Premium consumer card spending in Pakistan has reached unprecedented levels, with Visa’s latest 2025 summer holiday insights revealing a 36% year-on-year rise. The report, compiled through Visa Consulting & Analytics Retail Spend Monitor, highlights how Pakistanis are increasingly embracing digital payments, high-value transactions, and diverse travel preferences.
According to the findings, digital payments made by premium Visa cardholders surged by an impressive 110%, marking one of the sharpest increases in recent years. This growth reflects the broader shift in consumer behavior toward convenience and security in digital transactions. eCommerce spending within this segment also climbed 19%, underlining the rising preference for online platforms over traditional purchasing methods.
Travel spending played a dominant role in driving premium card use. Longer getaways captured 66% of total travel-related spending, indicating a trend toward extended vacations. Emerging travel destinations such as Malaysia, Thailand, Qatar, Azerbaijan, Switzerland, and Indonesia collectively recorded a 63% rise in spending. Premium cardholders boosted their outbound travel expenditure by 11%, now accounting for nearly 80% of Pakistan’s total summer travel spend.
Inbound travel also showed promising growth. Spending by premium cardholders arriving from the Gulf, particularly Saudi Arabia and Bahrain, and from Africa, including South Africa, Mozambique, and Malawi, increased by 33%. European travelers contributed significantly as well, with spending from the United Kingdom, Turkey, the Netherlands, and Belgium climbing by 44%. These inflows highlight Pakistan’s appeal as an evolving destination for global visitors.
The summer period also revealed shifts in domestic consumer choices. Staycations rose by 26%, reflecting a growing tendency among Pakistanis to spend more on local leisure. Dining and entertainment spending spiked 57%, signaling the importance of lifestyle experiences in overall expenditure patterns. Interestingly, travel planning behaviors varied, with 7% of cardholders preparing their trips more than three months in advance, 9% between one to three months, and the vast majority—84%—making last-minute plans within a month. The ease of digital payments has played a central role in supporting this flexibility.
Premium cardholders, who contributed to 35% of Pakistan’s overall summer spending, continue to shape payment trends in the country. The sharp rise in digital usage indicates that Pakistan’s financial ecosystem is aligning with global patterns, where cardholders increasingly rely on contactless payments, mobile wallets, and online transactions.
Visa’s Retail Spend Monitor, developed by its Consulting & Analytics arm, covered retail, travel, and experiential activities during the summer break between July 1 and August 15, 2025. The analysis combined VisaNet transaction data with survey-based estimates for other payment methods, offering a comprehensive view of consumer payment behavior in Pakistan.
The record growth in both domestic and international card usage underscores not just the spending power of premium cardholders but also the rapid acceleration of Pakistan’s digital payment ecosystem. With consumers showing a clear shift toward alternative payment methods, the momentum is expected to carry forward into the upcoming holiday and shopping seasons.
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