How much cash, if any, do you generally have on your person?
November 17, 2022 12:00 PM Subscribe
In your pockets, in your wallet, in your purse? Did you learn this from someone?
In my olden days, there was a thing about always having a couple of quarters in case of needing to make a phone call. (Before that it was dimes!)
I'm wondering are there are equivalents to that now?
Otherwise, do you or people you know carry X amount of cash as a matter of habit?
Also, am interested in any family teachings about this. Was it from a parent (and which one), or someone else?
Thanks.
In my olden days, there was a thing about always having a couple of quarters in case of needing to make a phone call. (Before that it was dimes!)
I'm wondering are there are equivalents to that now?
Otherwise, do you or people you know carry X amount of cash as a matter of habit?
Also, am interested in any family teachings about this. Was it from a parent (and which one), or someone else?
Thanks.
I try to keep a $1 and a $20 in my wallet for those rare occasions I really need cash but even that is pretty rare these days
posted by raccoon409 at 12:06 PM on November 17, 2022 [2 favorites]
posted by raccoon409 at 12:06 PM on November 17, 2022 [2 favorites]
I live in the US, and I try to make a point of carrying a few small bills so I have something to give to panhandlers. That's really the last cash-only interaction I participate in, since food trucks take cards now and even cash-only stores and restaurants now universally have an ATM inside/nearby.
I was taught to carry whatever money I might want to spend, plus a hidden $20 and four quarters that I only touched in emergencies. But that was in the 80s, and I can't think of a situation that's come up in the last 10 years where it would have helped.
posted by nebulawindphone at 12:11 PM on November 17, 2022 [3 favorites]
I was taught to carry whatever money I might want to spend, plus a hidden $20 and four quarters that I only touched in emergencies. But that was in the 80s, and I can't think of a situation that's come up in the last 10 years where it would have helped.
posted by nebulawindphone at 12:11 PM on November 17, 2022 [3 favorites]
In the USA. ALWAYS have a few $2 bills for tips, to buy Street Sheet, or to gift foreign tourists (I am in SF), and at least a $20 or two.
posted by maya at 12:13 PM on November 17, 2022 [2 favorites]
posted by maya at 12:13 PM on November 17, 2022 [2 favorites]
In the Beforetimes, I had about $20 in my wallet on average in my everyday routine and $50 (in various denominations) if I was traveling. The $50-if-traveling thing was definitely a thing I was taught by my dad as a hedge against "emergencies".
Now, I carry around the same $50 I took on the vacation I was on in March of 2020. It never gets spent but it doesn't bother me to have it there.
posted by darchildre at 12:14 PM on November 17, 2022
Now, I carry around the same $50 I took on the vacation I was on in March of 2020. It never gets spent but it doesn't bother me to have it there.
posted by darchildre at 12:14 PM on November 17, 2022
My parents taught me to keep cash for tips and emergencies. I often have a few dollars, but I don't go out of my way to restock it when I've spent it all.
posted by michaelh at 12:15 PM on November 17, 2022
posted by michaelh at 12:15 PM on November 17, 2022
At ATMs I almost always take out $100 at a time, so I can make less frequent trips. I'll run it down until there's about $20 left, when I try to refill, though half the time this doesn't happen and I'll run all the way down to nothing.
I carry cash because of:
- A few places I go to that only take cash -- my barbershop, a lot of markets in Chinatown, a taco place I like
- Other places that give a cash discount -- my pizza place and my bagel place
- Or places where I personally prefer to pay cash -- if I'm going to a bar and only plan on getting one drink, I often prefer to pay in cash to make the bill settling faster
FWIW I live in NYC.
Pre-Venmo I also kept cash to help with settling group restaurant bills and the like (and would try to pro-actively break my $20s into small bills to help with this), but post-Venmo this has greatly lessened.
posted by andrewesque at 12:16 PM on November 17, 2022 [5 favorites]
I carry cash because of:
- A few places I go to that only take cash -- my barbershop, a lot of markets in Chinatown, a taco place I like
- Other places that give a cash discount -- my pizza place and my bagel place
- Or places where I personally prefer to pay cash -- if I'm going to a bar and only plan on getting one drink, I often prefer to pay in cash to make the bill settling faster
FWIW I live in NYC.
Pre-Venmo I also kept cash to help with settling group restaurant bills and the like (and would try to pro-actively break my $20s into small bills to help with this), but post-Venmo this has greatly lessened.
posted by andrewesque at 12:16 PM on November 17, 2022 [5 favorites]
I have no specific rules here; my wallet probably has had the same amount of cash in it for at least a year, and I don’t know how much that is but at a guess it’s probably a twenty and a few ones or a five.
I don’t recall ever being taught to carry a certain amount. I know my stepfather likes to carry fifties and hundreds around, which I think is incredibly bizarre and would never emulate. In pay phone days I usually had a coin purse in my bag that I could have scrounged a phone call from.
posted by Stacey at 12:16 PM on November 17, 2022 [1 favorite]
I don’t recall ever being taught to carry a certain amount. I know my stepfather likes to carry fifties and hundreds around, which I think is incredibly bizarre and would never emulate. In pay phone days I usually had a coin purse in my bag that I could have scrounged a phone call from.
posted by Stacey at 12:16 PM on November 17, 2022 [1 favorite]
I try to keep a bunch of $1 bills for tips at places that for whatever reason don't allow you to tip with a credit card (pizza places, etc).
I also carry a couple $20 bills tucked up inside my wallet for emergencies.
I also try to carry some "conscience money" if I come face-to-face with someone who's panhandling (if I'm driving and see someone with a sign, I try to donate to the food bank when I get home)
posted by RonButNotStupid at 12:16 PM on November 17, 2022
I also carry a couple $20 bills tucked up inside my wallet for emergencies.
I also try to carry some "conscience money" if I come face-to-face with someone who's panhandling (if I'm driving and see someone with a sign, I try to donate to the food bank when I get home)
posted by RonButNotStupid at 12:16 PM on November 17, 2022
In the USA, I'll usually get $100 in 20s from a ATM whenever I run out of cash, which usually lasts for a few months, since fewer and fewer things are cash-only (I'm surprised people are saying it's dead, though, I absolutely still find cash-only places, and places with really high card minimums).
In Taiwan, it was pretty normal for me to carry around $10,000-$15,000 NTD (~$300-450 USD), since I used cash for way more things there and since there's essentially zero risk of theft. Usually I'd replenish when I got down to a couple thousand NTD.
I don't think I ever explicitly talked to anyone about this, but probably when I started going to more things alone as a kid my parents would give me some small amount of cash for emergencies, so I picked something up from that I'm sure.
posted by wesleyac at 12:17 PM on November 17, 2022
In Taiwan, it was pretty normal for me to carry around $10,000-$15,000 NTD (~$300-450 USD), since I used cash for way more things there and since there's essentially zero risk of theft. Usually I'd replenish when I got down to a couple thousand NTD.
I don't think I ever explicitly talked to anyone about this, but probably when I started going to more things alone as a kid my parents would give me some small amount of cash for emergencies, so I picked something up from that I'm sure.
posted by wesleyac at 12:17 PM on November 17, 2022
I always carry at least a few dollars with me. There's a couple of old school food places in my neighborhood that are amazing, but are cash only. Their egg tarts are worth it.
posted by spinifex23 at 12:18 PM on November 17, 2022
posted by spinifex23 at 12:18 PM on November 17, 2022
USA - $0. If I have cash, I try to give it away to panhandlers, cash charities, my children, or cash tips.
posted by The_Vegetables at 12:22 PM on November 17, 2022 [2 favorites]
posted by The_Vegetables at 12:22 PM on November 17, 2022 [2 favorites]
Here in the US, my dad always told me to keep mug money on me, which I don’t think applies to me in 2022 quite like it applied to him in the Bronx in the 80s, but I did it for a long time.
Now I get antsy if I have less than a couple twenties on me, and have a little cash I keep at home for emergencies. I try to keep small bills around to give to panhandlers, small tips, or other random situations where cash is preferable or more convenient. I will say I tend to go a long time between ATM trips.
posted by jameaterblues at 12:28 PM on November 17, 2022
Now I get antsy if I have less than a couple twenties on me, and have a little cash I keep at home for emergencies. I try to keep small bills around to give to panhandlers, small tips, or other random situations where cash is preferable or more convenient. I will say I tend to go a long time between ATM trips.
posted by jameaterblues at 12:28 PM on November 17, 2022
I pick up $100 at a time from the ATM a few times a year. In the summer, it gets used to buy a corndog and a beer at a small-town festival or parade. In the winter, it gets doled out $10 or $20 at a time for my kid to buy lunch at a speech meet or similar. Other than that, I don't find a need for cash in my walkabout life.
posted by cinnamonduff at 12:30 PM on November 17, 2022
posted by cinnamonduff at 12:30 PM on November 17, 2022
I keep a couple of singles outside of my wallet (in jacket pockets, accessible purse pockets, etc.) so I can easily give them to people who are asking for a dollar.
Insofar as learning from someone, what I remember learning is that you should get out more cash than you need when you're at your own branch's ATM, so you're less likely to be stuck using the ones with fees. I have never been willing to carry more than $200, though, and then only if I'm carrying it right home to pay the cleaners (who still take cash).
