The European Central Bank (ECB) has recently released the results of the latest study on the payment attitudes of consumers in the euro area.
Despite the trend towards digital payments, the number of cash payments remains considerable this year, particularly for “small-value and person-to-person payments.”
In terms of number of payments, cash is used at the point of sale in “52% of transactions, down from 59% in 2022.”
In terms of value, cards are the most dominant payment instrument (with a share of “45%, down from 46%), followed by cash (39%, down from 42%) and mobile apps (7%, up from 4%).”
The growing share of digital payments is supported by an increase in online payments; these account for “21% of consumers’ day-to-day payments in number and 36% in value, up from 17% and 28% respectively in 2022.”
The most frequently used instrument for online payments is cards, accounting for “48% of transactions,” followed by other “electronic means of payment such as payment wallets and mobile apps, which together accounted for 29% of transactions.”
Consumers’ stated payment preferences have “not changed.”
In 2024 as in 2022, 55% of consumers prefer paying with cards and “other non-cash means in shops, 22% prefer paying with cash and 23% have no clear preference. On average, consumers deem cards faster and easier to use.”
They consider cash more helpful for “managing their expenses and protecting their privacy.”
A significant majority of consumers (62% in 2024, up from 60% in 2022) “consider it important to have cash as a payment option.”
And a convincingly large majority (87%) claim that they are satisfied with their access to cash, “finding it very or fairly easy to withdraw cash from an ATM or a bank, even though satisfaction decreased slightly (down from 89% in 2022).”
Executive Board member Piero Cipollone has reaffirmed the ECB’s commitment to protecting consumers’ freedom to pay as they choose or prefer to:
“We are dedicated to ensuring secure, efficient and inclusive payment options. By supporting both cash and the development of a digital euro, we want to guarantee people can always choose to pay with public money, now and in the future.”