Opt For Credit Card Or Cash At The Retail Cash Register

Many people believe that eventually, and sometime in the not so distant future, no one will carry cash in their pockets, and everything will be purchased using plastic. Others think that will happen around the same time that people start driving around in space cars, or when we have domesticated robot maids to clean our homes and make our meals. However even if cash is always available, it is possible not to use it in our day to day lives.

Just think for a moment. You can now use your debit or credit card to pay for petrol at the pump. Grocery stores, department stores and almost any place where there is a retail cash register can accept credit or debit cards, and you can even pay your waiters a tip from your card when dining at the restaurant. There are even card terminals at the windows of drive thru fast food places. With these technological advances it would be possible to live most days without a single coin in your pocket or note in your wallet.

As with any choice there are advantages associated with going “cashless” or not, as well as disadvantages. To use cash, you need to be at the retail cash register terminal for the transaction to go through. It’s very easily stolen, and you are unable to purchase online using cash. Cash however, helps maintain anonymity when you buy items or pay for services, where as a credit card reveals information about you to the vendors that you may not want them to have. Fraud and identity theft are possibilities with cards.

Over-spending is one of the biggest problems people have with their credit card. When you do not physically give your cash to someone, it is easier to buy more expensive things.

Whilst we can still use cash ad cards in most places, you can make a personal decision over whether you want to carry cash or use your card all the time. One cannot say for definite if we will ever be forced to stop using cash but the credit card companies enjoy the fact that we use them more and more in society. Until then, become familiar with the advantages and disadvantages of each option, and decide which will work for your personal financial habits and discipline.