UK Card Payments Statistics 2026

This page gathers the most-quoted statistics on UK card payments, merchant fees and the card-acquiring market, each drawn from a named primary source (UK Finance, the Payment Systems Regulator and official records). Last updated June 2026. Every figure below links to its primary source.

76% of UK debit card transactions were made using contactless. Source: UK Finance, Card Spending

The UK card payments market

76%

of UK debit card transactions were made using contactless. (September 2025) Source: UK Finance, Card Spending

66%

of UK credit card transactions were made using contactless. (September 2025) Source: UK Finance, Card Spending

64%

of all UK payments were made using debit and credit cards. (2024) Source: UK Finance, UK Payment Markets 2025

<10%

of all UK payments were made in cash, the first time cash has fallen below one in ten. (2024) Source: UK Finance, UK Payment Markets 2025

Fees and regulation

0.2% / 0.3%

are the caps on interchange fees for UK consumer debit and credit card payments, set by the Interchange Fee Regulation. (in force) Source: legislation.gov.uk, Interchange Fee Regulation (EU) 2015/751

£100

is the maximum value of a single contactless card payment in the UK, raised from £45 on 15 October 2021. (since 2021) Source: UK Finance, contactless limit increase

£150-200m

in extra fees were paid by UK businesses in 2022 after Visa and Mastercard raised cross-border interchange fees, the regulator estimated. (2022) Source: Payment Systems Regulator, cross-border interchange fees market review

Kartapay data

22

UK card-payment acquirers are tracked in the Kartapay Card Acquirer Index, with the legal entity, Companies House number and verified support languages recorded for each. First-party data (2026) Source: Kartapay Card Acquirer Index See the Card Acquirer Index

Our own data

The figures marked "First-party data" above are published by Kartapay from its own dataset and are not available elsewhere. The full methodology and the underlying table are in the UK Card Acquirer Index.

Methodology and sources

Every statistic on this page is taken from a named primary source and links to the original record so you can verify it. We do not republish figures from secondary blogs. The page is reviewed and the figures refreshed on a regular cadence; the "last updated" date reflects the most recent substantive change, not an automated rebuild.

Cite this page

To reference these figures, please credit Kartapay and link to this page:

Source: Kartapay, UK Card Payments Statistics 2026, https://kartapay.co.uk/statistics/ (accessed June 2026).

Compiled by Oliver Mackman. Published by Kartapay.

UK interchange fee caps: debit vs credit Horizontal bar comparison of the UK regulated interchange fee caps. The cap on consumer debit card interchange is 0.2 percent. The cap on consumer credit card interchange is 0.3 percent. Both are set by the Interchange Fee Regulation (EU) 2015/751. The maximum value of a single UK contactless card payment is 100 pounds, raised from 45 pounds in October 2021. The caps apply only to UK consumer debit and credit cards: commercial, premium and non-UK cards fall outside them. Sources: legislation.gov.uk and UK Finance. UK interchange fee caps: debit vs credit The regulated wholesale fee built into every UK card payment. Lower is cheaper. 0.1% 0.2% 0.3% Consumer debit card interchange cap 0.2% Consumer credit card interchange cap 0.3% £100 maximum value of a single UK contactless card payment (since 2021). Caps apply to UK consumer cards only; commercial, premium and non-UK cards fall outside them. Sources: legislation.gov.uk (IFR 2015/751), UK Finance.
UK interchange caps are a floor on the regulated cards, not your full rate. See the UK Card Acquirer Index.
How the UK pays, 2024 to 2026 Bar chart of the UK card-payments market mix. 76 percent of UK debit card transactions were contactless and 66 percent of credit card transactions were contactless as of September 2025. In 2024, 64 percent of all UK payments were made by debit and credit cards, and under 10 percent were made in cash, the first time cash fell below one in ten. Source: UK Finance, Card Spending and UK Payment Markets 2025. How the UK pays, 2024 to 2026 Contactless and cards now dominate UK payments. 25% 50% 75% 100% Debit card payments that are contactless Sep 2025 76% Credit card payments that are contactless Sep 2025 66% All UK payments made by card 2024 64% All UK payments made in cash 2024 under 10% Contactless figures are a share of debit or credit transactions; card and cash figures are a share of all UK payments. Source: UK Finance.
The UK card-payments market, drawn from named primary sources. See the full UK card payments statistics.
UK card payments: key figures (2024-2026)
MetricValueSource
UK debit card transactions made using contactless (Sep 2025)76%UK Finance, Card Spending
UK credit card transactions made using contactless (Sep 2025)66%UK Finance, Card Spending
UK payments made using debit and credit cards (2024)64%UK Finance, UK Payment Markets 2025
UK payments made in cash (2024)<10%UK Finance, UK Payment Markets 2025
Interchange fee caps, UK consumer debit / credit0.2% / 0.3%legislation.gov.uk, Interchange Fee Regulation (EU) 2015/751
Maximum single UK contactless card payment (since 2021)£100UK Finance
Extra fees paid by UK businesses on cross-border interchange (2022)£150-200mPayment Systems Regulator
UK card-payment acquirers tracked in the Kartapay Card Acquirer Index (first-party)22Kartapay Card Acquirer Index

Source: UK Finance, Payment Systems Regulator, legislation.gov.uk, Kartapay Card Acquirer Index

Figures as published 2024-2026. Each row links to its primary source in the stat list above.

View as plain-text Markdown 
### UK card payments: key figures (2024-2026)

| Metric | Value | Source |
| --- | --- | --- |
| UK debit card transactions made using contactless (Sep 2025) | 76% | UK Finance, Card Spending |
| UK credit card transactions made using contactless (Sep 2025) | 66% | UK Finance, Card Spending |
| UK payments made using debit and credit cards (2024) | 64% | UK Finance, UK Payment Markets 2025 |
| UK payments made in cash (2024) | <10% | UK Finance, UK Payment Markets 2025 |
| Interchange fee caps, UK consumer debit / credit | 0.2% / 0.3% | legislation.gov.uk, Interchange Fee Regulation (EU) 2015/751 |
| Maximum single UK contactless card payment (since 2021) | £100 | UK Finance |
| Extra fees paid by UK businesses on cross-border interchange (2022) | £150-200m | Payment Systems Regulator |
| UK card-payment acquirers tracked in the Kartapay Card Acquirer Index (first-party) | 22 | Kartapay Card Acquirer Index |

Source: UK Finance, Payment Systems Regulator, legislation.gov.uk, Kartapay Card Acquirer Index

Figures as published 2024-2026. Each row links to its primary source in the stat list above.
A caveat on the headline numbers
“Contactless share and the interchange caps describe the market, not your bill. The 0.2% and 0.3% caps apply only to UK consumer cards: commercial cards, premium rewards cards and non-UK cards fall outside them, so a merchant taking a lot of those pays far more than the headline rate suggests. Read the cap as a floor on the regulated cards, then check your own statement for the rest.”
OM

Oliver Mackman

Director, Kartapay

Reviewed 10 June 2026

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