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OT: Typically do you carry cash?

Do you carry cash?

  • Yes- Age 50+

    Votes: 114 37.5%
  • Yes - Age 40-49

    Votes: 50 16.4%
  • Yes - Age 30-39

    Votes: 37 12.2%
  • Yes- Under 30

    Votes: 22 7.2%
  • No- Age 50+

    Votes: 14 4.6%
  • No- 40-49

    Votes: 22 7.2%
  • No- 30-39

    Votes: 31 10.2%
  • No- Under 30

    Votes: 14 4.6%

  • Total voters
    304
These were just 2 specific examples when I'm with people who don't have cash so I end up covering for them.

Plenty of other times when having some cash on you comes in handy including cash only establishments, vending machines, office pool/charities, conevience if you don't have time to wait for them to run your card and emergencies.

Also a real life example from last week when I wish I had $35 cash on me. I'm getting my oil changed and when they were finished with my car the guy asked if I was paying cash or credit. Told him credit and he said the system was down and they were on the phone with the operator trying to get it fixed. Myself and 2 other fellows had to wait 20 mins until they got the system back up to pay with credit.

Also I like to always have cash on me to avoid a possible ATM surcharge fee for those times where I need cash on the spot.

Seems like it's a no brainier to always keep a certain amount of cash on hand then have to try and remember all the times/situations I may need some.

I tend to avoid cash-only establishments (or make arrangements if I know a restaurant or bar has that policy), vending machines often take CCs now and if one doesn't it saves me a few calories, office pools you can plan for and grab a $10 or a $20, charities take online donations via CC, and often times it's faster to pay with a CC than deal with someone who doesn't know how to count change.

Also, my bank refunds any ATM fees I might incur, so that isn't an issue. And some people have mentioned gas: I purposely find stations that charge the same price whether you use cash or card, don't feel the need to search one out that will save me 5 cents per gallon, and typically fill up across the border in NJ anyway so I'm already ahead of the game there. Not to mention, depending on how I end up using the CC points I accrue, that extra few cents I pay to use a CC at the pump could be made up for (or more) down the road to help pay for a hotel stay or airfare.

Could an emergency pop up where you needed cash? I suppose. Fortunately that hasn't happened for me in the past few years when I have essentially stopped carrying paper money. There are just so many options: You can attach your bankcard to your phone and pay that way, for instance. Or, worst case, we live in an immensely populated region; an ATM likely isn't that far from said emergency.

Everyone's situation is different, of course, but in my experience, carrying cash just isn't necessary on a day-to-day basis. Living in a large city, there's also the added bonus, albeit a small one because I rarely if ever feel unsafe, that I'm not going to lose anything outside of my actual wallet and some time canceling cards if someone ever decides to rob me.
 
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And some people have mentioned gas: I purposely find stations that charge the same price whether you use cash or card, don't feel the need to search one out that will save me 5 cents per gallon, and typically fill up across the border in NJ anyway so I'm already ahead of the game there. Not to mention, depending on how I end up using the CC points I accrue, that extra few cents I pay to use a CC at the pump could be made up for (or more) down the road to help pay for a hotel stay or airfare.

In NJ, the gas stations that charge differently for cash/credit are far more prevalent. Nearly all the gas stations I pass charge more for credit, usually to the tune of 10 cents per gallon... which is often a 5% difference in price. The points I get on my card can't make up for that big of a gap.

The "cash/credit same price" places are generally toward the higher side of the price differential, too. Meaning that if one place has 1.95/2.05 as its cash/credit prices, the "same price" place a little down the road would be something like 2.03. Of course, the same gas over the border in NY would be like 2.25.
 
I carry whatever is left over of the last twenty I broke. The only things I pay cash for are things I don't want my wife to know I'm buying. Booze, guns, dirty water dogs, etc.

One day you guys are going to read a news story about an epic fight at the Western Monmouth QuickWa. It's because I cut @ruhudsonfan off while he's counting out his nickels at the counter so I can run my credit card through the scanner & be on my way.

Bring it!!!
 
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In NJ, the gas stations that charge differently for cash/credit are far more prevalent. Nearly all the gas stations I pass charge more for credit, usually to the tune of 10 cents per gallon... which is often a 5% difference in price. The points I get on my card can't make up for that big of a gap.

The "cash/credit same price" places are generally toward the higher side of the price differential, too. Meaning that if one place has 1.95/2.05 as its cash/credit prices, the "same price" place a little down the road would be something like 2.03. Of course, the same gas over the border in NY would be like 2.25.

