact how and where products appear on this site (including, for example, the order in which they appear). At WalletHub we try to present a wide array of offers, but our offers do not represent all financial services companies or products.
WalletHub experts are widely quoted. Contact our media team to schedule an interview.