Anyone else still pay by cash?

Bigbobby

I am just wondering what other people's experiences and thoughts are with still paying by cash? I seem to be one of the few that do still use cash and this often odd looks and people seem surprised at the shops.

My financial situation is stable - no debts, emergency fund, pay into a pension and invest into index funds in a S&S ISA. All of my monthly bills, mortgage, utilities, council tax etc are mundane where I pay by direct debit.

Recently however there are 3 areas where I now use cash - food, petrol, socialising. I have set amount that I withdraw each month from the cash machine and keep it in a small safe to use throughout the month. The benefit to this is that I feel more in control and I am a lot more mindful when it comes to spending. It is the easiest thing in the world just to use contactless payment using your card or phone and before you know it you have spent too much.

Told my mates I still pay by cash and got laughed at (just banter so I did not take it personally!). I just find that still being traditional it gives me a lot of peace of mind and feel less stressed knowing visually how much I have spent and what is left over.

oldernonethewiser

If it works for you then that's great. Good way of budgeting.

I used card/phone/cash.

Cheapest petrol has no cash option so that is card but anything else could be whatever I feel like on the day.

SiliconChip

I'll use cash occasionally, often if it's just a small amount to pay, but for most of the categories you mention I'll use a cashback credit card.

subjecttocontract

I still use cash for a load of different things. When I pay cash at a car parking machine it takes seconds and I'm always amused at all the people standing around trying to pay with their phones. I go out of my way not to use contactless because most of the time I don't get a receipt.

Try going to a boot fair and not paying with cash.

I sold an item online and when she turned up to collect & pay she wanted to pay by phone.......sorry, that don't work for me. Cash is king. I agree it's a great way of budgeting and I suspect it's lack of use by some is why people can't keep track of their spending

The_Groat_Counter

Yes I pay with cash some of the time - I mix and match the payment method I use depending on the situation (there's some logic in my mind as to which I use when).

OP - don't worry about what your mates might think - rather, enjoy being the contrarian and doing it differently!

Rob5342

I rarely pay by cash, it's usually only when my daughter gets given cash for her birthday or Christmas and wants to spend it online. She gives me the cash and I transfer the money to her account, and then I use the cash whenever I need to buy something.

I find it much easier to budget and keep track of things when paying by card or phone. I can put money in different Monzo pots for different purposes, by looking in the app I can easily see what I have left and where it's gone, and it there is anything left over I can just transfer it to my savings. With cash it can all just disappear and you usually can't remember what you spent it all on. With banking apps I can't see much benefit to paying with cash, you can pay with your phone, get a spending notification from your banking app and spend two seconds tapping that to see your current balance before putting your phone away.

EarthBoy

It's easier to manage your money when paying by card because you've got a record on the app of everywhere you've used the card.

When using cash, it's too easy to end up with none left, and not being able to remember where you've spent it.

Rob5342

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82011763#Comment_82011763

I've found the opposite, people that pay with their phone do a quick tap and they are done, but cash users tend to spend a lot longer going through their purse trying to find the right change. You often don't get a receipt when paying with cash either, but why do you need one when you can see it in your banking app straightaway?

MattMattMattUK

I have not used cash since 2019, I probably only used a few hundred pounds of cash in the five years before that. I have probably only used a physical card ten times at most in the last five years, everything gets paid using my phone. I know exactly where I spent my money and can monitor my spending accurately, I get cashback on nearly everything I spend and I would not loose any money if I lost my card.

When people say that they carry cash "for emergencies" and claim they can use it when the power goes out, they cannot, tills do not work, without power shops shut, when the tills go down shops shut. They say "What if you loose your phone?", then I could use the card in my wallet, if I lost my wallet I would have lost the cash anyway if I carried it so that is an equally pointless question.

If people find cash works better for them then that is fine, but they should not try and claim it is rational, logical or "the best" solution, equally they should not expect businesses to accept it, cash handling is more expensive for businesses than card and the cost of cash handling pushes up the cost for everyone else, so if businesses want to drop it then they should be free to do so as a commercial decision. For those that love a cliche, cash is not king, it is a relic.

Rupert_Bear

I never use cash and have no problem with budgeting. If a business doesn’t accept cards then I go some where else.

However Apple Pay is my preferred method of payment.

Bettie

went on holiday recently and stopped half way for a break. Three car parks were app only. As I couldn't get a signal I couldn't download the app. I moved on. Next town the same but a different app required. My QR thingy is not always working either. Maybe it's time for a new phone.

Usually pay cash except on train station where they won't accept it in the machine.