I typically hit a Wawa right over the Ben Franklin Bridge. Same price regardless of payment method. Generally in line with, or maybe a few cents cheaper than the "card" price at a nearby place. Considering the less than a dollar isn't going to break me, the fact that I get value from the CC transaction (I've gotten values as high as 3 or 4 cents per point at times, and sometimes purchases at gasoline stations will get you up to 5 points per dollar spent), and I'm already saving 30+ cents per gallon compared with Philadelphia prices, it works for me. Not to mention Wawa is generally a better experience in terms of customer service, and the convenience factor - for me - of not needing to have cash on hand. The only downside of the entire thing is waiting at a busy station when I could just pump the gas myself.
 
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I used a credit card in the 80s when they swiped those carbon copy receipts. Once they started checking them on computers they lost all their value to me.

I didn't leave credit cards. Credit cards left me.
 
Is it the same price regardless of if you use cash or card at Costco? I guess I should amend my previous post to say that I always use whichever is more financially lucrative. If I'm at a gas station and cash is ten cents cheaper per gallon than card, then I pay cash. If they are the same price, I pay with my card to get the cash back.
To answer your question. You can only pay via Debit Card or an AMEX Card (In June it will be only VISA) at Costco. They do not take cash at the pump.
 
In NJ, the gas stations that charge differently for cash/credit are far more prevalent. Nearly all the gas stations I pass charge more for credit, usually to the tune of 10 cents per gallon... which is often a 5% difference in price. The points I get on my card can't make up for that big of a gap.

The "cash/credit same price" places are generally toward the higher side of the price differential, too. Meaning that if one place has 1.95/2.05 as its cash/credit prices, the "same price" place a little down the road would be something like 2.03. Of course, the same gas over the border in NY would be like 2.25.
Actually it's about a 45 cent price difference in NY.
 
Is it the same price regardless of if you use cash or card at Costco? I guess I should amend my previous post to say that I always use whichever is more financially lucrative. If I'm at a gas station and cash is ten cents cheaper per gallon than card, then I pay cash. If they are the same price, I pay with my card to get the cash back.
same price, i dont think they accept cash.
 
Want to have fun with a millennial? Next time you buy a coffee, pay for it with 2 half dollars & a Sacajawea dollar. The response is the same every time. They sit there and stare at the money like you just handed them clues to the lost ark. Then after about 30 seconds they'll either call a manager or ask you how much they're worth. At that point it's "name your own price". I'll usually go "oops, I didn't mean to give you both twenties" and take one of the half dollars back.
 
I typically hit a Wawa right over the Ben Franklin Bridge. Same price regardless of payment method. Generally in line with, or maybe a few cents cheaper than the "card" price at a nearby place. Considering the less than a dollar isn't going to break me, the fact that I get value from the CC transaction (I've gotten values as high as 3 or 4 cents per point at times, and sometimes purchases at gasoline stations will get you up to 5 points per dollar spent), and I'm already saving 30+ cents per gallon compared with Philadelphia prices, it works for me. Not to mention Wawa is generally a better experience in terms of customer service, and the convenience factor - for me - of not needing to have cash on hand. The only downside of the entire thing is waiting at a busy station when I could just pump the gas myself.

Yeah, Wawa also doesn't do the surcharge for credit thing, and has pretty good prices - but there isn't a Wawa gas station that's near me, either. 20 min to Wawa gas in one direction, 30 to Costco gas in the other... and neither in the direction of work.

When gas was over $3.50, it probably made more sense to get the CC points over just 10 cents a gallon. Now that gas is at $2 (and sometimes lower in NJ), I'd rather take the cash.
 
Want to have fun with a millennial? Next time you buy a coffee, pay for it with 2 half dollars & a Sacajawea dollar. The response is the same every time. They sit there and stare at the money like you just handed them clues to the lost ark. Then after about 30 seconds they'll either call a manager or ask you how much they're worth. At that point it's "name your own price". I'll usually go "oops, I didn't mean to give you both twenties" and take one of the half dollars back.

Or give them a two dollar bill.... though they might call the cops...
 
Now that my regular pimp and my blow guy have started taking credit cards, i no longer need to carry any cash...except to tip my Uber drivers
-----
Do you have a combination pimp and blow guy, or do you go through two sources?

Asking for a friend.
 
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Block R,
Just to clarify, I have never purchased anything with MY credit card on the world wide web. LOL
 
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I always carry big greasy wads of cash. And it must be rolled in a rubber band like Lefty from Donnie Brasco.

And if you use your debit card for purchases costing less than 10 bucks at Wawa or Quick Check in Western Monmouth County, I'm coming for you.
What about people that write checks at the register? Seems to me that's even worse than using a debit card.
 
Yes. I was taught a long time ago regardless of credit cards, to always carry cash because "there are situations you can get yourself into that, well, call for cash and cash only."

I assume my father WASN'T talking about "hookers and blow."
Never assume. :D
 
I pay for absolutely everything I can with a CC because cash back.

But I also usually have a bunch of cash on me because (a) I'm too lazy to go to an ATM that doesn't charge a transaction fee so I usually grab $400 and (b) I rarely use that cash 'cause I use the CC for everything.

