In God We Trust, All Others Pay Debit

Americans are leaving their cash behind in favor of plastic these days.

According to an online survey conducted by American Consumer Credit Counseling, 80 percent of Americans are now using their debit cards to make “every day purchases” like gas and meals. On the other side, a mere 14% of those interviewed said they use cash for the same purchases.

While debit is the new king for smaller investments, larger purchases are split somewhat evenly between debit and credit. Those taking on large payments up front with debit cards make up 47 percent of the survey, with 39 percent purchasing on credit, and a seemingly stubborn 14 percent still preferring the greenback.

Of those buying on credit, American Consumer Credit Counseling found that 58 percent were using credit because they could not afford to pay upfront.

Though mobile wallets are apparently absent from the survey, quite possibly because of their current sluggish rate of adoption, it seems that wallets and other mobile banking apps may find use for themselves yet in group settings. After paying for a group with a credit or debit card, 50 percent of those surveyed said the cash given to them from the rest of the group would be going straight back into their account or towards the monthly bill. Paying a friend back through the phone may very well be considered the polite way to go about it in the near future—it’ll save them a trip to the bank.