In the US I do still occasionally find cause to use folding money but I felt like a damn fool in the UK having gotten cash out of an ATM (because I was assured by a friend who got there a week before me that this was the right thing to do). Needless to say I made it back to the airport without breaking a single bill.
posted by babelfish at 12:32 PM on November 17, 2022
Insofar as learning from someone, what I remember learning is that you should get out more cash than you need when you're at your own branch's ATM, so you're less likely to be stuck using the ones with fees. I have never been willing to carry more than $200, though, and then only if I'm carrying it right home to pay the cleaners (who still take cash).
In the US I do still occasionally find cause to use folding money but I felt like a damn fool in the UK having gotten cash out of an ATM (because I was assured by a friend who got there a week before me that this was the right thing to do). Needless to say I made it back to the airport without breaking a single bill.
posted by babelfish at 12:32 PM on November 17, 2022
Australia: I don’t even carry a wallet anymore, and haven’t carried cash regularly for about 8 or 9 years.
posted by third word on a random page at 12:33 PM on November 17, 2022
posted by third word on a random page at 12:33 PM on November 17, 2022
Here's one answer based on the 2017 Diary of Consumer Payment Choice.
posted by aniola at 12:36 PM on November 17, 2022 [3 favorites]
Individuals in households that earn less than $25,000 used cash in 47 percent of transactions, whereas those individuals in households that earn between $100,000 and $124,999 used cash in 24 percent of their transactions.Here's the summary for the 2021 Diary of Consumer Payment Choice.
posted by aniola at 12:36 PM on November 17, 2022 [3 favorites]
On a regular day, just running errands or going to work? Zero. Here in Sweden cash is not only rare, it is downright not accepted by the majority of retailers these days. I carry a card-only wallet but even then use my phone 99% of the time money is needed - virtually everything can be handled by Google Pay or a money transfer app like Swish.
I still carry a healthy amount in my travel kit purely as an emergency fund (about 150-200 each in Euros and USD) - I know it's unfounded these days but I'm not comfortable being totally reliable on electronic payment. Phone batteries die, networks go down, accounts get hacked, etc. Not to mention cards can and do get declined on occasion due to "suspicious activity" - as a frequent traveler I've learned this the hard way.
posted by photo guy at 12:40 PM on November 17, 2022 [3 favorites]
I still carry a healthy amount in my travel kit purely as an emergency fund (about 150-200 each in Euros and USD) - I know it's unfounded these days but I'm not comfortable being totally reliable on electronic payment. Phone batteries die, networks go down, accounts get hacked, etc. Not to mention cards can and do get declined on occasion due to "suspicious activity" - as a frequent traveler I've learned this the hard way.
posted by photo guy at 12:40 PM on November 17, 2022 [3 favorites]
I'm in Canada. Up to the pandemic I usually carried about $100 in cash even though I could use a card in most places. Now pretty much everything here prefers cards (like even ice cream trucks want me to use cards instead of cash) so I rarely have cash on me anymore and whenever I do have cash in my wallet it seems to disappear quickly because there's always some kid's birthday and cash is better than a present they may not like.
posted by any portmanteau in a storm at 12:41 PM on November 17, 2022
posted by any portmanteau in a storm at 12:41 PM on November 17, 2022
Poland: about 200PLN, which in current money is closer to $40 than the $60 it was three years ago. Gets used for farmer's market and car wash, which stubbornly refuses to accept cards in a way that makes me think they're laundering more than cars (so does my massage place, but I take out more cash once a year and buy a voucher for multiple massages). Plus tips, though those are much rarer here. It did come in handy this year when I was on a long trip and every freaking gas station along one highway lost internet connectivity - I wouldn't have been able to top up the tank without cash.
posted by I claim sanctuary at 12:43 PM on November 17, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by I claim sanctuary at 12:43 PM on November 17, 2022 [1 favorite]
USA - I haven't held cash on purpose since probably 1999. From ~2005-2015, I'd hit an ATM before going out because a good number of bars we frequented were cash-only, and keep whatever was left in my wallet, but I can't say I ever even used that cash—in fact I'm not sure absent bar transactions if I've used cash for anything else since at least 2010.
Sometime around December 2019 a friend spotted me some cash, around $15 or so, for a pizza we shared or something. Holding that for over two years during the pandemic was probably the longest my wallet ever had cash in it. I think I eventually used it to tip a hotel cleaning staff this past summer.
posted by General Malaise at 12:46 PM on November 17, 2022
Sometime around December 2019 a friend spotted me some cash, around $15 or so, for a pizza we shared or something. Holding that for over two years during the pandemic was probably the longest my wallet ever had cash in it. I think I eventually used it to tip a hotel cleaning staff this past summer.
posted by General Malaise at 12:46 PM on November 17, 2022
United Kingdom - currently I have about £3.50 in coins and £10 in notes, but more often than not I have nothing or maybe a £1 coin.
posted by knapah at 12:51 PM on November 17, 2022
posted by knapah at 12:51 PM on November 17, 2022
Around $35. As a comparison in either Malcolm X's autobiography or Manchild in the Promised Land he spoke of not feeling successful unless he was walking around with at least a hundred dollars in his pocket (which is what I withdraw from the ATM every time, but I usually just take that home).
posted by Rash at 12:51 PM on November 17, 2022
posted by Rash at 12:51 PM on November 17, 2022
I don't even know my ATM pin number. The only cash I ever have on hand is whatever bills I pluck out of the dryer after my housemate does her laundry (usually $1s, occasionally a $5; she has been informed that these will be kept in lieu of payment for their removal.)
posted by invincible summer at 12:51 PM on November 17, 2022
posted by invincible summer at 12:51 PM on November 17, 2022
It varies. My preference would be to carry $57, which is two $20 bills, one $10 bill, one $5 bill, and two $1 bills. It's hard to think of an everyday scenario where some combination of those bills wouldn't cover something that only accepted cash. In practice, though, I usually only do that if I'm traveling. Usually it's less, because I bank through a credit union and, while they share ATMs with other credit unions, none of the ATMs are particularly close to where I live or my kids' school (which is the only other place I drive with any frequency). So I'll start with $57 and spend it down without replenishing. Right now I think I'm at like $14. Sometimes it's a lot more, though, because on days when I go into the office, I've been designated the money handler for group lunch orders, so a dozen people will give me $20 each. That's annoying because then I have all this cash and no easy way to deposit it. I usually end up leaving anything over the $57 in a desk drawer at home. Sometimes I forget it's there and then a couple months later I get a nice bonus.
posted by kevinbelt at 12:51 PM on November 17, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by kevinbelt at 12:51 PM on November 17, 2022 [1 favorite]
UK: no cash, and I don't normally carry my wallet — just pay for everything with Google Pay on my phone.
posted by Klipspringer at 12:52 PM on November 17, 2022
posted by Klipspringer at 12:52 PM on November 17, 2022
USA, midwest. Like General Malaise, I don't think I've regularly carried cash in many, many years. Back in the day, always a stash of quarters for pay phones (that ended when I got my first cell phone) and at least $10-$20 for incidentals. But nowadays I know if I'm going somewhere that only accepts cash so I'll hit an ATM beforehand. And I get cash for travel, mostly to tip hotel cleaning staff, but I almost never have cash on hand anymore. It's almost always credit cards or Google Pay or Venmo now.
posted by cooker girl at 12:54 PM on November 17, 2022
posted by cooker girl at 12:54 PM on November 17, 2022
Usually under a hundred bucks for places that don't take cards, but I've been pretty lax about it since there's a bank branch across the street from my office and about fifteen more on my commute home so I can stop basically anywhere and get money if I need it.
I grew up in South Jersey, and once my friends and I all hit legal age we tended to go to Atlantic City a lot when we were home from college. It was pretty common then to take enough cash to gamble for the evening (and no more!), plus put twenty bucks in your shoe for an emergency in case you lost it all at the tables.
posted by backseatpilot at 12:54 PM on November 17, 2022
I grew up in South Jersey, and once my friends and I all hit legal age we tended to go to Atlantic City a lot when we were home from college. It was pretty common then to take enough cash to gamble for the evening (and no more!), plus put twenty bucks in your shoe for an emergency in case you lost it all at the tables.
posted by backseatpilot at 12:54 PM on November 17, 2022
I also used to toss 25¢ pieces (quarters) into my glove compartment, when I received change; often had about a $10 reserve rattling around in there (but I've suspended this habit since I'm sharing another's vehicle, now).
posted by Rash at 12:59 PM on November 17, 2022
posted by Rash at 12:59 PM on November 17, 2022
In Canada and I usually keep a $20 in my wallet, but the only time I've ever had to use it is when somewhere and debit/credit machines are down. I am much, much more uncomfortable leaving home without a credit card them I am leaving without cash.
Pre-covid I always had a quarter in the car for the buggies at the grocery store.
posted by cgg at 1:00 PM on November 17, 2022
Pre-covid I always had a quarter in the car for the buggies at the grocery store.
posted by cgg at 1:00 PM on November 17, 2022
I am apparently an outlier.
I'm late 30s, and I always carry ~$100 on my person. I take out small bills specifically for the farmers market. There are several places in my neighborhood that are cash only or give a cash discount. I've used it in the past 5 years when aldi couldn't take cards for whatever reason that day. I keep coins in the car for parking meters, the aldi shopping cart, and for the small neighborhood businesses that prefer cash.
