On 1 December 2009, Snapper announced plans to enter the Auckland market, targeting coverage of 80% of public transport by Rugby World Cup 2011.

Infratil, ANZ Bank New Zealand (then ANZ National Bank), Eyede, Unisys and Beca Group pitched Snapper to the Auckland Regional Transport Authority (ARTA), which had made public its intention to introduce smartcards on public transport in Auckland.

[13][14] The Johnsonville Branch was the first line to adopt the Snapper card system for fare payments on the 14th of November 2021, with the hardware, reader stands, and other necessary equipment being installed previously in August.

"Snapper on rail" (as coined by Metlink) operated similarly to the already in-use bus system, with commuters required to "tag" on and off at card readers located on the station platform.

[17][18] The Capital Connection (running between Wellington and Palmerston North) does not accept the Snapper card as it is not a Metlink service, and instead has its own ticketing and fare structure.

[24] The bus-ticketing system is based on a "tag-on", "tag-off" principle, providing valuable data for transport authorities to analyse and plan for travel behaviour.

[28] It uses the Triple DES cryptographic system, which is standard in financial cards and has been approved in New Zealand as a secure mechanism for connection through to the EFTPOS network.

This service requires compatible NFC phone and a special SIM card with the snapper secure element included.

The email addresses, and other personal data such as date of birth and financial transactions, were originally collected by Auckland Transport and provided to Snapper.