How much cash do you usually carry?

[elrohwen]

I have anywhere from $1 to $100; typically close to $5 though. Usually I'll get money out of the ATM every few months (usually if we're going somewhere, like a bar, where we'd like to have cash). Then I'll very gradually spend it (we use our credit card for almost all purchases to get the points) and one day I'll realize I only have a few bucks left. I really should put a spare $20 in my purse or car because I often don't remember that I have no money.

 

[vip0802]

i always have cash on me, and it can range from as little as a few dollars to $100+. then again, i work at a sports bar so it''s a given that i''ll leave work with cash. i''ll use it for groceries, gas and little odds and ends, and then i''ll deposit most of it in our account. whatever coins i get from change, i dump into our 5-gallon water jug "piggy bank" at the end of the day. every 6-months or so, we''ll take it to Coin Star and whatever cash we got out of it goes into our savings.

i also carry my check card and credit card too, but i recently paid off all my credit cards so, the one i carry is for emergency uses.

 

[yssie]

Usually a $20, never more than $50. Unnecessary, and in my college location, unsafe.


FI probably has another $20 in dimes and nickels in the cup-holder in his car

 

[Rachel9]

I like to carry cash on me, don't use credit unless is an emergency.
ETA I use Scrip cards for groceries, gas and major stores to support my kids school [4-17%]

 

[purrfectpear]

I''ll take out $300 at the ATM, but it might be another month before I need cash again.

 

[Maisie]

I usually carry less than £20 in cash.

 

[Haven]

We pay for everything but house bills in cash, so I carry whatever I budget for the errands I''m running at the time.

If I''m just going to work and coming home, I''ll usually only have $10 or $20 on me just in case. If I''m going to the grocery, I''ll have $40. If I''m going out to dinner, well, it depends on where we''re eating.
Whatever the amount, I always know what is in my wallet, and what it is intended for. It helps me avoid impulse shopping.

 

[Lilac]

My father always told me to have $200 with me "for emergencies." I usually only have around $15 or $20 on me though. I don''t like carrying a lot of cash, and I find I tend to spend more money when I carry a lot of cash. For some reason, I have a harder time swiping the credit card than I do handing out cash, so by limiting the amount of cash I carry, I try to limit the amount of money I spend.

 

[steph72276]

I only carry about $30-40 for emergencies...especially since I''m due any day and might have to pay for parking at the hospital. But other than that, I use my debit card for everything so it''s easy to track. I find that I throw money away at Starbucks and things like that if I have cash.

 

[luv2sparkle]

I used to carry up to 500. with me when I would take it out to use for groceries and incidentals. That actually saved me money in the long run. But now, I don''t carry any
with me. My kids have radar and no sooner than I get it but someone says, "Mom, do you have any cash I can borrow". I''m pretty much a sucker so I have found it easier
not to have any!

 

[sunnyd]

Cash is always easier for me to spend, so I keep it to about 68 cents usually.

 

[Laila619]

None. I don't carry cash for two reasons: 1) I'm a germophobe and it's disgusting and 2) no recourse if it gets stolen or lost, unlike a credit card.

I'm odd I know.

 

[rierie26]

Date: 1/6/2010 4:32:55 PM
Author: Laila619
None. I don't like cash for two reasons: 1) I'm a germophobe and it's disgusting and 2) no recourse if it gets stolen or lost.

That's my main reason. I've had my purse stolen a couple of times and I think it's more painful if you lose cash vs. cards.

I carry around a couple of bucks if I've picked them up somewhere and I have a full change purse. No one seems to want to take my granny change purse. LOL.

 

[AmberGretchen]

I TRY for the same as kenny, but almost never manage it. I travel a ton for work, so I often find myself needing to spend my cash on incidentals and then not having time to replenish it (and also not knowing where the nearest ATM is most of the time, even if I had time to get to it...

).

