> And Ireland seems similar to the US when it comes to credit card usage (vs debit).

That's definitely not the case. Many people would have credit cards, but there's a lot less incentive to actually use them than there is in the US, because the interchange (paid ultimately by the merchant) is capped at 0.3% in the EU (whereas in the US it can be upward of 3% on high-end cards). The interchange pays for the 'reward' schemes that US card issuers provide, largely. Without those, why bother?

I've a credit card, but I essentially never use it, except when visiting the US (where some vendors actually refuse debit cards, or at least used to).

> Without those, why bother?

Peace of mind (that your checking account is not drained)?

How would that happen? Chip and pin has been mandatory for years, as is 3dsecure.

That is not going to help if:

- someone steals your card and PIN

- the merchant turns out to be dishonest (or some misunderstanding) and you want you money back

- you fall for fraud

- the merchant mistakenly charges you, causing an overdraft on your checking account

I am Irish and in my experience most people use debit cards these days. I have a credit card but almost never use it.

I assume this is my “bounded rationality” / “bubble” bias (my impression was based on the people I know and not the full picture)

I checked the stats, and about 40% of purchases in Ireland are made by credit card. In the US, it is around 70%.

Where'd you find that stat? I can't find any stats which break out spend by debit and credit card for Ireland, but what I can find is that (as of 2024), there were 7.95 million active debit cards and 1.58 million active credit cards in Ireland (which has 5.2 million people). Given that, the 40% stat seems implausible.

Honestly shocked its as high as 40%. I assume that's by value not transaction count.