Really helped us float the moving company and also some DIY renovations on our house that we didn't have all the cash on hand to pay for outright. And we didn't pay a thin dime for the privilege.

To me, it's like claiming "black people like chocolate!". They do. So do most people. Why single out black people?

Can you explain the process or idea?

My lawn mower asks me to write "gift" on checks when I can't pay in cash.

People who don't pay their card off also are on the look out for lower interest rate cards and switch all the time. they in reality are not paying the very high rates on cards, they are paying the lower introductory rates (which is still a lot of money). These people are also more likely to default and stop paying leaving the bank to write everything off. Combine that with the fact that they typically don't spend as much over several years (they hit their credit limit and their income won't allow an increase so they have to stop spending), and they are not as profitable as it seems.

At one time, credit card companies forced vendors to charge the same, whether cash or credit, but that seems to have fallen by the wayside.

The problem is, is that cash is becoming less and less acceptable.

In a nearby town, you can't pay for parking, with cash. I have seen credit-card-only vending machines. A lot of restaurants have iPads at the table, and you never see anyone but the bus[boy|girl|whatever], bringing you your food.

Huh. I always thought it was the opposite. I know several restaurants that refuse to accept credit cards. They are great places to eat, but I won't go there. I don't think they miss my custom, though. Refusing to accept credit seems to be a signal of excellence, around here.

The cost of a credit card is very obvious. The cost of cash is many small things that are very hard to see and thus very hard to account for correctly.

For the same reason those food establishments had to get a government approved White Cash Register, because there was so much money disappearing.

* As long as you don’t raise any red flags in your accounting, which can be difficult.

I miss that. I really dislike that it is allowed to charge extra for a credit card. It shows that the company doesn't understand the cost of cash.

There is no situation in which interchange fees get slashed and prices go down across the board by 3% to make it worth it for card users.

Well, there was that time in the 1930s.

Long term average? Sure, it goes up, that's inflation. But do you know what causes inflationary pressure? Visa and MasterCard adding unjustified fees because they're a duopoly and control most of the payments market, and your government won't regulate them and cap fees.

The UK and the EU both cap debit card fees at 0.2% and credit card fees at 0.3%. When the UK left the EU, Visa and Mastercard jacked up their fees over 5x for UK-EEA payments. Not because they had to, but because they could, and they love sucking money out of other peoples' businesses. https://www.psr.org.uk/our-work/market-reviews/market-review...

Retailers in competitive industries absolutely do use a reduction in card fees to lower their prices. Maybe not all the way, but they definitely don't give it all to themselves as margin; their competitors don't.

An economy that relies on growth, yep.

If I pay cash for everything and my cash level fluctuates down to $0 temporarily, how do I buy something right then?

  confidence of sufficient funds when that auto payment hits

Frankly these questions astound me, do y'all really know no low income folks?

With card: you can set the cash aside at the time of purchase to pay when the card bill is due.

How does the card give you less flexibility or make it harder to pay for?

I would be curious what percentage of people actually qualifies for a card with over 2% cashback especially without a monthly fee. My guess is that that percentage is very low.

High earner/spender, sure but that's not most people

If you combine that with a card that gives 2% on everything than it wouldn't be hard to average over 2% cashback as long as you were mindful about using the discover card for qualifying purchases and the 2% card for everything else.

And that's the rub. Credit card companies know most people won't be too mindful most of the time about their spending habits.

Ever since then, I wondered how much of the "not qualifying" is due to misinformation like this.

1. People with proven bad credit.

2. People asking for a lot of money without proven good credit.

3. People asking for more specialized credit, such as lines for businesses or lines for high earners.

My instinct says hell no, not even close.

No affiliation; just a happy user.

Even as someone who is a credit card optimizer, I also ignore numerous 1-3% choices a day.

Many people also spend more than they can cover on it.

and once debt is spent you cannot get it back. you get scammed you can dispute the credit card, and if the CC gets stolen you can fight any charges.

debit means the money is gone and that's it.

I like this. It means that I can earn a bit more bank interest on what I've spent.

I think of it like alcoholics who can't be near alcohol. It's some deep seated degeneracy or fear.

Credit card? I file a charge-back which is a forcing mechanism for the vendor. Credit card skimmed? I get a new one, and I don't need to wait for my $ to be re-imbursed.

Another reason is that credit card companies sell your purchase data to aggregators and advertisers, and cash affords more privacy.

I always ask for a discount but for some reason I almost never get it.

The rational move then is to pay in as many installments as I can get without any additional interest. Then time itself gives me the discount. My actual money stays invested and I only pay later. My credit card gives me 1.1% cashback on all purchases. Inflation too does some of the work.

Maybe, but "should" has nothing to do with it. Either I get one or I use my credit card.

> cash costs the merchant MORE than credit card fees

That's not my problem.

I have a little lookup table for this. Interest free installments mapped to cash discount necessary to beat the credit card. I just look it up.

   1x -> ~1.9%
   2x -> ~2.3%
   3x -> ~2.8%
   4x -> ~3.2%
   6x -> ~4.0%
   8x -> ~4.9%
  10x -> ~5.7%
  12x -> ~6.6%
  18x -> ~9%
  24x -> ~11-12%

   1x ->  4%
   2x ->  5%
   3x ->  5%
   4x ->  6%
   6x ->  7%
   8x ->  7%
  10x ->  8%
  12x ->  9%
  18x -> 12%
  24x -> 14%

So, about 4-8 cents, for 30$/hour if we talk about grocery store.

Restaurant might take more time to process cash, but pays lower salary.

I do not think it's a higher cost than current credit card fees

that's some odd classism there.

credit card companies love your data. they can package it, sell it, analyze it.

this is real data of actual behavior, not whatever people say or click -- money where the mouth is.

even if they never make a cent off of you from an interest perspective they 1) still get fees from the merchants, and 2) get all of that juicy juicy transaction info -- and that info alone might be worth the costs.

They genuinely don't care because they offer different products for different groups of people.

Poorer people typically use credit cards to borrow money. The amount they spend in a month is typically much lower than the balance on the card. This means that the company makes most of their money from interest payments. Cards meant for this audience typically have few or no rewards, and instead use the interchange fees to allow for a lower APR.

Meanwhile, wealthier people typically use credit cards as a payment instrument. They pay off the balance in full each month like you do. This group of people is responsible for the majority of credit card spending, and the credit card company makes most of their money from interchange fees. Cards meant for this market have higher APRs, and use some of the interchange to pay for the rewards. The cards meant for the top end of the market with the best rewards (i.e. Chase Sapphire) even charge retailers more in interchange, with the argument being that it's worth it because you get to bring in wealthy people who will buy more stuff.