First, you can now easily manage your gift cards and redeem them in stores using the Wallet app. Never worry about forgetting your gift cards at home again. You can also request money from friends, which means you can settle the dinner bill while you're still at the table. Lastly, sending money with your debit card is now free, making it even easier to pay your friends or the babysitter using Wallet.

Store gift cards and instantly check your gift card balance

You can already store your loyalty cards and offers in Google Wallet, and now you can easily keep your gift cards in Wallet too. Add your cards to Wallet just by snapping a picture of them or typing in the card info. Then, when you want to use the gift card at the store, just show your phone to the cashier at checkout.

For certain gift cards, you can check your gift card balance in real-time and get reminders to use your card when you are near stores. Participating merchants with these features include:

If you received a gift card electronically, you can also save it to your Google Wallet directly from the e-gift by clicking "Save to Google." This feature is currently available through merchants including Sephora, TGI Friday's, Whole Foods and more.

Request money from friends with the Google Wallet app or Gmail

For all those times when your friends forget to pay you back for dinner, you can simply request money using the Google Wallet app (for U.S. users, 18 years and older). They will receive a notification and can instantly pay you back. If they need a reminder, you can send them a friendly nudge from within the app. You can also send your friends a message right within Gmail, and request money just like you would attach a picture.

Send money fast and for free using your debit card

You can now send money for free in Wallet by using your debit card. No more searching around for a checkbook or waiting for your funds to arrive. With Google Wallet, your money is at your fingertips.

Use Google Wallet in Spanish

If you've activated Spanish language settings in your Android or iOS device, the Wallet app will now display in Spanish.

Download the new version of the Google Wallet app on the Google Play Store and the App Store rolling out this week in the US, to use these new features.