This has been studied. The US uses a higher quality paper that lasts an average of 7 years. So it is actually cheaper than minting coins. In other countries that switched to coins, singles only lasted a year or two.
There is nothing stopping people from using coins now. People just don’t like them.
They’re also heavy in your pocket and don’t fit in a standard cashier’s drawer. There aren’t enough slots.
The real good idea would be getting rid of pennies and nickels. Those are only useful for giving stores a few extra cents in profit. They set prices at $4.99 instead of $5 so you buy more. Without pennies, they’d have to set the price at $4.90 and lose 9 cents.
This has been studied. The US uses a higher quality paper that lasts an average of 7 years. So it is actually cheaper than minting coins. In other countries that switched to coins, singles only lasted a year or two.
There is nothing stopping people from using coins now. People just don’t like them.
They’re also heavy in your pocket and don’t fit in a standard cashier’s drawer. There aren’t enough slots.
The real good idea would be getting rid of pennies and nickels. Those are only useful for giving stores a few extra cents in profit. They set prices at $4.99 instead of $5 so you buy more. Without pennies, they’d have to set the price at $4.90 and lose 9 cents.