The number of people mainly using cash for day-to-day spending hit a four year high during the cost of living crisis, research suggests.
Some 1.5 million adults mainly used cash in 2023 - marking the first rise since 2019, according to UK Finance.
UK Finance’s head of research Adrian Buckle said: “This is likely to be a reflection of the use of cash to manage a limited budget.”
But the data from the banking trade body also showed the majority of young people paid for things using smartphones or watches.
Nearly three-quarters (72%) of 18 to 24-year-olds regularly used their digital wallets to make contactless payments.
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There has been a steady decline in payments using cash over the last decade, particularly as consumers turn to contactless cards for everyday purchases.
A slight rise in 2022 was attributed to the impact of sharply rising prices, squeezed finances and closely-watched budgets.
Cash use dropped again last year to 12% of all payments, according to UK Finance, and 22 million consumers were primarily cashless.
However, the research suggests 1.5 million mainly used cash in 2023, up from 900,000 the previous year, reflecting the ongoing impact of the cost of living on those with limited incomes.
I use cash only. It helps to control spending but also my bank doesn’t need to know each and everything I buy. Local businesses appreciate it as they get the full amount and there is no cut taken by card processors or banks. And as the recent CrowdStrike outage has shown, being 100% dependent on digital services is not ideal. I have to deal with change, but that’s a small inconvenience I’m willing to take.
Interesting example of how the same information is spun differently as the Reuter’s headline is: UK cash usage falls to record low share of transactions in 2023
I’m somewhere in between - I rarely pay with cash, largely only using it in restaurants as it’s easier to divvy up the bill that way. However, I also rarely use my phone - most of my payments are with a card and my phone is back-up in case I forget my wallet.
Most of my friends down the boozer pay with cash as they reckon it stops them getting carried away but I don’t see it making much difference. However, I don’t drink so what do I know?
It’s not about drinking, but more you can only carry so much money on you and you can’t go into overdraft with actual cash…plus no fees from banks etc etc etc…
Cash is and always will be a power move.