I keep cash at home to pay the lawn guy, the HVAC guy, and other workers who prefer cash.
My parents taught me this. One time my brother didn't have enough cash to pay his movers, and they didn't take card, and he had to go get cash while they were still on the clock.
posted by Ms Vegetable at 1:02 PM on November 17, 2022 [3 favorites]
I'm late 30s, and I always carry ~$100 on my person. I take out small bills specifically for the farmers market. There are several places in my neighborhood that are cash only or give a cash discount. I've used it in the past 5 years when aldi couldn't take cards for whatever reason that day. I keep coins in the car for parking meters, the aldi shopping cart, and for the small neighborhood businesses that prefer cash.
I keep cash at home to pay the lawn guy, the HVAC guy, and other workers who prefer cash.
My parents taught me this. One time my brother didn't have enough cash to pay his movers, and they didn't take card, and he had to go get cash while they were still on the clock.
posted by Ms Vegetable at 1:02 PM on November 17, 2022 [3 favorites]
I try to have $50 or so, and try to pay cash to small merchants, like corner stores and at the farmer's market. When you're on thin margins, that 1.5 to 3.5 percent fee can make a big difference.
posted by Mr.Know-it-some at 1:08 PM on November 17, 2022 [4 favorites]
posted by Mr.Know-it-some at 1:08 PM on November 17, 2022 [4 favorites]
Also a bit of an outlier, and admittedly, a bit of a Luddite.
I'll pull out $100 or $200 from an ATM every once in a while, basically when I no longer have cash in my wallet and need to pay for something that I typically pay cash for. Things I typically pay cash for: gas (different price for cash vs card), drive-thru meals (or taco shops in general, drive-thru or not), bar tabs, quick snack at a convenience store, or splitting the dinner tab with my mom who is close to 80 and more used to using cash.
My phone has no connection whatsoever to any of my financial information and I'd prefer to keep it that way.
posted by LionIndex at 1:13 PM on November 17, 2022 [3 favorites]
I'll pull out $100 or $200 from an ATM every once in a while, basically when I no longer have cash in my wallet and need to pay for something that I typically pay cash for. Things I typically pay cash for: gas (different price for cash vs card), drive-thru meals (or taco shops in general, drive-thru or not), bar tabs, quick snack at a convenience store, or splitting the dinner tab with my mom who is close to 80 and more used to using cash.
My phone has no connection whatsoever to any of my financial information and I'd prefer to keep it that way.
posted by LionIndex at 1:13 PM on November 17, 2022 [3 favorites]
Credit card companies charge @ 3% on transactions, so there's a hidden tax that's paid by the vendor and affects prices, so we all pay it. I prefer to tip in cash. I kind of hate the hassle of paying for stuff with an app. So I carry some cash, have spare cash in the car for emergency gas. Covid made paying with credit cards essential, was a turning point for me.
I seldom use checks.
posted by theora55 at 1:13 PM on November 17, 2022 [4 favorites]
I seldom use checks.
posted by theora55 at 1:13 PM on November 17, 2022 [4 favorites]
Mid-Atlantic U.S. I try to carry at least $20 - $40 dollars in small bills. I sometimes might need a ride in a particular neighborhood, and some of those drivers prefer cash, especially for short trips when I might need to "overpay" to get picked up. I want to have a bit in case I get mugged, and I want to have a bit in case I run into kids selling lemonade, girl scout cookies, etc., or someone who just might need a dollar. Also, our favorite neighborhood taco food truck only takes cash, so we try to have some cash available in case we decide to stop there.
posted by gudrun at 1:13 PM on November 17, 2022 [3 favorites]
posted by gudrun at 1:13 PM on November 17, 2022 [3 favorites]
I always carry a bunch of small bills for charity, and several $20s to pay for gasoline, since many stations are afflicted with skimmers. I also carry more when I'm dining out (always low end eateries) because I'd rather tip in cash so the management can't take a cut.
posted by a humble nudibranch at 1:13 PM on November 17, 2022 [2 favorites]
posted by a humble nudibranch at 1:13 PM on November 17, 2022 [2 favorites]
I try to keep two $20s in there. A twenty is what I'd most likely need for chipping in for an office gift or paying someone back for a small favour. It's easy to pay small debts quickly, and not make anyone wait while you make a run to the bank.
I go antiquing, though, and I will be sure to have plenty of cash on hand specifically for that, with lots of small bills. When you haggle a good deal, you don't want to have to make the dealer get change. Pay and get out of there. But that's an exception.
posted by Capt. Renault at 1:14 PM on November 17, 2022 [1 favorite]
I go antiquing, though, and I will be sure to have plenty of cash on hand specifically for that, with lots of small bills. When you haggle a good deal, you don't want to have to make the dealer get change. Pay and get out of there. But that's an exception.
posted by Capt. Renault at 1:14 PM on November 17, 2022 [1 favorite]
I always have around $50-100 in my purse - I use cash for tips (valet parking and street/bar musicians) and small purchases like a snack from a food cart. Whenever I get quarters in change, I put them in an inside pocket in my purse in case I'm in a place with vending machines. (I just looked and right now there are 30 quarters in that pocket.) This has saved me a few times when I've needed to use gas station air pumps which take only quarters.
posted by Daily Alice at 1:15 PM on November 17, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by Daily Alice at 1:15 PM on November 17, 2022 [1 favorite]
Wow, I didn't know how weird I am. I usually take $200 out of the ATM at a time, at varying intervals depending how much I am going out. All my recurring expenses are on credit cards, as is online shopping, obviously, but I like to use cash for restaurants, bars, other small merchants, and tipping. I often ask independent merchants what payment form they prefer. Some restaurants I go to are cash-only, others are explicit about the fact that they don't like the card service fees, and will even pass them on to the customer. I also feel like my credit card company doesn't need to know about my entire life. I can leave some of my habits untracked, if I want to.
posted by agentofselection at 1:17 PM on November 17, 2022 [10 favorites]
posted by agentofselection at 1:17 PM on November 17, 2022 [10 favorites]
I am honestly surprised by the people here who never use cash at all. I generally have somewhere between $20-60-ish on hand; some things have really not caught up with the digital money times and require cash payments including the occasional $2-5 chipped in at work for bagels or other small shared thing, tips, impromptu charity donations, allowance for my kids, paying someone back without it being a "thing" requiring Venmo etc. And there are still a lot of occasions where I need to give my kids $5-10 to buy lunch if I drop them off somewhere. I know they make debit cards for kids, but I'd rather they lose a fiver than lose a card and subsequently have to deal with all that.
posted by Jemstar at 1:17 PM on November 17, 2022 [3 favorites]
posted by Jemstar at 1:17 PM on November 17, 2022 [3 favorites]
I take out small bills specifically for the farmers market.
Yeah, I usually take out $40 each week for the greenmarket, except for a few weeks in late winter when it's a little too bleak to go. I don't usually spend it all (more places take cards post-COVID), so the remainder ends up hanging around in my pockets until it's used for tips or for panhandlers. Also certain late-night markets that have a $10 credit card minimum.
posted by praemunire at 1:18 PM on November 17, 2022
Yeah, I usually take out $40 each week for the greenmarket, except for a few weeks in late winter when it's a little too bleak to go. I don't usually spend it all (more places take cards post-COVID), so the remainder ends up hanging around in my pockets until it's used for tips or for panhandlers. Also certain late-night markets that have a $10 credit card minimum.
posted by praemunire at 1:18 PM on November 17, 2022
I usually have something like $100 in twenties and small bills. Facilitates tipping, farmer's market, and the occasional very small purchase like a donut... and a vague "you just don't know!" kind of catch-all sense of safety.
posted by fingersandtoes at 1:19 PM on November 17, 2022 [4 favorites]
posted by fingersandtoes at 1:19 PM on November 17, 2022 [4 favorites]
I carry around $200 lately but that’s because we moved and need furniture and decor and I’ve done a lot of garage sales, estate sales, and Facebook marketplace stuff which is all cash only with the occasional PayPal or Venmo option but I prefer cash for those.
Otherwise, prior, I liked $60 to $100 with varying denominations for vending machines or tips or whatever.
posted by Crystalinne at 1:22 PM on November 17, 2022 [2 favorites]
Otherwise, prior, I liked $60 to $100 with varying denominations for vending machines or tips or whatever.
posted by Crystalinne at 1:22 PM on November 17, 2022 [2 favorites]
My wallet is now effectively the three cards my phone case holds (credit, debit, driving license). I do have a wallet with $20-30 and a few more cards (health insurance, licenses for work) that stays in my pencil case with other stuff like charging cables and earbuds. I also have an emergency cash stash at home.
I miss having cash for panhandlers / tipping hotel housekeeping / etc., but the limit of things I can successfully leave the house with on a regular basis is two. Keys had to be attached to my wallet previously, or I'd forget it, and I kept my wallet in my back pocket, so that sucked.
posted by momus_window at 1:26 PM on November 17, 2022
I miss having cash for panhandlers / tipping hotel housekeeping / etc., but the limit of things I can successfully leave the house with on a regular basis is two. Keys had to be attached to my wallet previously, or I'd forget it, and I kept my wallet in my back pocket, so that sucked.
posted by momus_window at 1:26 PM on November 17, 2022
Chiming in with a pro-cash post. I usually keep around $100 on me - more if I'm traveling or on a road trip. I also like to pay small businesses like the vendors at the farmers market in cash. I like to tip in cash - some of my regular services are discounted if I pay in cash like my regular pedicure.
