Nayax research of 2,351 UK arcade and family entertainment centre visitors finds 52% prefer cashless payment, with younger adults leading the shift toward tap-and-play options.
Tigapo by Nayax card reader for arcade and family entertainment centre payments, shown with touchscreen game activation features. — Credit: Tigapo by Nayax
- 52% of UK arcade and family entertainment centre visitors surveyed prefer a cashless payment option, compared with 43% who favour cash.
- Cashless preference rises to 75% among 25-34-year-olds, while cash remains the leading choice among visitors aged 65 and over.
- Instant credit top-ups and shorter queues were the two most frequently cited changes that could influence visitors to spend more during a visit.
- Nayax is taking its amusement payments and Tigapo platform to IAAPA Expo Europe 2026 at ExCeL London from 22-24 September.
(NEWS) HERZLIYA, Israel, 2026-Sep-16 — /Travel PR News/ — Cashless payment has moved narrowly ahead of cash among UK arcade and family entertainment centre visitors, with new research suggesting that convenience at the point of play — especially faster top-ups and shorter waits — could increasingly influence how guests spend their time and money inside leisure venues.
Research released by Nayax and conducted by TLF Research found that 52% of arcade and FEC visitors prefer a cashless way to pay and play, compared with 43% who favour cash. Another 5% reported no preference. The final visitor sample covered 2,351 UK adults who said they visit arcades or family entertainment centres.
Contactless bank cards were the most popular individual option, chosen by 34% of respondents. Mobile wallets such as Apple Pay or Google Pay were preferred by 15%, while 3% opted for a prepaid game card. Taken together, those three payment types put cashless methods just ahead of cash in the survey.
Younger visitors are driving the strongest cashless preference
The age split is more pronounced than the overall result. Among 25-34-year-olds, 75% said they prefer a contactless bank card, mobile wallet or prepaid game card, while 20% chose cash. At the other end of the age range, 68% of visitors aged 65 and over preferred cash, although 26% in that group still selected a cashless option.
For attraction and leisure operators, the findings point to a payment mix that may need to accommodate both behaviours rather than treating cashless adoption as uniform across the visitor base. Younger guests appear markedly more comfortable with digital payment, while older visitors remain more likely to want cash available.
Top-ups and queues emerge as spending friction points
The survey also asked what changes would be most likely to affect spending during an arcade or FEC visit. One quarter of respondents selected the ability to top up credits instantly using a phone or card, making it the most frequently chosen factor. Shorter queues at kiosks and redemption areas followed at 19%, while 16% selected a loyalty or rewards programme and 15% chose personalised offers or discounts.
Instant top-ups were particularly significant among younger adults: 45% of 25-34-year-olds and 38% of 35-44-year-olds said that feature would be most likely to encourage them to spend more. The figures suggest that the moments between games — reloading credits, waiting at kiosks, checking tickets or collecting prizes — can matter almost as much as the initial payment itself.
Lynda Clarke, General Manager UK at Nayax, said operators risk losing transactions when visitors cannot pay in the way they prefer or face friction when adding more credits. She also argued that payment should be considered as part of a broader guest journey that includes gameplay, top-ups, ticket collection and prize redemption.
That wider operational question is increasingly relevant for family entertainment centres, amusement venues and mixed-use leisure destinations, where operators are trying to make repeat play and secondary spending easier without adding more queues or staff-intensive processes.
Nayax brings amusement technology to IAAPA Expo Europe
The research has been released ahead of IAAPA Expo Europe 2026, whose show floor runs from 22-24 September at ExCeL London. Nayax says it will demonstrate its amusement-industry offering at stand S4826 during the event.
For individual machines and rides, Nayax offers payment devices that can be fitted at the point of play to accept contactless cards and mobile wallets. For larger arcades and FECs, its Tigapo platform combines payments, game activation, player engagement, loyalty, digital ticketing and prize redemption within a cloud-based management system.
Tigapo allows guests to buy and replenish credits through kiosks or an app, use game cards or other supported activation methods, track tickets and manage redemption. For operators, the platform provides data on player activity, revenue and machine performance, alongside business-intelligence features designed to support operational decisions.
Nayax also positions the amusement offer within a broader technology stack spanning unattended retail and self-service environments. Its management software and loyalty tools are intended to let operators connect payments, reporting and customer engagement across multiple parts of a venue rather than managing each use case separately.
Survey methodology
TLF Research conducted the study in August 2026 among 2,823 UK adults. Of those respondents, 472 said they do not visit arcades or family entertainment centres and were excluded from the reported visitor statistics, leaving a final base of 2,351 people. As a result, the percentages describe the preferences of surveyed arcade and FEC visitors rather than the UK adult population as a whole.
