Is Cash Still King?

The number of people that mainly use cash for their day-to-day spending has hit a high during the cost of living crisis.

Some 1.5 million adults mainly used cash in 2023, which was the first rise since 2019. UK Finance, who carried out the research, said that “This is likely to be a reflection of the use of cash to manage a limited budget”.

The majority of young people pay for things via smartphones or smartwatches, however. 72% of 18–24-year-olds regularly used their digital wallets to make contactless payments. Only 27% of 45 to 54-year-olds used mobile contactless payments regularly, and only 8% of over-65s.

"Mobile contactless payments are growing fast and one-third of adults are now making these at least once a month, with scope for usage to increase further," Adrian Buckle from UK Finance (the banking trade body) said.

There has been a steady decline in payments in cash over the last decade, particularly as consumers use contactless cards for everyday purchases. Cash use dropped to 12% of all payments last year, and 22 million consumers were primarily cashless.

Cash reportedly remains the second most popular payment method after debit cards, with an estimated three million people still relying on it.