The Payments Mix You Don't Need Until You Move
February 09, 2026
When I moved across states this year, I discovered that even a payments expert like me can face complications when it comes to paying everyone involved in the process. Each person or business I used for moving services had their preferred payment method. Some wanted wires, others payment apps or checks, and more than one asked for cash. Between payment options and payee preferences, each transaction was a negotiation.
When we hired a contractor to repair the house my wife and I were selling, I offered to pay the invoice through any of the P2P platforms. The contractor declined and said he would prefer a check. I countered with the credit card I keep top of wallet. He responded that he also accepts cash. Given the transaction size, we agreed on a check. Locating one, however, proved difficult as we searched through our packed boxes to find my wife's checkbook. Lesson learned: Regardless of how infrequently we use checks, they are still a viable and necessary payment option.
The size of the wire transfer for the down payment on our new house prompted a visit to a bank branch to verify my identity with debit card and drivers' license. Then there were the scary fraud warnings. Each party to the closing added layers of verification: a printed instruction sheet from the realtor, a follow up email and text message from the law firm, and two digital acknowledgements from my bank. The joy of closing on the house was quickly replaced with anxiety: One misplaced digit or fraudulent misdirection and my down payment would be gone. It was a relief to get the confirmation message.
Hiring movers introduced a new payment rail: cash. Again, we negotiated. I offered a credit card; they responded with a 3 percent processing fee. I offered to pay with the popular app Zelle; they declined. Then they offered a discount if we paid in cash, so I went to the bank to withdraw the Benjamins. The fallibility of cash weighed heavily on me as I drove home. What if the teller accidentally shortchanged me? What if I lost my envelope of cash? What if we forgot to get a receipt from the movers? It was a relief when everything worked out. The experience left me thinking about the tradeoff for using cash: immediacy versus security.
The 2025 Findings from the Diary of Consumer Choice affirmed my experience, reporting that nearly two-thirds of all cash payments were made by consumers who prefer using cards. In other words, cash continues to serve as a backup payment option, a tool for when a digital option isn't accepted. The study also found that the share of cash payments has remained stable since 2021, highlighting cash's resiliency despite advancements in payments. This aligns with findings from the 2024 Business Payments Study, which found that checks and cash remain prevalent among "very small" firms and within the service sector. These findings suggest that both consumers and businesses continue to value traditional payment methods for their reliability and universality.
By the end of our move, we had touched many payment rails. Wire delivered large sums in a short amount of time, checks established a paper trail, and cash provided instant settlement. But the process also revealed frictions like cost, security, and interoperability. As much as we focus on advancements in technology, payments are most useful when they meet people where they live and work. Until the tech and people are aligned, the payments landscape will remain a blend of legacy and emerging solutions.