Cash is handy imo. I prefer to use it in a lot of situations.
Then there are the events like the blackout in NYC that taught me to keep some on hand just in case. We couldn't even make coffee where I was the next morning - the horror. At least I found some enterprising guys in a bodega who figured out how to make it without turning on a machine and could sell it to me if I had - you guessed it - cash.
posted by rdnnyc at 1:32 PM on November 17, 2022 [4 favorites]
Cash is handy imo. I prefer to use it in a lot of situations.
Then there are the events like the blackout in NYC that taught me to keep some on hand just in case. We couldn't even make coffee where I was the next morning - the horror. At least I found some enterprising guys in a bodega who figured out how to make it without turning on a machine and could sell it to me if I had - you guessed it - cash.
posted by rdnnyc at 1:32 PM on November 17, 2022 [4 favorites]
15 years ago, when I travelled every week for work, I would make sure I had $200 in cash on me when I started each trip. Sometimes I used it, sometimes I didn't.
Today, I try and keep $20 in my wallet, but even that isn't always the case. I very rarely use cash now - not unless I have no other choice.
I do try and keep a few hundred in cash in an envelope in my desk drawer, either for paying a babysitter, or for some of the local restaurants that do delivery but only take cash.
posted by NotMyselfRightNow at 1:44 PM on November 17, 2022
Today, I try and keep $20 in my wallet, but even that isn't always the case. I very rarely use cash now - not unless I have no other choice.
I do try and keep a few hundred in cash in an envelope in my desk drawer, either for paying a babysitter, or for some of the local restaurants that do delivery but only take cash.
posted by NotMyselfRightNow at 1:44 PM on November 17, 2022
I have up to 300 until I run out so I can avoid using cards. I find it disgusting how much the card companies take per transaction. Don't have google pay etc.
posted by melamakarona at 1:49 PM on November 17, 2022 [3 favorites]
posted by melamakarona at 1:49 PM on November 17, 2022 [3 favorites]
Usually $100 or so. I rarely pay cash, but my partner often gives me cash if she owes me for something I’ve bought with a card/phone. Canada.
posted by backwards guitar at 1:52 PM on November 17, 2022
posted by backwards guitar at 1:52 PM on November 17, 2022
None. In the UK, and even the local farmers' market takes cards these days, every stall. I can think of only one place in the whole city that I know of, that doesn't take cards (independent veg shop, that's apparently on the verge of going bust, I suspect not taking cards hasn't helped them).
posted by penguin pie at 1:54 PM on November 17, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by penguin pie at 1:54 PM on November 17, 2022 [1 favorite]
In the 1980s I always carried an emergency $20 in my wallet. That was enough to take a taxi home from anywhere I was likely to find myself.
Today, it’s a few emergency $100s and generally $200 or so in small bills. We were at dinner two weeks ago, and the bill came to $240 (nice dinner for 4), and the waiter came back saying some nonsense about writing down my credit card number because the machine wasn’t working. I took the paper from him and paid cash.
I had had my other credit card stolen two weeks before that, and had spent cash for everything for two weeks, and hadn’t been to the bank, so I’m pretty sure I had been walking around in mid-October with something like a grand in my pocket.
But then when we have a contractor or plumber or electrician out to fix something, I always pay cash and get a discount. Here in Santa Fe, the cash discount usually comes to 8-10%. Kinda nice getting that much of a break.
posted by DaveP at 1:57 PM on November 17, 2022 [3 favorites]
Today, it’s a few emergency $100s and generally $200 or so in small bills. We were at dinner two weeks ago, and the bill came to $240 (nice dinner for 4), and the waiter came back saying some nonsense about writing down my credit card number because the machine wasn’t working. I took the paper from him and paid cash.
I had had my other credit card stolen two weeks before that, and had spent cash for everything for two weeks, and hadn’t been to the bank, so I’m pretty sure I had been walking around in mid-October with something like a grand in my pocket.
But then when we have a contractor or plumber or electrician out to fix something, I always pay cash and get a discount. Here in Santa Fe, the cash discount usually comes to 8-10%. Kinda nice getting that much of a break.
posted by DaveP at 1:57 PM on November 17, 2022 [3 favorites]
About $100, usually three twenties and a mix of change, typically weighted to fives. My parents taught me to have mad money for safety. A couple times pre-smartphone and later when my phone was dead the cab fare has indeed saved me from a lot of trouble. I have also been in many situations as an adult where cash is helpful:
1) Entry at the pool where I swim is $5 and the day use fee for local parks is the same-- and if it's just always on hand I don't have to think about it
2) I can stop at a yard sale or a bake sale or Girl Scouts or whatever and usually get something and not make them break a twenty
3) I can easily give some to a person in need smoothly and without making a big deal of it
4) $60 is enough to cover dinner for two with the tip in my area at the places where I usually go, and it's just easier to hand them cash and leave than it is to wait and deal with cards, etc. If I'm in a group I would rather just round up and hand over more than my share than do math or split cards. I am in a position to afford it and it all averages out over time. Overtipping makes me feel rich, and it is one's duty to tip in cash where possible so that waitstaff can lowball their taxes.
I have dealt with a lot of poverty, scarcity, and want in my life and frankly I like carrying cash around and having it to spend. It's also why I have more groceries in the pantry than I strictly need.
posted by blnkfrnk at 2:02 PM on November 17, 2022 [5 favorites]
1) Entry at the pool where I swim is $5 and the day use fee for local parks is the same-- and if it's just always on hand I don't have to think about it
2) I can stop at a yard sale or a bake sale or Girl Scouts or whatever and usually get something and not make them break a twenty
3) I can easily give some to a person in need smoothly and without making a big deal of it
4) $60 is enough to cover dinner for two with the tip in my area at the places where I usually go, and it's just easier to hand them cash and leave than it is to wait and deal with cards, etc. If I'm in a group I would rather just round up and hand over more than my share than do math or split cards. I am in a position to afford it and it all averages out over time. Overtipping makes me feel rich, and it is one's duty to tip in cash where possible so that waitstaff can lowball their taxes.
I have dealt with a lot of poverty, scarcity, and want in my life and frankly I like carrying cash around and having it to spend. It's also why I have more groceries in the pantry than I strictly need.
posted by blnkfrnk at 2:02 PM on November 17, 2022 [5 favorites]
I have a $100 bill in my wallet only because I haven't made it to the bank to deposit it; wife sold something at the antique mall to another dealer for cash and this is how they paid; she periodically gets paid large amounts in cash and then gives it to me to deposit, but I don't go to the bank often enough to deposit it right away.
Usually I have maybe a couple bucks that I got in change sometime in the past; rummage sale season usually sees me with a couple hundred in twenties in my wallet, but I spend those pretty quickly.
I recently had a huge stack of ones in my pocket from a ATM at a bar which only paid out in dollar bills because they host drag shows quite frequently and there's demand for ones (delivered with a $4 ATM fee).
Coins always immediately go into a thirty-year-old liquor jug that eventually gets dumped out at the bank and deposited into saving.
posted by AzraelBrown at 2:04 PM on November 17, 2022
Usually I have maybe a couple bucks that I got in change sometime in the past; rummage sale season usually sees me with a couple hundred in twenties in my wallet, but I spend those pretty quickly.
I recently had a huge stack of ones in my pocket from a ATM at a bar which only paid out in dollar bills because they host drag shows quite frequently and there's demand for ones (delivered with a $4 ATM fee).
Coins always immediately go into a thirty-year-old liquor jug that eventually gets dumped out at the bank and deposited into saving.
posted by AzraelBrown at 2:04 PM on November 17, 2022
I try to have five to ten dollars in fives or ones so that I have something to give to people who ask.
In the summer, I usually have $20 to $40 so that I can stop at the farmers' market.
Otherwise I don't really carry cash. I have fifty or sixty dollars in cash at home just in case and should probably have a hundred.
posted by Frowner at 2:13 PM on November 17, 2022
In the summer, I usually have $20 to $40 so that I can stop at the farmers' market.
Otherwise I don't really carry cash. I have fifty or sixty dollars in cash at home just in case and should probably have a hundred.
posted by Frowner at 2:13 PM on November 17, 2022
In the US, I get $200 from ATMs. I pay my house cleaner in cash $80 every two weeks. I also use cash at small businesses and restaurants as I’d like to help them save credit card fees.
Occasionally I also pay for gas with cash as the $0.08 a gallon is a helpful savings.
I’m old so I still like cash, but I do use it a lot less.
posted by jvbthegolfer at 2:16 PM on November 17, 2022 [1 favorite]
Occasionally I also pay for gas with cash as the $0.08 a gallon is a helpful savings.
