Why does nobody talk about how many checks we used to write?

I saw a stat that the average person wrote 38 checks a year in 1995, but now it's under 3. Found it in an old Fed report my bank posted online. Anyone else remember balancing a checkbook every weekend?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_elliot1mo ago

Honestly, the worst part was waiting in line at the grocery store behind someone writing a check. You'd see them pull out that booklet and just groan. The cashier would have to get a manager for approval over a certain amount, and then they'd copy the info from your license onto the check. It felt like a whole production that held everyone up.

wadew511mo ago

Oh man, I was that person holding up the line sometimes! I'd forget to fill out the date or the amount ahead of time and have to do it right there at the register. I'm pretty sure I saw people behind me rolling their eyes. Balancing my checkbook was a nightmare too, I was always off by a few cents and would spend an hour trying to find my mistake. The whole system felt like a test I kept failing.

oliverhernandez1mo ago

@the_elliot is right, that whole check approval process was a public shaming ritual.