Contactless cards were used for 21% of all card payments in August 2016, totalling £2.3bn, figures from The UK Cards Association reveal.

Compared with August 2015, they were used for just 7.9% of card purchases.

And the average spend on contactless card transactions was also up from the year earlier, from £7.12 in August 2015 to £8.97 in August.

The number of contactless transactions increased from 89 million in August 2015 to 260.7 million in August 2016, while the number of contactless debit cards in circulation increased from 74.5 million to 97 million in the same period.

Data by the association released in August showed that Brits spent more via contactless cards in the first half of this year than in all of 2015.

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Richard Koch, head of policy at The UK Cards Association, said: “Contactless cards have exploded in popularity over the past year and are now being used for one in every five card payments.

“While more shoppers than ever are using contactless cards for small purchases, we are excited by the possibilities they will bring over the coming years for public transport operators and charities.”

The upper limit for contactless payments increased from £20 to £30 last September.