I’m old so I still like cash, but I do use it a lot less.
posted by jvbthegolfer at 2:16 PM on November 17, 2022 [1 favorite]
C$60-100 usually. In mixed bills $20s and under + coins which in Canada includes $1 and $2 denominations when I can. In the last 5 years I've been in locations that have had wide spread, long lasting, 100% internet outages at least once every year and it is supremely annoying to disastrous to unexpectedly not be able to buy anything with plastic. I mean you never can tell when a beaver is going to take out the internet for your whole town/region. The last one I lent it to my boss because he couldn't pay for his pain prescription after getting an emergency root canal done.
Besides there are still occasions where cash is required like garage sales and roadside honesty boxes. Or someone is taking a collection at work for someone who has been injured/ill/experienced a fire/etc. Or someone is selling shirts. Vending machines. Street charity. 50/50 draws at sporting events.
I've always carried some cash. In my teens and twenties I needed to carry around a float and would often have thousands of dollars in cash in my pocket by the end of the day so I got used to it and having a bunch of cash in my wallet doesn't bother me.
And since Canada went to plastic bills one can carry around the same few twenties for months without them getting worn.
posted by Mitheral at 2:20 PM on November 17, 2022 [2 favorites]
Besides there are still occasions where cash is required like garage sales and roadside honesty boxes. Or someone is taking a collection at work for someone who has been injured/ill/experienced a fire/etc. Or someone is selling shirts. Vending machines. Street charity. 50/50 draws at sporting events.
I've always carried some cash. In my teens and twenties I needed to carry around a float and would often have thousands of dollars in cash in my pocket by the end of the day so I got used to it and having a bunch of cash in my wallet doesn't bother me.
And since Canada went to plastic bills one can carry around the same few twenties for months without them getting worn.
posted by Mitheral at 2:20 PM on November 17, 2022 [2 favorites]
Canada. My mother's idea was always to have a $5 on you for a cab home. That would have to be at least a $20 now and quite possibly more.
Today I had a $20 on me because I found it in my winter jacket pocket, but I went out and did some shopping at 6 different places in the neighbourhood and never broke the bill.
My bank can be a little iffy: twice in the past year their whole network went down and I couldn't pay with cards. Luckily the corner fruit store guys know me, and let me pay the next day.
So I feel there's some reason to carry between $20 and $50 even if most days I don't touch it.
posted by zadcat at 2:22 PM on November 17, 2022 [1 favorite]
Today I had a $20 on me because I found it in my winter jacket pocket, but I went out and did some shopping at 6 different places in the neighbourhood and never broke the bill.
My bank can be a little iffy: twice in the past year their whole network went down and I couldn't pay with cards. Luckily the corner fruit store guys know me, and let me pay the next day.
So I feel there's some reason to carry between $20 and $50 even if most days I don't touch it.
posted by zadcat at 2:22 PM on November 17, 2022 [1 favorite]
I'm in the US (NYC) and like to have around $60 in cash, preferably a mix of 20s and smaller bills. While I use credit cards frequently, I try to pay cash for small amounts at small businesses due to the credit card fees and to tip in cash when I can.
I also got stuck far from home during the 2003 blackout (when I used cash to buy food and asked for the change in quarters so I could use the payphone) and lived in an area that lost power for a week after Sandy, so I prefer to have cash on hand and a cash reserve at home in case credit card machines go down.
posted by Caz721 at 2:27 PM on November 17, 2022 [6 favorites]
I also got stuck far from home during the 2003 blackout (when I used cash to buy food and asked for the change in quarters so I could use the payphone) and lived in an area that lost power for a week after Sandy, so I prefer to have cash on hand and a cash reserve at home in case credit card machines go down.
posted by Caz721 at 2:27 PM on November 17, 2022 [6 favorites]
$80 to $20 depending. There are plenty of shitty POS terminals in the US (bad UI, crashed, too slow, screens that I have to lean down 2 feet to line up with buttons to use, failing touch sensors, obnoxious questions about tips or email addresses) and I pay cash to avoid them fairly regularly.
Also, I recently read that psychologically it's harder to spend cash than pay with a card, since you're handing over something physically valuable. This made me want to use cash more.
I also try to keep a spare $20 somewhere else when traveling for emergencies.
posted by joeyh at 2:43 PM on November 17, 2022 [2 favorites]
Also, I recently read that psychologically it's harder to spend cash than pay with a card, since you're handing over something physically valuable. This made me want to use cash more.
I also try to keep a spare $20 somewhere else when traveling for emergencies.
posted by joeyh at 2:43 PM on November 17, 2022 [2 favorites]
Here in the US, my dad always told me to keep mug money on me
I want to have a bit in case I get mugged
Australia: I hadn't carried cash for about 10 years or more, even before it was 'normal' (I'd be the one sending a bank transfer the day after an event to cover a split bill). Then recently I moved near a market, and now I carry approx $60 so I can grab eggs whenever I need to - and suddenly I felt safer walking around. It took a minute to put together, but about 8 years I was mugged, didn't have any cash on me and was beat up quite a bit. I wish I'd connected the dots earlier, but now I wouldn't go back to not having what feels like a little safety net in my pocket.
(I didn't learn this from anyone, no one else I know has been mugged and it wasn't a threat I'd been taught to look out for growing up)
posted by Adifferentbear at 3:28 PM on November 17, 2022
I want to have a bit in case I get mugged
Australia: I hadn't carried cash for about 10 years or more, even before it was 'normal' (I'd be the one sending a bank transfer the day after an event to cover a split bill). Then recently I moved near a market, and now I carry approx $60 so I can grab eggs whenever I need to - and suddenly I felt safer walking around. It took a minute to put together, but about 8 years I was mugged, didn't have any cash on me and was beat up quite a bit. I wish I'd connected the dots earlier, but now I wouldn't go back to not having what feels like a little safety net in my pocket.
(I didn't learn this from anyone, no one else I know has been mugged and it wasn't a threat I'd been taught to look out for growing up)
posted by Adifferentbear at 3:28 PM on November 17, 2022
Between one and two hundred dollars.
I do this for two reasons. One is that I have had stores that had internet glitches and couldn't process transactions, usually small businesses where I am spending under thirty dollars. I'd rather use cash than a credit card if my debit card doesn't work. It's never been a problem with my card since it has always worked at the next location I go to. I prefer not to use my credit card as a back up because then I would have to remember to put a payment on it, since I don't carry a balance and normally don't have any payments to make.
The second reason is that I live with two people who do not have good access to money, so this way I can hand them some when they leave the house. "Can I have five bucks for coffee?" or "I need to give Paul some money for gas...." is easily dealt with.
A third reason to carry cash is to have it for a tip to delivery people when they bring something to the house, as I understand that it is not uncommon for some delivery apps to pay their delivery people by the job and if you give an electronic tip that is used to cover part of the flat rate they receive instead of being given to the delivery person in addition to the delivery fee. I want the person I am tipping to get the cash and definitely not the corporation. I do this to ensure they can silently pocket any cash and there is no paper trail for the company to get a cut, or take it all.
I always prefer to tip in cash if I can, particularly at fast food places where I try to tip the same amount as our local bus fare, because of the number of people who work at places like that who need to make their daily transportation costs to and from work out of tips. That means if I get tea for two dollars, my usual purchase, the tip is rather higher than the cost of the tea itself. I just don't want anyone to have to walk home seven miles after dark in the winter. Of course I am sure a lot of people have got their transportation issues taken care of but better someone who doesn't need it gets it, then someone has to face an awful walk home.
posted by Jane the Brown at 3:35 PM on November 17, 2022 [2 favorites]
I do this for two reasons. One is that I have had stores that had internet glitches and couldn't process transactions, usually small businesses where I am spending under thirty dollars. I'd rather use cash than a credit card if my debit card doesn't work. It's never been a problem with my card since it has always worked at the next location I go to. I prefer not to use my credit card as a back up because then I would have to remember to put a payment on it, since I don't carry a balance and normally don't have any payments to make.
The second reason is that I live with two people who do not have good access to money, so this way I can hand them some when they leave the house. "Can I have five bucks for coffee?" or "I need to give Paul some money for gas...." is easily dealt with.
A third reason to carry cash is to have it for a tip to delivery people when they bring something to the house, as I understand that it is not uncommon for some delivery apps to pay their delivery people by the job and if you give an electronic tip that is used to cover part of the flat rate they receive instead of being given to the delivery person in addition to the delivery fee. I want the person I am tipping to get the cash and definitely not the corporation. I do this to ensure they can silently pocket any cash and there is no paper trail for the company to get a cut, or take it all.
I always prefer to tip in cash if I can, particularly at fast food places where I try to tip the same amount as our local bus fare, because of the number of people who work at places like that who need to make their daily transportation costs to and from work out of tips. That means if I get tea for two dollars, my usual purchase, the tip is rather higher than the cost of the tea itself. I just don't want anyone to have to walk home seven miles after dark in the winter. Of course I am sure a lot of people have got their transportation issues taken care of but better someone who doesn't need it gets it, then someone has to face an awful walk home.
posted by Jane the Brown at 3:35 PM on November 17, 2022 [2 favorites]
Switzerland, I no longer use cash in Switzerland. The only exception is one car park I have to use on occasion where I have to pay with cash. I need a coin for the shopping trolleys but that lives in my car.
When I go to Germany there is one service provider I frequent where I have to use cash. They are near the Swiss border and will take CHF at a push.
