Preference for Cash: Two-Thirds of Europeans Aren't Ready to Ditch Paper Money, But Germany and Austria Buck the Trend
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One out of every three individuals can envision abandoning physical currency. - Imagining a Society Devoid of Physical Currency: Access Open to All Parties
Whilst Germans and Austrians display a strong preference for cold, hard cash, the rest of Europe leans towards contactless card payments. According to a survey conducted by market research institute YouGov and consulting firm BearingPoint, Germany and Austria stand out as the nations clinging to cash.
In Austria, an astonishing 73 percent of the 1,025 survey participants cited cash as their go-to payment method. Germany follows closely behind, with 69 percent of the 2,019 respondents favoring cash. The data, collected between November 19 and December 1, 2024, surveyed a total of 10,222 adults across nine European countries.
Over a third (38 percent) of respondents across the board reckoned it was quite likely that cash would become obsolete within the next decade. In Germany, this figure drops to 33 percent.
Embrace of Digital Payments
In all surveyed countries, participants expressed an openness to intensifying their use of digital payment solutions over the next two years. Ireland takes the lead with 40 percent of respondents envisioning an increased reliance on card payments and 39 percent foreseeing more mobile payments via smartphone or smartwatch.
Contactless card payments reign supreme in Nordic countries
The survey reveals that contactless payments on the go are the preferred method in Finland (89 percent), Denmark (76 percent), and Sweden (75 percent) by a noticeable margin. Interestingly, respondents in these nations use cash far less frequently: 46 percent of Finnish participants, 35 percent of Danish participants, and 28 percent of Swedish participants cited cash as their most frequent choice. Participants were allowed to list up to five payment methods in their responses.
- Digital Payment Methods
- Survey
- Contactless Card Payments
- Europe
- Ireland
- Frankfurt am Main
- YouGov
- In stark contrast to the rest of Europe, the community policy in Germany and Austria favor cash, with 69% and 73% of respondents, respectively, preferring cash as their primary payment method.
- Even though 38% of the 10,222 respondents across Europe anticipate cash becoming obsolete in the next decade, Austria's vocational training programs in digital payment solutions might help prevent this trend.
- BearingPoint's recent survey in Frankfurt am Main highlights Austria's average reliance on cash (73%) and Germany's average reliance on cash (69%), both far exceeding the European average. This finding suggests that vocational training in digital payment solutions is of lesser importance in these countries compared to others in Europe.
