Americans prefer cards over digital payments, for now

In the 1967 film The Graduate, the character played by Dustin Hoffman is famously advised to pursue a career in "plastics." While the adviser was doubtlessly not talking about payment cards, it was a time when plastic credit cards were becoming ubiquitous. Now, nearly 60 years later, in the face of new and emerging payment form factors, plastic credit and debit cards still reign supreme. At least that's the case in the United States.

This is a top-line finding from the Worldpay Global Payments Report, 11th edition. Forty-nine percent of all online spending and 71 percent of in-store spending in the United States was done using credit cards in 2025, according to the report. Globally, direct card spending accounted for 31 percent of online and 48 percent of in-store spending.

"This card-first behavior sets the U.S. apart from markets where mobile-based payments have become more widely adopted," Global Payments, which published the report, said in a statement. In the Asia-Pacific region (APAC), the contrast is even more pronounced, with direct use of cards accounting for just 15 percent of all online spending and 20 percent of in-store spending in 2025.

Americans spent twice as much online using credit cards last year than they did using debit cards; and in-store credit card spending outpaced debit card spending by 43 percent.

Digital wallets gain traction

Even with cards dominating Americans' spending habits, digital payments are gaining. Over the next five years digital wallet spending is forecast to grow 10 percent annually across online and in-store transactions among U.S. consumers.

By 2030, $4.1 trillion of U.S. spending is projected to take place through digital wallets, a 64 percent increase over 2025. Globally, digital wallets already lead, representing 56 percent of online spending and a third of in-store shopping in 2025.

"While cards still anchor U.S. spending today, the future of commerce is being shaped by younger consumers," said Bob Cortopassi, president and chief operating officer at Global Payments. "For Gen Z, digital wallets and tap-to-pay experiences are already the norm. As their spending power grows the way they pay today is a window into the future of payments."

Digital wallets are already the most used online payment method for 39 percent of consumers between the ages of 18 and 24, and 41 percent of those between the agencies of 25 and 34.

"The future belongs to businesses that understand how their customers want to pay," Cortopassi said. "As expectations shift toward choice and flexibility, merchants must evolve their payment systems to serve every demographic – and those that do will unlock the next wave of growth."

While younger generations lead the way, online wallet use is increasingly broad-based: wallets were cited as used most frequently by a third of respondents from 35 to 44 years old. Digital wallets are the go-to choice when shopping online for just 9 percent of consumers over the age of 65.

Progress, hype, friction in BNPL, crypto, cross-border

Transaction-specific installments continue to help shape payment landscapes, and prominent buy now, pay later brands boast growth in their installment businesses while expanding into broader services, according to the report.

Digital wallets are a natural home for BNPL, with several global brands integrating installment features directly into the wallet experience. Meanwhile, card issuers are turning to card-backed installments to win back share of consumer lending at checkout.

Cryptocurrency enthusiasts promised revolution—a parallel structure to traditional finance of cash, card networks and other fiat-based payments. "That revolution hasn't arrived yet, with crypto having negligible direct use compared to traditional finance transaction values," researchers wrote in the report. "Consumers are using it to pay more than they were, but through unexpected ways, via the traditional finance tools cryptocurrencies aspired to replace."

Many leading payment systems were designed for domestic use, causing friction for travelers and cross-border online shoppers that must adapt to unfamiliar payment options. "Today, the points of friction are being reduced through the global expansion of direct acceptance and interoperability, while in Europe a new effort aims to unify countries' domestic payment networks into one across the continent," the report stated.

The Worldpay Global Payments Report is anchored by in-depth market guides. Worldpay, which was recently purchased by Global Payments, analyzes payment method shares by transaction value in ecommerce and physical points of sale in 42 key markets. This core analysis is supplemented by estimates of card network shares, total consumer spending by channel and digital wallet funding.

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