The last few times I have traveled to the UK I haven’t used any cash. The last time I was in the US, last Christmas, I only withdrew cash once in two weeks, a lot less than on previous trips.
posted by koahiatamadl at 3:41 PM on November 17, 2022
When I go to Germany there is one service provider I frequent where I have to use cash. They are near the Swiss border and will take CHF at a push.
The last few times I have traveled to the UK I haven’t used any cash. The last time I was in the US, last Christmas, I only withdrew cash once in two weeks, a lot less than on previous trips.
posted by koahiatamadl at 3:41 PM on November 17, 2022
Australia. I don't deliberately carry cash and pretty much never use it. I don't carry a wallet, just the most important cards in a phone case and the cards are on my watch so I rarely even need those. The only time I reliably need cash is to play Keno (a guilty pleasure and my only gambling activity) if we have dinner at a club, because for some legal reason related to trying to stop people emptying their bank accounts with gambling, they can only accept cash. So, if I decide to have a flutter on Keno, I'll withdraw $50 from the handy ATM nearby, spend maybe $20 and save the rest for next time.
posted by dg at 4:45 PM on November 17, 2022
posted by dg at 4:45 PM on November 17, 2022
I try to have a quarter in my purse at all times, in case I want to stop at Aldi. You need to deposit a quarter to get a shopping cart.
I haven't regularly carried more cash than that in years. My entire paycheck is direct deposited, and if I get a birthday check or similar I do a digital deposit with my phone. I'd have to go out of my way to get cash. I can use my debit card for almost anything, so I don't really have a reason to.
I go to church once a month and I do like to have a 20 to throw in the collection plate (although I also have a regular recurring donation through Paypal) so I will ask for $20 change back when I use my debit card to buy groceries.
I don't remember being taught anything in particular about carrying money when I was a kid. The idea of a child spending money apparently made my dad's butthole itch so I never got an allowance, and if I ever got a dollar in a birthday card he'd snatch it away to put in a bank account (aka money jail.) I quickly learned that if I ever got any money I better spend it fast before my dad found out about it. No idea why I struggle with finances to this day 🙄
I do remember my parents wrote checks for most stuff, although my mom usually had a few dollar bills and some change in the bottom of her purse at any given time. But I don't think any kind of thought went into it.
posted by Serene Empress Dork at 4:55 PM on November 17, 2022
I haven't regularly carried more cash than that in years. My entire paycheck is direct deposited, and if I get a birthday check or similar I do a digital deposit with my phone. I'd have to go out of my way to get cash. I can use my debit card for almost anything, so I don't really have a reason to.
I go to church once a month and I do like to have a 20 to throw in the collection plate (although I also have a regular recurring donation through Paypal) so I will ask for $20 change back when I use my debit card to buy groceries.
I don't remember being taught anything in particular about carrying money when I was a kid. The idea of a child spending money apparently made my dad's butthole itch so I never got an allowance, and if I ever got a dollar in a birthday card he'd snatch it away to put in a bank account (aka money jail.) I quickly learned that if I ever got any money I better spend it fast before my dad found out about it. No idea why I struggle with finances to this day 🙄
I do remember my parents wrote checks for most stuff, although my mom usually had a few dollar bills and some change in the bottom of her purse at any given time. But I don't think any kind of thought went into it.
posted by Serene Empress Dork at 4:55 PM on November 17, 2022
None unless the one quarter if I'm going to Aldi or the rolls of quarters on the way home from getting quarters for laundry.
posted by augustimagination at 5:02 PM on November 17, 2022
posted by augustimagination at 5:02 PM on November 17, 2022
I try to have a quarter in my purse at all times, in case I want to stop at Aldi. You need to deposit a quarter to get a shopping cart
Here, Aldi provides tokens that match the $2 coin you need for a trolley. The token comes with a snap hook that I use to attach it to one of the reusable shopping bags that live in my car.
posted by dg at 5:10 PM on November 17, 2022 [1 favorite]
Here, Aldi provides tokens that match the $2 coin you need for a trolley. The token comes with a snap hook that I use to attach it to one of the reusable shopping bags that live in my car.
posted by dg at 5:10 PM on November 17, 2022 [1 favorite]
I’m in the USA and usually carry a few hundred dollars. I try to pay small businesses in cash to save them money on fees. I use cash at restaurants and such as well. And you always want to have cash on you in case you get mugged.
posted by Slinga at 5:12 PM on November 17, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by Slinga at 5:12 PM on November 17, 2022 [1 favorite]
I generally carry between $300 to $500 on any given day. I swear I am not a drug dealer or professional gambler. (I suspected I'd be on the higher end of the range, but not that I'd be such an outlier.)
It's mostly a preparedness thing -- I just feel a little more secure knowing that I'm not completely dead in the water if something goes wrong with my credit cards, or with a store's credit card reader, or with the credit card system in general.
(Please don't mug me.)
posted by paper chromatographologist at 5:28 PM on November 17, 2022 [2 favorites]
It's mostly a preparedness thing -- I just feel a little more secure knowing that I'm not completely dead in the water if something goes wrong with my credit cards, or with a store's credit card reader, or with the credit card system in general.
(Please don't mug me.)
posted by paper chromatographologist at 5:28 PM on November 17, 2022 [2 favorites]
When I was living in a fairly nice area in a major metro, I would keep $20 in my wallet as a "just in case" but it would sit unused for months because everywhere I went took cards. Now I am living in a smaller city and I carry a lot more cash since there are a lot more cash-only businesses here.
since food trucks take cards now
This is a major part of why I carry more cash now -- most of the food trucks I go to here are cash only, so if you want your tacos, you better have some cash in the wallet.
As a comparison in either Malcolm X's autobiography or Manchild in the Promised Land he spoke of not feeling successful unless he was walking around with at least a hundred dollars in his pocket
Both of my grandfathers grew up extremely poor but made it into the solidly middle class. They both always carried at least a couple of crisp, clean, new $100 bills at all times and I think this was exactly why. It was so important to them to be able to, say, confidently pay for a dinner at a restaurant in cash, and to not have that cash be a wrinkly pile of tens and twenties.
posted by Dip Flash at 5:52 PM on November 17, 2022
since food trucks take cards now
This is a major part of why I carry more cash now -- most of the food trucks I go to here are cash only, so if you want your tacos, you better have some cash in the wallet.
As a comparison in either Malcolm X's autobiography or Manchild in the Promised Land he spoke of not feeling successful unless he was walking around with at least a hundred dollars in his pocket
Both of my grandfathers grew up extremely poor but made it into the solidly middle class. They both always carried at least a couple of crisp, clean, new $100 bills at all times and I think this was exactly why. It was so important to them to be able to, say, confidently pay for a dinner at a restaurant in cash, and to not have that cash be a wrinkly pile of tens and twenties.
posted by Dip Flash at 5:52 PM on November 17, 2022
US
3-5 singles for tipping at coffee places without apps
a quarter for carts at Aldi
$20-$60 for lunch and small purchases. I will not charge anything below $5 if I can help it.
I also pay two different service providers in cash, so that is another roughly $500 a month that I take out of the ATM. I don't carry it around except from the bank to home or to my appointments. I don't want them to have to pay a fee to accept my money.
posted by soelo at 5:57 PM on November 17, 2022
3-5 singles for tipping at coffee places without apps
a quarter for carts at Aldi
$20-$60 for lunch and small purchases. I will not charge anything below $5 if I can help it.
I also pay two different service providers in cash, so that is another roughly $500 a month that I take out of the ATM. I don't carry it around except from the bank to home or to my appointments. I don't want them to have to pay a fee to accept my money.
posted by soelo at 5:57 PM on November 17, 2022
I like carrying around a couple of hundred dollars. I don't like having a record made of all my financial transactions, and I don't like forcing merchants to bear credit card fees!
posted by PaulVario at 6:26 PM on November 17, 2022 [3 favorites]
posted by PaulVario at 6:26 PM on November 17, 2022 [3 favorites]
Lots of intersectional stuff going on here! Location, class, age, values.
No one-size-fits-all answers. But here's what my dad taught me: ATMs run out of cash, point of sale machines go down, all tips are better in paper cash. Many cool stores are cash only. Not to mention things like splitting a lunch bill or handing out money to needy people.
So I have some $20-$60 in my wallet; but more importantly a stash of small bills in my car and a stack of all bills at home so I don't have to hassle with the overhead of fees and labor very often.
posted by SaltySalticid at 6:56 PM on November 17, 2022 [1 favorite]
No one-size-fits-all answers. But here's what my dad taught me: ATMs run out of cash, point of sale machines go down, all tips are better in paper cash. Many cool stores are cash only. Not to mention things like splitting a lunch bill or handing out money to needy people.
So I have some $20-$60 in my wallet; but more importantly a stash of small bills in my car and a stack of all bills at home so I don't have to hassle with the overhead of fees and labor very often.
posted by SaltySalticid at 6:56 PM on November 17, 2022 [1 favorite]
Midwest US, upper 30’s: I like to have cash in my wallet, preferably between $60-300. More than $300 and I move cash out of wallet to home storage (used for housekeeper tips or last minute babysitter type spending), less than $60 and it’s time to go to the ATM. I keep 2 20s folded small in my wallet as “emergency cash” which usually is actually “last $20 to spend at the farmers market”. I pay cash for most purchases under $20, go to local festivals, food carts and farmers market (I prefer cash for those) and keep forgetting to buy a bus card, so I need $2 in exact change when I take the bus. I also pay cash for drinks these days, in an effort towards mindful consumption. Not the question, but I keep a couple tubes of quarters in my desk at work - vending machines, parking meters, emergency bus fare.
