PaymentsJournal
  • Analysts Coverage
  • Truth In Data
  • Podcasts
  • Videos
  • Industry Opinions
  • COVID-19
  • News
  • Events
No Result
View All Result
PaymentsJournal
  • Analysts Coverage
  • Truth In Data
  • Podcasts
  • Videos
  • Industry Opinions
  • COVID-19
  • News
  • Events
No Result
View All Result
PaymentsJournal
No Result
View All Result

Cash Back Is Still the Dominant Reward Program, but Others Are Gaining Popularity

PaymentsJournal by PaymentsJournal
January 2, 2020
in Cash, Credit, Truth In Data
0
1
SHARES
0
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on TwitterShare on LinkedIn

Don’t miss another episode of Truth In Data! Click on the red bell in the lower-left corner of your screen to receive notifications as soon as the episode publishes.

Data for today’s episode is provided by Mercator Advisory Group’s report – 2019 U.S. PaymentsInsights – Credit Cards: Still the Card of Choice.

Cash back is still the dominant reward program, but others are gaining popularity:

  • 64% of consumers have a cash back card rewards program in 2019
  • Cash back rewards enrollment has been consistent over the last 3 years
  • But there were notable increases in enrollment for:
    travel discounts, free travel, hotel points, pay with rewards points
  • Points for ‘non-travel’ rewards increased from 13% to 17% in 2019
  • Cash back dropped in ‘most valued’ from 53% in 2018 to 46% in 2019
  • In 2019, rewards program members reported earning about $100 more than last year
  • 10% of consumers reported earning between $1K-2K in rewards in 2019, compared to 6% last year

About this report

Mercator Advisory Group’s most recent consumer survey report, Credit Cards: Still the Card of Choice, from the bi-annual North American PaymentsInsights series, reveals that the credit card is U.S. consumers’ preferred method of payment both online and offline.

When shopping in stores, 43% of U.S. consumers prefer to use credit/charge cards, followed by 32% who prefer to use debit and 17% who opt for cash. Further, these findings are on par with last year’s results.

Compared to last year’s survey, more consumers report that merchants are trying to influence their method of paying. For example, this year 59% report that they have seen signs posed by merchants stating credit card minimums, up from 52% in 2018. Also, 46% report stores offering discounts for cash, a result that is up from 40% in 2018.

Consumers are reporting more fraud on their credit cards this year compared to last. In 2019 about 3 in 10 (31%) reported some kind of fraud on their credit cards compared to 24% who did so last year.

With regard to credit card rewards, cash back is still the most common reward earned by U.S. cardholders. Currently, about two-thirds of cardholders (64%) are getting cash back from at least one issuer of the credit cards they hold. Non-travel related points are the second most common reward, which 4 in 10 cardholders report receiving. These findings are consistent with the findings Mercator reported last year.

Credit Cards: Still the Card of Choice, the latest report from Mercator Advisory Group’s Primary Data Service, is based on a sample of 3,002 U.S. adults surveyed in the annual online Payments survey of Mercator’s North American PaymentsInsights series, conducted in June 2019.

The study highlights consumers’ use of credit cards, relative to other payment types, the use of credit card controls, reward programs, new account opening, among other topics.

“The credit card space in the U.S. continues to be dynamic. We see no erosion in consumers’ preference to use their credit cards when shopping. It is still the top-of-wallet payment choice. This report explores some of the key aspects of the credit card business and brings the consumers’ view of the payments world to light,” stated the author of the report, Peter Reville, director of Primary Data Services at Mercator Advisory Group, which includes the North American PaymentsInsights series.

Companies mentioned in the survey results shown include: Acima Credit Affirm, Avant, Bread, Klarna, Lending Club, Prosper, SoFi, and Upstart.

Tags: CashbackCredit Rewards
1
SHARES
0
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on TwitterShare on LinkedIn

    Analyst Coverage, Payments Data, and News Delivered Daily
    Sign up for the PaymentsJournal Newsletter to get exclusive insight and data from Mercator Advisory Group analysts and industry professionals.

    Must Reads

    eBay’s Upgraded Approach to Payment Processing Meets the Demands of Modern Consumers

    eBay’s Upgraded Approach to Payment Processing Meets the Demands of Modern Consumers

    January 22, 2021
    It’s Time for Retailers to Offer the Best Gift of All In-Store: Digital Gift Cards

    It’s Time for Retailers to Offer the Best Gift of All In-Store: Digital Gift Cards

    January 21, 2021
    Building C-Store Customer Loyalty Programs With Relevant Rewards

    Building C-Store Customer Loyalty Programs With Relevant Rewards

    January 20, 2021
    How PayPal Achieves High Authorization Rates

    How PayPal Achieves High Authorization Rates

    January 19, 2021
    Explaining the Bill Payment Ecosystem

    Explaining the Bill Payment Ecosystem

    January 15, 2021
    QSRs Can Address Loyalty Program Shortcomings by Serving Up Better Offers

    QSRs Can Address Loyalty Program Shortcomings by Serving Up Better Offers

    January 14, 2021
    How Merchants Can Prevent Account Takeovers—and Why Failing to Do So Amplifies Operational Expenses

    How Merchants Can Prevent Account Takeovers—and Why Failing to Do So Amplifies Operational Expenses

    January 13, 2021
    How Banks Can Leverage Tech Partnerships to Enable Innovation for Commercial Clients

    How Banks Can Leverage Tech Partnerships to Enable Innovation for Commercial Clients

    January 11, 2021

    Connect With Us

    • Advertise With Us
    • About Us
    • Terms of Use
    • Analysts Coverage
    • Truth In Data
    • Podcasts
    • Videos
    • Industry Opinions
    • COVID-19
    • News
    • Events

    © 2021 PaymentsJournal.com

    • Analysts Coverage
    • Truth In Data
    • Podcasts
    • Industry Opinions
    • Faster Payments
    • News
    • Jobs
    • Events
    No Result
    View All Result
    ×

    Login

    Forgotten Password?

    Lost your password?
    | Back to Login

      Subscribe!

      Thank you for visiting PaymentsJournal! Please subscribe to our newsletter to receive consumer data insights and daily analysis from Mercator analysts and industry experts.

      ×

      How will COVID-19 Effect the Payments Industry?

      Check out our latest:

      – Consumer Data – Complimentary Reports
      – Podcasts – Mercator Analyst Commentary
      – Industry Opinions

      ×

      WEBINAR:
      How Digital Acceleration Will Affect Payment Industry

      Please join us for this panel discussion on addressing the challenges to pave the way to payments innovation and profitability and gain insights on the key trends and challenges impacting the payments landscape in North America.

      REGISTER