The French prefer the credit card, the Germans cash… How do we pay across Europe?

When you get to the checkout, how do Europeans pay? A study by Cofidis Business Solutions and Harris Interactive*, published Friday, shows that habits specific to each country die hard. Carried out in 10 European nations, this vast survey highlights that “there are still strong differences in the uses (of means of payment, Editor’s note) depending on the country”.

If the bank card remains the most used in stores by Europeans (87% use it, including 57% often), certain people particularly favor it. First and foremost the French (94%, including 77% often), as well as the Dutch (93%), the Swedes (93%) and the Portuguese (92%). Conversely, the Germans have this reflex much less (71%). Of the ten countries studied, it is even in the latter that we find the fewest supporters of the credit card.

And for good reason, our Germanic neighbors still regularly pay in cash (90%, including 50% often). They come at the top of the European countries where liquid is used the most, ahead of Italy (82%) and Poland (82%). In contrast, less than three-quarters of French people (73%) still pay in cash. A proportion which falls to 58% in Denmark and even 46% in Sweden, well below the European average (75%).

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When it comes to payment, the Nordic countries indeed seem more “geek” than their neighbors. The Swedes and Danes pay more than the European average with their smartphone (57% and 54% respectively), thanks to the Swish and MobilePay applications, or an electronic wallet (70% and 62% respectively). Ditto for the Poles.

Payment methods that are still in the minority in most other countries of the Old Continent, even if they are starting to become more popular, underlines Cofidis Business Solutions. For example, only a third of the French (34%) pay with their mobile, and 27% with an electronic wallet. Payment by QR Code or on the merchant's smartphone also seems to be developing in certain countries (Belgium, Portugal and the Netherlands for the first, Poland for the second), while remaining a minority on a European scale.

On the internet too, the bank card is the champion means of payment in Europe (81%, including 47% often). Here again, the French are at the top of the ranking (93%), accompanied by the Danes (92%) and the Spanish (91%). At the bottom of the pack, we find (again) the Germans (58%). Transfers from your bank account to pay for purchases on the web are much less developed in France (47%), while they are the majority in the Netherlands, thanks to the iDEAL solution (86%), and in Poland (87%). Finally, “the electronic wallet, on the other hand, appeals more to consumers when shopping on the internet than in stores,” notes the study, with 64% of Europeans saying they use it, particularly in Germany (79% ) and Sweden (77%).

*Survey carried out by Cofidis Business Solutions and Harris Interactive, based on 9,872 interviews carried out online, spread across 10 European countries, over the period from February 28 to March 8, 2024. Representative national samples according to the quota method: gender, age, category socio-professional and region.