UNITED STATES—It is a question that many people who are not so tech savvy have asked themselves rather its smarter to have a debit card or cash? It is something that I have debated for years, and I mean years people. Just 3 months ago, I finally got a debit card after being constantly annoyed by my bank. I will admit that my debit card has its perks, but at the same time it has its disadvantages. One, I’m not a person that utilizes ATMs. I never have, and I probably never will. When it comes to needing money, I will just go into the actual bank and make a withdrawal.

I’m someone that believes interacting with your banker is important. You can’t rely solely on the computer to take care of everything for you. How do I know this? Well, just last week, my bank had a major internet issue where you could not access your accounts online and you could not even access funds while in the bank. Yes, that totally sucks because I needed money and I had bills that were due and I normally pay them online to ensure they are instantly paid.

Things like that creates plenty of unnecessary stress, stress is never good when it comes to money. Have I utilized my debit card, yes, but I’ve also discovered, now that I have a debit card I’m spending money a bit more than I ever expected. That is something I don’t like. It’s like the debit card is plastic, but on top of being plastic, its money that is being sucked dry from my bank account because they are directly connected people.

When I did not have a debit card, I maybe visited the bank 1-2 times a week, and even in that case, I didn’t take out a ton of money. Now that I have a debit card, I only go to the bank to deposit money and on occasion keep about $20-$50 bucks in my wallet at all times. That is of importance to me to have some cash in my wallet because you never quite know when an emergency may arise, or worse, a situation occurs where technology goes kaput and debit and credit cards as payment aren’t options.

Yes, America it happens more often than you know. Which is the biggest concern I have: way too many people rely on plastic and fail to realize, you can still write checks (yes, it’s something I do), and there is nothing wrong with paying cash. With debit, you can be tempted to purchase items and then you have the opportunity to get cash back if you like as well. A lot of people forget about that advantage, but at the same time, they also forget to deduct that from their bank account.

When it comes to debit, you have to treat it just like a check book; write every single thing you purchase down in a notebook or planner so you are aware of what you spent and how your spending is being tracked. With cash you have to track it, but not to the degree that comes with a debit card or check. The great thing about cash is you tend to be a bit more conscious of it. You might say, well, what exactly does that mean? You want to always have cash, so that places one in a predicament to not spend money that he or she doesn’t have. You might be more inclined to save with keeping only cash in your wallet, compared to having a debit card if you ask me America.

As much as I love my debit card, I have come to the conclusion that utilizing it in moderation is key to ensure that I save and don’t overspend. I mean when you have complete access to all the money in your bank, you are indeed inclined to spend a bit more than you normally expected people.