Together, the Survey and Diary of Consumer Payment Choice create a comprehensive picture of US consumers' payment preferences and behavior. The Survey and Diary fills a gap in knowledge about the role of consumers in the transformation of payments from paper to electronic. Payments data is collected in the context of cash holdings, checking account balances, credit card debt, and income receipt, among other variables. The Survey and Diary are representative surveys of US consumers; demographic data is included.
- Consumers report adoption of nine payment instruments, including cash.
- Daily in October, consumers report their use of the nine instruments, including dollar value of the payment, payee, location, and device use.
- Consumers rate instrument characteristics like security, cost, and convenience and state their preferences for particular situations (for example, bill pay).
For information on how the Atlanta Fed handles participant data from this survey, please refer to our online privacy policy.