Pay By Credit Card Or Cash? Which Does The Southern Tier Of New York Prefer?

Cash is king. Well, it used to be. Here I go again with the 'back in the good old days' speech when we used to pay cash for everything, and life was good.

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To be honest though, I like that fact that there are other options to pay for something other than cash. Do you remember when we used to carry change around in our pockets? Change is just a nuisance for me these days. At home, I have a change jar that coins get deposited into. Someday, I need to take it to the back and cash out.

Anyway, I thought it would be an interesting question to ask - Do you prefer paying for an item by cash or credit, and why? Personally, I prefer to pay with a credit cards, but I prefer to tip with cash.

Many people responded with both, depending on exactly what they are buying, and that makes sense. After asking the above question on social media, the percentage of paying by cash versus paying by credit card was about 56 percent favoring cash, 44 percent preferring credit or debit.

I was surprised that cash is still favored, although it's just from an informal question from those who responded. How does that compare with the rest of America? According to Money transfers.com - 

• Credit card payments accounted for 28%, while cash payments for 20% of the transactions done in 2021 in the USA.
• Credit card transactions account for one out of four small (under $25) in-person purchases in the USA.
• 49% of US consumers use cash for purchases under $10.

Some of the responses I received locally made some good points. Here are a few:

• Leo C. - Credit card because there is a record and the transaction is automatically posted to Quicken. I buy almost everything with a credit card and pay it off in full every month.
• Mary K. - Mostly credit card because I get a cash back reward $$.
• Jacquie M. - Turning to a cash used to do credit (usually rewards associated with card and paid in full every month so no interest) but now businesses are charging a fee to use credit so why bother.
• Marshall H. - Credit or Debit. Cash is old school and has germs.
• Ray E. - Credit, cause they pay me back while i gain interest on money in the bank. Plus improves credit rating.
• Yvonne D. - I prefer tap and go wherever available. Bonus points if it automatically emails me a receipt. That's not to say I support a cashless society. I'd still like to use cash for a farmers market or fair...or gifting.
• Vicki R. - Local owned businesses I prefer to pay cash.
• Timothy M. - Studies show that folks who use credit, instead of cash, spend less. Plus, a good amount of cards give you cash rewards. Makes sense if you pay it off in the grace period. Credit all day!
• Lana E. - Cash. Credit=interest.
• Jake K. - Debit. I try to keep no cash on me so if I get mugged I have nothing.
• Frank J. - Use Cash. Cash is king. Cash is private. Cash has no interest. Banks and the Government don't need to know your buying habits.
• Kate G. - Depends on where I'm shopping. Yard sales, fund raisers, etc. tend to only accept cash.
• Maxine A. - I buy gas and groceries with cash. Everything else with a credit card that is paid off monthly.