60% of people use debit cards more than credit cards. Between 2002 and 2005 the percentage of people using debit cards grew from 47% to 60%. Now debit cards are the same percentage of purchasing products with cash at stores, 33%. People are using debit cards to purchase many items online too. People are becoming more credit aware as they enter the new millenium. People would rather pay with a debit card because they know that the debit card can take money right out of their bank account to pay for the item. People are more concerned about interest rates than they used to be. Debit cards offer a low cost or no cost to use them by most banking institutions, while credit cards on the other hand can put the buyer into quite a pile of extra bills.

Credit cards have more protection for the cardholder than debit cards do. Credit card companies will not hold the cardholder liable from fraudualnt sellers or stolen credit cards. Debit cards, on the other hand, have very little protection. If the cardholder waits more than 2 days to report any fraudulant activity or that their card was stolen, they could miss out on any type of protection their financial institution could give them. Also, if they wait more than 60 days before reporting, the theif who stole their card or the fraudulant seller could take everything out of their bank account.

Both credit and debit cards are faster and easier to make purchases, but they also have their downside opposed to cash.

It's very easy to acquire a debit card. Simply talk to your banking institution and fill out an application. You will not need to worry about any type of credit check and there are no extra fees involved with getting or owning a debit card. You will get the card in the mail within about one week from filling out the application. There is also a PIN number involved with setting up and activating the debit card. You will get your PIN number through the mail also and when it arrives, you will need to call the telephone number associated with the PIN number. After you answer some questions, you will have to type in the PIN number you recieved in the mail to activate your new debit card.