Cash Use Plummets as Americans Shift to Digital Payments

A new Federal Reserve report shows how dramatically Americans have changed their payment habits over the past decade. In 2016, cash accounted for roughly one-third of all consumer payments, but by 2025, that had fallen to just 14%, a drop of about 17 percentage points.

Cash isn't exactly dead, however. Americans made an average of 47 payments per month in 2025, with six of those being made with cash. That puts it third behind debit and credit cards, which accounted for 16 and 15 payments respectively.

The data shows that cash is particularly popular among older Americans, with people 55 and older averaging 10 cash payments per month compared to just two among those between 18 and 24.