Only things I spend cash on regularly are my housekeepers, my kids requests for money, take-out food delivery, tips, and situations when a restaurant or bar bill needs to be split more than three ways and nobody else has cash.

That last thing reminds me that on @RU848789's birthday gathering at Stuff yer Face, where there were like 20 people on one check, I hadn't been to the ATM in awhile and had run low on cash and wanted to use my CC to pay the bill and he wouldn't let me for reasons I still don't comprehend. So he paid for me to eat on his birthday. Thanks, dude. You should have birthdays more often. :D
 
I pay for absolutely everything I can with a CC because cash back.

But I also usually have a bunch of cash on me because (a) I'm too lazy to go to an ATM that doesn't charge a transaction fee so I usually grab $400 and (b) I rarely use that cash 'cause I use the CC for everything.

Only things I spend cash on regularly are my housekeepers, my kids requests for money, take-out food delivery, tips, and situations when a restaurant or bar bill needs to be split more than three ways and nobody else has cash.

That last thing reminds me that on @RU848789's birthday gathering at Stuff yer Face, where there were like 20 people on one check, I hadn't been to the ATM in awhile and had run low on cash and wanted to use my CC to pay the bill and he wouldn't let me for reasons I still don't comprehend. So he paid for me to eat on his birthday. Thanks, dude. You should have birthdays more often. :D

That's exactly why Venmo is the greatest!
 
Except that then I would've had to pay for my own meal. [laughing]

:)

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Yeah, it seems this board is fascinated by age lately. People seem to believe things like credit card debt is a younger person's problem but the exact opposite is true from what I've seen. I'm glad that I'm the exception. Most years my single biggest expense paid by card is season tickets.

Yes. Use it mostly for gas and the thai restaurant we eat at only takes cash!
 
Writing checks is fine, as long as you don't getting stabbed in the neck with your pen.
I share that sentiment. I don't even own a checkbook anymore. Easier to get the bank to send the check.

I'm with @RUJohnny99 on this one. Credit cards are the fastest. No need for an epic fight at the WaCheck. We can slice your Achilles tendons with our credit cards while your hands are in your pockets fumbling around looking for exact change. Hold on, hold on... Damn, I could swear I had a penny in this pocket yesterday!
 
Want to have fun with a millennial? Next time you buy a coffee, pay for it with 2 half dollars & a Sacajawea dollar. The response is the same every time. They sit there and stare at the money like you just handed them clues to the lost ark. Then after about 30 seconds they'll either call a manager or ask you how much they're worth. At that point it's "name your own price". I'll usually go "oops, I didn't mean to give you both twenties" and take one of the half dollars back.
Are you talking about millennials or teenagers? I was born in 1987 and I'm pretty sure everyone I hang out with can easily recognize a half dollar, a Sacagawea dollar, a two-dollar bill, and a Susan B. Anthony dollar.
 
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I share that sentiment. I don't even own a checkbook anymore. Easier to get the bank to send the check.

I'm with @RUJohnny99 on this one. Credit cards are the fastest. No need for an epic fight at the WaCheck. We can slice your Achilles tendons with our credit cards while your hands are in your pockets fumbling around looking for exact change. Hold on, hold on... Damn, I could swear I had a penny in this pocket yesterday!

Totally disagree

These SFCS at the WaCheck by me can never swipe right the first time...always hit the red button instead of the green. They are inept SFCS and should be required to use cash.

Now, if you savy CS wanna use your apple pay and beam that shit up, I'm all for it.

But old school swiping has got to go
 
Totally disagree

These SFCS at the WaCheck by me can never swipe right the first time...always hit the red button instead of the green. They are inept SFCS and should be required to use cash.

Now, if you savy CS wanna use your apple pay and beam that shit up, I'm all for it.

But old school swiping has got to go
It's savvy CS. Or maybe, because we're getting cash back by using our CCs, we could use poetic license and go with saving CS.

I get stabbing the check-writers (needs to be written out, ID needs to be presented) or beating up debit card users (needs PIN to be entered). With CCs, I never even have to sign anymore, unless it's over $50.00 or so. But sure, if they hit the wrong button, then they should have to forfeit their card, after buying everyone in line a candy bar of their choice. Otherwise, CC's are the fastest.

But nothing's worse than standing in the line at the grocery store while some guy buys 300 cans of tomato soup with some coupons, argues for ten minutes about using more than 2 coupons per customer, then insists on paying exact change down to the penny, which he counts out slow as molasses. That guy should be executed on the spot.
 
You skip your meds?

The sane among us see a story like that for what it is...a joke.

I don't know from Indian Princess dollars, but I can tell you there's not enough disk space in Yahoo's cloud for all the times I've encountered kids whose "Tilt" light comes on when the bill is (for example) $2.78 and I give them $3.03.
 
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