I split the cash I carry into that emergency stash and “walking around money”. I don’t think my parents or any other adults in my childhood ever explicitly talked about how much cash to carry, or “emergency cash”.
posted by worstname at 6:57 PM on November 17, 2022
I split the cash I carry into that emergency stash and “walking around money”. I don’t think my parents or any other adults in my childhood ever explicitly talked about how much cash to carry, or “emergency cash”.
posted by worstname at 6:57 PM on November 17, 2022
The comments about older people carrying a quantity of cash for the feeling of security reminds me that I used to do this for the same reason until a few years ago. I used to carry at least $200 cash, though even back then I almost never used cash. I was coming off a period where things were really tough and it just made me feel better to know that I could cover something like a tank of fuel if my card got declined.
posted by dg at 7:20 PM on November 17, 2022 [2 favorites]
posted by dg at 7:20 PM on November 17, 2022 [2 favorites]
Anywhere between 10-200ish. We pay for a lot of services in cash (babysitting, cleaning, school fundraisers, school book sales, etc), so when we go to the ATM we take out $500 and I put about $200 in my wallet until I spend it down to about 10. I like to pay small businesses in cash nd leave tips in cash when I can.
I always try to have a few singles just because I pop into my corner store to buy 1 bunch of cilantro or whatever and don't want to use a card or a $20.
Always have a few coins and quarters because our parking meter minimum with a credit card is $1.50 but I can pay $0.10 cents for 10 mins of parking and do an errand.
This was not anything taught to me by family, just habits I developed based on what kinds of businesses and services I use.
posted by never.was.and.never.will.be. at 7:21 PM on November 17, 2022 [1 favorite]
I always try to have a few singles just because I pop into my corner store to buy 1 bunch of cilantro or whatever and don't want to use a card or a $20.
Always have a few coins and quarters because our parking meter minimum with a credit card is $1.50 but I can pay $0.10 cents for 10 mins of parking and do an errand.
This was not anything taught to me by family, just habits I developed based on what kinds of businesses and services I use.
posted by never.was.and.never.will.be. at 7:21 PM on November 17, 2022 [1 favorite]
No cash. Little money, in general. I generate little trash as well. I wear my clothes forever. I have a 52 year old "Save A Tree," bag.
posted by Oyéah at 7:23 PM on November 17, 2022
posted by Oyéah at 7:23 PM on November 17, 2022
I’ve rarely carried less than 200 dollars/euros/pounds over the last 20 years.
It still surprises me how often it comes in handy. Most recently during the Rogers outage, but over and over again for cabs, meals, hotels in snowstorms, fuel when the only gas station you’re going to make it to has gas but no phone service, fundraisers for nieces/nephews, etc. We’re a long, long way from having sufficiently reliable payment systems to give up cash.
posted by Kreiger at 7:36 PM on November 17, 2022 [1 favorite]
It still surprises me how often it comes in handy. Most recently during the Rogers outage, but over and over again for cabs, meals, hotels in snowstorms, fuel when the only gas station you’re going to make it to has gas but no phone service, fundraisers for nieces/nephews, etc. We’re a long, long way from having sufficiently reliable payment systems to give up cash.
posted by Kreiger at 7:36 PM on November 17, 2022 [1 favorite]
In general, anywhere from zero cash to $20. I try to keep $20, just in case.
I like to have more cash when traveling. Once while traveling, the Internet was down for quite a large area. If we hadn't had cash, we wouldn't have been able to get gas or food.
posted by NotLost at 8:37 PM on November 17, 2022
I like to have more cash when traveling. Once while traveling, the Internet was down for quite a large area. If we hadn't had cash, we wouldn't have been able to get gas or food.
posted by NotLost at 8:37 PM on November 17, 2022
I miss carrying $20-$50 in cash, but it is so hard to track and I can never remember if I paid $10 or lost $10 or a kid took it from my bag and just gave up. Paying by QR code or direct to a phone number works for 99% of my previous cash payments here in Singapore.
posted by dorothyisunderwood at 8:49 PM on November 17, 2022
posted by dorothyisunderwood at 8:49 PM on November 17, 2022
I carry cash but NOT in my wallet. My cash is in one front pocket, my wallet in the other. Less chance of pick-pocketing I was told. I always carry cash separate from the wallet because my father taught me "cash will buy you ID better than ID will get you cash".
I wish I could carry a smaller wallet but between debit card and about 3 credit cards (discussion of "why so many" would be a different post), _plus_ various ID-type things (driver's license, insurance cards for health and auto, library card, voter ID, and a couple of others) it's hard to cut down.
posted by TimHare at 9:02 PM on November 17, 2022
I wish I could carry a smaller wallet but between debit card and about 3 credit cards (discussion of "why so many" would be a different post), _plus_ various ID-type things (driver's license, insurance cards for health and auto, library card, voter ID, and a couple of others) it's hard to cut down.
posted by TimHare at 9:02 PM on November 17, 2022
For an explicit teaching, my partner’s parents taught their kids (probably when they were teens) to have a hidden $20 on them. There were sometimes a hidden $20 challenge, when you would have to procure it, and then you would get another $20.
My family didn’t do such a thing, but my parents kept a reasonable amount of cash on hand growing up and I modeled this for a while ($60-80, more for grocery shopping). Now, I don’t often have cash on me, though I keep some on hand at home.
posted by sincerely yours at 12:12 AM on November 18, 2022
My family didn’t do such a thing, but my parents kept a reasonable amount of cash on hand growing up and I modeled this for a while ($60-80, more for grocery shopping). Now, I don’t often have cash on me, though I keep some on hand at home.
posted by sincerely yours at 12:12 AM on November 18, 2022
I'm in my mid-30's and a bit of a luddite (despite working as a software engineer), and I carry cash. My wallet usually has anywhere from US$20-US$200. I use it primarily for coffee + farmer's market + settling the bill with friends.
Growing up in TX, I was taught to have enough for emergencies, which seemed to mean $20 to my father. Now I carry cash more motivated by disgust at all the middlemen taking a cut out of transactions when the government provides a perfectly functional technology for exchanging money. I also dislike the data trail that credit cards leave (and sell!). It feels freeing to leave cell phone and credit cards at home! Nobody knows where I am, even if I'm only at the neighborhood coffeeshop!!
When I'm traveling, I try to have several hundred in US cash, as well as the equivalent in local currency. And it's not all in the same place, in case I'm pick-pocketed/bag-snatched/etc. On one memorable occasion, the AmEx and bag of US$100 bills in my boot absolutely saved me. However, I did learn that for traveling, $20 bills are better than $100 -- it's really hard getting somebody to break or change a $100 in Bolivia.
posted by Metasyntactic at 12:20 AM on November 18, 2022 [1 favorite]
Growing up in TX, I was taught to have enough for emergencies, which seemed to mean $20 to my father. Now I carry cash more motivated by disgust at all the middlemen taking a cut out of transactions when the government provides a perfectly functional technology for exchanging money. I also dislike the data trail that credit cards leave (and sell!). It feels freeing to leave cell phone and credit cards at home! Nobody knows where I am, even if I'm only at the neighborhood coffeeshop!!
When I'm traveling, I try to have several hundred in US cash, as well as the equivalent in local currency. And it's not all in the same place, in case I'm pick-pocketed/bag-snatched/etc. On one memorable occasion, the AmEx and bag of US$100 bills in my boot absolutely saved me. However, I did learn that for traveling, $20 bills are better than $100 -- it's really hard getting somebody to break or change a $100 in Bolivia.
posted by Metasyntactic at 12:20 AM on November 18, 2022 [1 favorite]
Unless I've been traveling, I usually have a no folding money and probably about a dollar and a half in change in my wallet. But I have a car, AAA, an always-charged cell phone, and live in a small city.
A few times a year, when I visit my sister (about 90 miles away) and stay overnight, I always get a bagel at my favorite place there, which does not take debit/credit, and I don't often bother to take my checkbook. Between my sister's and the bagel place is my bank's ATM, so I get $20, and then whatever is left over from bagels sits in my wallet for weeks or months until, as I did when the PowerBall hit $1.9B, I buy a $2 lottery ticket. (I used to cash-tip in restaurants, but since COVID, I don't eat IN restaurants, so tips go on the debit card.)
When I travel domestically, I've always taken $120 in cash. For some reason, that amount always felt safe (I usually use my CC to track expenses); when I've traveled abroad, I've taken $$200, exchanged half of it for local currency at the start of the trip and most of the other half around midway. This is how I ended up with 30 British pounds burning a hole in my travel wallet since 2019.
