Digital transaction value for debit cards meaningfully outperformed credit cards in 2020

The forecast: As consumers have gotten more comfortable using debit cards online, US digital debit card spending has outpaced that of credit cards. Transaction value will fall in 2021, but we expect growth to return in 2022.

Dive deeper:

• Last year, US digital debit card transaction value grew 72.9% while digital credit card transaction value grew 38.0%.
• For the first time since we began tracking in 2014, digital credit cards’ share of digital payment card transaction value dipped below 50% due to stronger growth in prepaid and debit cards.
• Much of this growth can be attributed to stimulus checks being deposited into bank accounts or onto prepaid cards.

Looking ahead: Just because they saw growth in 2020 doesn't mean digital debit cards are the payment method of the future. After growth dips this year, it will slowly return in 2022 and 2023, resulting in a digital debit card transaction value of $443.49 billion in 2023.