Debit Usage And Spending Remain on the Rise, a Pulse Study Finds

Consumers are using their debit cards more frequently than ever and generating higher tickets in the process, according to a report based on data from the Pulse electronic funds transfer network.

Active debit card holders now use their cards 34.6 times per month on average, up more than 4% year over year, according to the report, officially the “2024 Pulse Debit Issuer Study,” which was commissioned by Pulse and its parent company, Discover Financial Services. Purchases at the point-of-sale represent the bulk of these transactions (30.7), followed by account-to-account transfers (2) and ATM transactions (1.9).

The average amount spent per purchase is $46.89, up 3.4% from a year earlier. In total, debit card holders spent $17,274 in 2023, up 8.1% from the year before.

“For the first time in the 19 years we have been doing this study, this is the first time average transactions per month have exceeded 30, which means debit card holders are reaching for their card more than once a day, on average,” says Steve Sievert, executive vice president, marketing and brand management, for Pulse.

Pulse surveyed financial institutions across the country within and outside its network. The network did not break out the number of financial institutions surveyed.

In addition to increased usage and spending, more debit card holders are using their cards in card-not-present channels, such as e-commerce, the survey says. Card-not-present transactions accounted for 36% of all debit transactions last year, while these transactions accounted for 45% of debit spending during the same period, up 5.2% from a year earlier. The average card-not-present ticket was $60.81.

“This trend shows that consumers are more comfortable using their debit card in card-not-present channels,” Sievert says. “This trend started during the Covid pandemic, and it has held up.”

Another emerging trend in debit is a growing use of digital wallets. Some 7% of all debit point-of-sale transactions last year originated on a mobile device, up from 1% in 2019, according to the study. Indeed, 15% of in-store contactless debit payments in 2023 originated on a mobile device. Overall, 38% of debit cards are loaded in a digital wallet such as Apple Pay or Google Pay.

“The utilization of debit cards in a digital wallet is starting to have its moment, and will become more commonplace as consumers’ comfort level [with debit cards in mobile wallets] grows,” Sievert says.

On the issuing side, Pulse found debit card penetration totaled 80.5% among demand-deposit account holders, a 0.6% year-over-year increase. Active debit card holder rates totaled 66.3% in 2023, a 0.2% decrease from a year earlier.

Looking ahead, half of debit card issuers surveyed say they plan to issue a digital debit card. One advantage of digital cards, Sievert says, is that they speed the replacement of lost or stolen cards, which can make for happier and more loyal customers.

For the near future, a tech-tool many debit card issuers plan to introduce is interactive teller machines, which are ATMs with a screen that connects to live service agents in real time, Sievert adds.