Global survey on consumer payment card behavior: user expectations centered around design, convenience and sustainability

The IDEMIA Secure Transactions (IST) global study, conducted by the research agency Dentsu Insights, uncovers that design, convenience, and sustainability are the primary catalysts driving consumer payment trends. Security remains a concern, and consumers look for safe ways to pay.

As innovations, whether digital or physical, revolutionize every area of our daily lives, the payment sector is no exception. In this exclusive survey, carried out between December 2023 and January 2024, users around the world were interviewed on how they pay and what their expectations are when it comes to payment methods.

Drawing from the feedback of more than three thousand respondents from 12 countries across 6 continents, three distinct consumer needs stand out regarding users’ payment preferences:

Design matters: with the increasing number of options, from metal to OLED cards among others, card design has become a key differentiator. Expectations and appetite for innovative card designs are ever-growing:

72% care about the design of their payment cards;
83% are interested in having a metal card;
84% are interested in having a numberless physical card as an added security feature.

Increased flexibility thanks to the combination of physical and digital cards made possible by mobile phones:

71% of respondents already utilize a digital payment card;
68% of those without one express a desire to obtain a digital card in the next three years;
86% value the option to activate their physical card by tapping it to their phone.

The shift towards more sustainability in payment:

69% of consumers would choose an eco-friendly card over a conventional one;
71% of respondents are willing to participate in recycling programs for expired cards.