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Has anyone ever switched FROM credit cards back to a debit card?

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I don't think switching to a debit card would help me spend less. I already think of my credit card purchases as "real" money spent. Sometimes buying things on credit helps me budget in a way. I like making expensive purchases when I can get interest free financing and then simply limiting myself to one such purchase at a time. I can buy what I want, but I have to pay off one major purchase completely before I can make another.

This is the opposite of what people who fancy themselves to be opportunists or entrepreneurs would probably do though. You mentioned you are the former, so maybe a change to debit would help you keep yourself from getting tied up in too many ventures at once. I just don't have that problem.
 
Kaido said:
You don't need the PIN number to order online. I have no idea how my debit card number was stolen (I don't use it online at all), but it was used twice to make purchases online in different states (and online forms require your card number, expiration date, and 3-digit security code). Then they cancel the card you have, so you can't use it to buy stuff or use ATM machines, and you have to wait for them to send you a new card, which forces you to visit a local bank to pull out money. Again, not that it happens all the time or anything, but it's nice to know that pain can be avoided by having a credit card & cash cushion to cover you. Or like, when a disaster happens - when we get snowstorms & the power goes out, some local places will accept cash for food and whatnot, even though the card processing machines are down.
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Good point. I have credit cards, debit card, checks, and some cash on hand so if one or more is messed up I can use one of the others.
 
Frequent flyer miles. I don't understand People who can't use credit cards properly.. is it Lack of self control or not understanding the economics of a cc?
 
DaveSimmons said:
I only use my debit card at the grocery store.

I prefer CCs because they offer rewards and because they can't clean out my bank account if they mess up and cause checks to bounce.

I'm a boring spender so I never get a surprise bill that I need to figure out how to cover.
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how un-American of you, comrade 😉
 
Credit cards FTW, we only use debit cards:

1) We need cash, cheaper and easier than an ATM.
2) Some grocery stores only accept cash and debit, no credit cards.

Credit cards, no annual fee, rewards/perks, free 1 year extended warranty, a nice single bill, pay it off in full to avoid interest, rinse and repeat.

I don't see what's so difficult about this?
 
Lately I've been cutting back on spending to pay down student loans so I generally only use my debit card unless its a big purchase or buying something online.

It just becomes a hassle to keep waiting for the cc charges to fully clear, so you can pay it off if you are doing day to day charges through the credit cards. Normally I don't mind that but my spending is minimal right now so its easier to just take it right out of the checking account and then I know exactly whats left in there.
 
RossMAN said:
Credit cards FTW, we only use debit cards:

1) We need cash, cheaper and easier than an ATM.
2) Some grocery stores only accept cash and debit, no credit cards.

Credit cards, no annual fee, rewards/perks, free 1 year extended warranty, a nice single bill, pay it off in full to avoid interest, rinse and repeat.

I don't see what's so difficult about this?
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Some people really just can't mentally handle having thousands of dollars of available credit; I've met a few over the years, and sincerely hope that they stick with cash or debit for their own sakes. For them, being debt-free is worth more than rewards. Nothing at all wrong with this.

Personally? I can handle myself financially and pay the full balance every month, so I'll be playing the cards game to my advantage.

Side note: Does AMEX always give high available credit? I just signed up for the Blue Cash Everyday and my starting limit is higher than both of my other cards (both Visa) combined.
 
No... I use credit cards for everything... But pay it off every month. My wife and I also run a strict budget...and we do not have the issue of overspending (we update our budget everyday and share so we know our exact position).
 
manlymatt83 said:
Anyone here use a debit card for every purchase even though they know they'd get rewards, etc. with credit cards, just to better track their money?
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Huh?

And you can not do the same (keep track with your money) with credit card(s)? <confused>

<<--- is using cash back CCs for almost everything under the sun (pay off the whole balance on or before due date of course) with a handful of exceptions such as rent.


If you can control your spending habit, CCs are much much better than debits.
 
Hell no, I'd be giving up about $1,200 a year in free money. not to mention all the other safety benefits of CC's.
 
Svnla said:
Huh?

And you can not do the same (keep track with your money) with credit card(s)? <confused>

<<--- is using cash back CCs for almost everything under the sun (pay off the whole balance on or before due date of course) with a handful of exceptions such as rent.


If you can control your spending habit, CCs are much much better than debits.
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I guess he just means that with debit, your own cash is used immediately whereas with CC, you owe it and pay it back at a later date. For some, the latter can cause them to overspend.
 
Debit cards even if Visa/MC backed do not offer the same immediate resolutions. At my ex-wife's mall there was a scammer that reproduced about 100 cards. The girls that had debit cards eventually got their money back but it took several weeks. Some were given back $100-200 immediately but that was it.

My wife lost $2000 on paper and her full credit line was restored right when she called.
 
Credit card when possible, Debit for money orders, check when required and keep $100 cash at all times for those times when needed.
 
Debit run as Credit never with PIN. The fraud protection has been fine for me. Money restored immediately to my account which is with a major bank. Don't know why other people have had problem with fraud protection on their cards.
 
manlymatt83 said:
I've always used a credit card to manage my finances. I'm also the kind of person who takes risks (I'm an entrepreneur of sorts) so sometimes, in certain cases, I do the "throw money at it now, figure out where it's coming from later" approach. For the most part this works out fine. However, with the introduction of things like Bank Simple (simple.com), I'm almost wondering if forcing myself to use cash for every purchase (even if in the case of plastic cash) would help me spend less mentally.

What are your experiences? Anyone here use a debit card for every purchase even though they know they'd get rewards, etc. with credit cards, just to better track their money?
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plastic cash is the same as plastic credit as far as the psychology goes.

as far as tracking, i don't think debit is going to be any better than credit.
 
Why? There's zero benefit of using a debit over credit card, and more benefits and protections the other way around.
 
TwiceOver said:
Debit run as Credit never with PIN. The fraud protection has been fine for me. Money restored immediately to my account which is with a major bank. Don't know why other people have had problem with fraud protection on their cards.
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YMMV, if the fraud is low or if you have larger deposits, carry a decent balance month to month your bank may be more conservative. However; the refund they give in debit is pure cash.
 
alkemyst said:
YMMV, if the fraud is low or if you have larger deposits, carry a decent balance month to month your bank may be more conservative. However; the refund they give in debit is pure cash.
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Debit is pure cash? confused on this statement.

I guess what I'm getting at is that in the 10+ years I've been using a debit card the few instances of fraud that has happened was solved promptly and to my satisfaction. I've never needed the magic protection that a real CC gives me.
 
Sorry folks, I should have clarified. The reason I'm considering switching to debit is so I can use simple: banksimple.com -- very good tracking
 
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