Nobody taught me this. I was taught to always have at least a $20, and a handful of singles. Mad money, they called it. Before that, "pin money." My mother thinks it's horrifying to carry so little cash (and to generally have so little on hand). I'm 55; I've used a debit card for most transactions for 37 years.
posted by The Wrong Kind of Cheese at 12:26 AM on November 18, 2022
A few times a year, when I visit my sister (about 90 miles away) and stay overnight, I always get a bagel at my favorite place there, which does not take debit/credit, and I don't often bother to take my checkbook. Between my sister's and the bagel place is my bank's ATM, so I get $20, and then whatever is left over from bagels sits in my wallet for weeks or months until, as I did when the PowerBall hit $1.9B, I buy a $2 lottery ticket. (I used to cash-tip in restaurants, but since COVID, I don't eat IN restaurants, so tips go on the debit card.)
When I travel domestically, I've always taken $120 in cash. For some reason, that amount always felt safe (I usually use my CC to track expenses); when I've traveled abroad, I've taken $$200, exchanged half of it for local currency at the start of the trip and most of the other half around midway. This is how I ended up with 30 British pounds burning a hole in my travel wallet since 2019.
Nobody taught me this. I was taught to always have at least a $20, and a handful of singles. Mad money, they called it. Before that, "pin money." My mother thinks it's horrifying to carry so little cash (and to generally have so little on hand). I'm 55; I've used a debit card for most transactions for 37 years.
posted by The Wrong Kind of Cheese at 12:26 AM on November 18, 2022
UK: Usually none, since most places take contactless debit cards even for small amounts, I'm not in town as much since covid so I can't get to an ATM, and a lot of banks have closed branches over the last 5-10 years so there's a lot fewer ATMs to use anyway. If I do have some cash for some reason, it's rarely more than £20.
posted by EndsOfInvention at 3:56 AM on November 18, 2022
posted by EndsOfInvention at 3:56 AM on November 18, 2022
Canada: no cash. Though I was thinkingbit would be a good idea to carry a couple of quarter in case I ever need a tampon while out. I remember it used to be a thing to carry cab fare just in case, but I don't need cash to pay for a cab. I don't even get anything out of wallet to pay anymore. I just tap my phone. I carry my "wallet" a stack of cards held t8gether with an elastic) mainly for drivers license, health card, and gym access card in case I need to pee when I get home and I'm.not going t9 make it all the way to my condo I can pee in the gym locker room.
posted by If only I had a penguin... at 4:54 AM on November 18, 2022
posted by If only I had a penguin... at 4:54 AM on November 18, 2022
Major East Coast city, USA: no cash, unless I know I'm going somewhere where I'll need it, in which case I specifically bring the rough amount I think I'll need. I don't even own a wallet and I don't even bring a credit card with me half the time when I leave home: I typically only bring my phone, and use ApplePay. On the rare occasion I go somewhere that doesn't take ApplePay, I leave surprised and dismayed without buying anything, resolving to maybe carry a bit of cash or at least a physical credit card in the future!
This might be a generational thing, but I really dislike cash. I find it kind of dirty/disgusting, how often it's changed hands. I find it hard to do any kind of financial accounting with cash, versus a credit card where you can simply log in and see exactly where the money went over x period of time. I also hate getting change and having to deal with putting various inconvenient coins somewhere: bills are okay, but then they inevitably turn into bulky heavy metal pieces the second you buy something.
posted by ClaireBear at 7:44 AM on November 18, 2022 [3 favorites]
This might be a generational thing, but I really dislike cash. I find it kind of dirty/disgusting, how often it's changed hands. I find it hard to do any kind of financial accounting with cash, versus a credit card where you can simply log in and see exactly where the money went over x period of time. I also hate getting change and having to deal with putting various inconvenient coins somewhere: bills are okay, but then they inevitably turn into bulky heavy metal pieces the second you buy something.
posted by ClaireBear at 7:44 AM on November 18, 2022 [3 favorites]
I was taught to always keep enough for a meal and to get home from somewhere reasonably distant, which I've found a good rule of thumb.
posted by Tamanna at 9:30 AM on November 18, 2022 [4 favorites]
posted by Tamanna at 9:30 AM on November 18, 2022 [4 favorites]
UK: No cash since the start of the pandemic. I do use cash for the barber and the hedge trimming guy, but I get it from the cashpoint on the day I need it and then get them to keep the change so it's not sat deflating in my house.
posted by quacks like a duck at 10:24 AM on November 18, 2022
posted by quacks like a duck at 10:24 AM on November 18, 2022
I actually carry a bunch of $5s and $1s ($20-$40 total?) because the lovely staff at some of the restaurants where I get takeout have mentioned that they prefer cash tips.
posted by kristi at 4:00 PM on November 18, 2022
posted by kristi at 4:00 PM on November 18, 2022
Interesting how many people have stated farmer's market as a reason for carrying cash. Every market stall or food truck I've been to in the last several years has had a mobile card machine. (New Zealand)
posted by McNulty at 6:36 PM on November 18, 2022
posted by McNulty at 6:36 PM on November 18, 2022
Nothing. I live in Canada and almost everywhere takes debit for everything. On the rare occasions I need cash it is a pain to get the stuff.
posted by fimbulvetr at 8:24 PM on November 18, 2022
posted by fimbulvetr at 8:24 PM on November 18, 2022
Interesting how many people have stated farmer's market as a reason for carrying cash. Every market stall or food truck I've been to in the last several years has had a mobile card machine. (New Zealand)
Yep, me too (Canada). In fact, I went apple-selling to fund raise for my son's scout troop (literally standing on the street while my 5 year old approaches strangers and says "Would you like to buy an apple to support the Scouts?") and the scout leader gave me a machine so people could tap their cards or phones. Many of the people walking by and saying "Sorry, I don't carry cash" did not look happy when I said "That's ok, you can tap if you like." I would say about half those people ended up tapping to buy apples -- I'm not sure what percentage were genuinely interested in buying an apple but for their lack of cash and what percentage were embarrassed by having their pretend reason taken away.
posted by If only I had a penguin... at 8:36 PM on November 18, 2022
Yep, me too (Canada). In fact, I went apple-selling to fund raise for my son's scout troop (literally standing on the street while my 5 year old approaches strangers and says "Would you like to buy an apple to support the Scouts?") and the scout leader gave me a machine so people could tap their cards or phones. Many of the people walking by and saying "Sorry, I don't carry cash" did not look happy when I said "That's ok, you can tap if you like." I would say about half those people ended up tapping to buy apples -- I'm not sure what percentage were genuinely interested in buying an apple but for their lack of cash and what percentage were embarrassed by having their pretend reason taken away.
posted by If only I had a penguin... at 8:36 PM on November 18, 2022
Interesting how many people have stated farmer's market as a reason for carrying cash. Every market stall or food truck I've been to in the last several years has had a mobile card machine.
Yup, this is also the case in my area (Seattle, WA, USA)! However, I usually ask if they'd prefer cash, and the answer is "yes, please!" more often than not. I haven't ever asked why, but I assume that they're happy to not have to pay Square 2.6% + 10 cents for the transaction. And if I'm intentionally buying from a small business, why wouldn't I also do what I can to make sure that as much of my money as possible goes to them?
posted by Metasyntactic at 10:25 PM on November 20, 2022 [1 favorite]
Yup, this is also the case in my area (Seattle, WA, USA)! However, I usually ask if they'd prefer cash, and the answer is "yes, please!" more often than not. I haven't ever asked why, but I assume that they're happy to not have to pay Square 2.6% + 10 cents for the transaction. And if I'm intentionally buying from a small business, why wouldn't I also do what I can to make sure that as much of my money as possible goes to them?
posted by Metasyntactic at 10:25 PM on November 20, 2022 [1 favorite]
Small city in northeast US. I have from $5 to $150 in cash in my wallet at any point. One credit card. No payment apps on my phone.
I generally prefer to pay cash to avoid the tracking of purchases and the fees charged to the small businesses I prefer to frequent.
I keep $22 in my phone case because I've lost my wallet before (terrible women's pants pockets) and I needed bus fare ($2) to get home. The $20 is for impulsive donut purchases when I am out for a walk and realize it'd be lovely to bring a treat home to mr. metarkest.
My grandmother raised me in the 70s. As a single mother herself in the 30s, 40s, and 50s, and as a single woman who dated in the 60s, she always taught us to have money for a pay phone (25¢) and cab fare tucked someplace safe. I still periodically hide a few 20s in between the outer sole and the insole of my shoes when traveling.
posted by metarkest at 4:28 PM on November 22, 2022
I generally prefer to pay cash to avoid the tracking of purchases and the fees charged to the small businesses I prefer to frequent.
I keep $22 in my phone case because I've lost my wallet before (terrible women's pants pockets) and I needed bus fare ($2) to get home. The $20 is for impulsive donut purchases when I am out for a walk and realize it'd be lovely to bring a treat home to mr. metarkest.
My grandmother raised me in the 70s. As a single mother herself in the 30s, 40s, and 50s, and as a single woman who dated in the 60s, she always taught us to have money for a pay phone (25¢) and cab fare tucked someplace safe. I still periodically hide a few 20s in between the outer sole and the insole of my shoes when traveling.
posted by metarkest at 4:28 PM on November 22, 2022
This thread is closed to new comments.
The only cash we even have between us is a stash of US & Canadian dollars and Euros, carefully hidden as a "get out of the country in a hurry if everything goes to shit" fund. So I guess you could say we have greater faith in the international digital monetary system than the health of American democracy.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 12:05 PM on November 17, 2022 [6 favorites]