Subway Introduces New Order-Ahead App, Joining Starbucks, Taco Bell

Now you can use your 6-inch phone to pay for your 12-inch sub.

Following in the footsteps of popular chains like Taco Bell and Starbucks, this morning Subway announced the launch of a new order- and pay-ahead mobile app and website. According to a release, Subway is the first restaurant chain to offer Apple Pay, Android Pay, and (soon) PayPal as payment options on its app — additionally, users may upload individual credit cards to be saved on the app. Starbucks users can pay with Apple Pay or a pre-loaded Starbucks card; Taco Bell users have to use a gift card or may upload credit card information directly into the app. Every restaurant application today has its own payment system; only Subway supports both Android and Apple Pay.

Only Subway's app supports Apple and Android Pay

Subway operates 27,000 locations in the U.S. and the order-ahead and payment features are available at all of them. "Our customers are at the center of everything we do, and we know mobile is playing a key role in all of their lives," said Valencia Johnson, a long-time Subway restaurant manager in Los Angeles, Calf. in a release. Indeed, Subway is clearly heeding the demands of a youthful and growing marketplace. Millennials, every brand's favorite demographic, tend to use their phones to make dining choices, pay for meals, make reservations, and even while cooking in their kitchens.

Though Subway isn't the country's most popular "healthy" food option anymore — that distinction is now held by Chipotle — it may win back some fans with its new streamlined application. Still, to stay ahead of the curve, Subway will need to consider delivery, a feature Chipotle recently announced. Even Starbucks is testing delivery in several markets.

Subway is currently playing dodgeball with the media about the whole Jared Fogel incident from earlier this month. The former Subway spokesman may or may not be involved in a terrifying child pornography scandal. Subway has cut ties with Fogel while the FBI investigates.

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