 

[monarch64]

Date: 1/6/2010 2:49:26 PM
Author: vip0802
i always have cash on me, and it can range from as little as a few dollars to $100+. then again, i work at a sports bar so it''s a given that i''ll leave work with cash. i''ll use it for groceries, gas and little odds and ends, and then i''ll deposit most of it in our account. whatever coins i get from change, i dump into our 5-gallon water jug ''piggy bank'' at the end of the day. every 6-months or so, we''ll take it to Coin Star and whatever cash we got out of it goes into our savings.

i also carry my check card and credit card too, but i recently paid off all my credit cards so, the one i carry is for emergency uses.

Gah!

Saving change is awesome, but those Coin Star things are such a rip-off! Don''t they charge like 9% of what you put in? I used one once a few years ago when I didn''t realize how high the charge was and will never do it again. $100 worth of change and I have to give them almost one roll of quarters for the convenience? No thanks!

 

[EHR2009]

None! I just carry a debit card, credit card, and a check book. This rarely gets me into trouble, but every once in a while, I wish I had a few dollars with me.

 

[iheartscience]

I usually have about $10 on me. I buy lunch from food carts pretty often and sadly they don''t take debit cards! Before I started this job I never had cash on me, though.

 

[vip0802]

Date: 1/6/2010 4:43:37 PM
Author: monarch64

Date: 1/6/2010 2:49:26 PM

Author: vip0802

i always have cash on me, and it can range from as little as a few dollars to $100+. then again, i work at a sports bar so it''s a given that i''ll leave work with cash. i''ll use it for groceries, gas and little odds and ends, and then i''ll deposit most of it in our account. whatever coins i get from change, i dump into our 5-gallon water jug ''piggy bank'' at the end of the day. every 6-months or so, we''ll take it to Coin Star and whatever cash we got out of it goes into our savings.


i also carry my check card and credit card too, but i recently paid off all my credit cards so, the one i carry is for emergency uses.

Gah!

Saving change is awesome, but those Coin Star things are such a rip-off! Don''t they charge like 9% of what you put in? I used one once a few years ago when I didn''t realize how high the charge was and will never do it again. $100 worth of change and I have to give them almost one roll of quarters for the convenience? No thanks!

i totally agree that the fee is ridiculous! however depending on how full our jug is, we sometimes opt to roll the coins ourselves but either way is still a hassle IMHO. we''ve invested in coin sorters, but i''ve found that they''re not totally reliable. a bank teller once jokingly asked if we were trying to rip off the bank...apparently some of our rolls were too low.

Coin Star also has the option of putting the change towards a gift card to certain retailers without the fee. we sometimes do this too but again, it all depends on how much change.

 

[Dancing Fire]

$300-$500...i feel naked w/o cash in my pocket.

 

[gardengloves]

$50- $100 for emergency.

I used to have no cash on me-used debit card all the time, what could go wrong?

Until a citywide power out in NYC a few summer ago- Broiling hot day, I had $5 and had to walk 5 miles from midtown to home in lower Manhattan. I was wearing cute little kitten heels, had no lunch, and started trekking. Begged a street vendor to sell me flip flops for $4 and a $1 bottle of water. I learned my lesson.

 

[DiaDiva]

$50 or so when I was living in the US because credit cards are accepted almost everywhere. In Singapore, around $200 because cash is king in a lot of the small shops/food courts.

 

[Haven]

Date: 1/6/2010 4:43:37 PM
Author: monarch64

Date: 1/6/2010 2:49:26 PM
Author: vip0802
i always have cash on me, and it can range from as little as a few dollars to $100+. then again, i work at a sports bar so it''s a given that i''ll leave work with cash. i''ll use it for groceries, gas and little odds and ends, and then i''ll deposit most of it in our account. whatever coins i get from change, i dump into our 5-gallon water jug ''piggy bank'' at the end of the day. every 6-months or so, we''ll take it to Coin Star and whatever cash we got out of it goes into our savings.

i also carry my check card and credit card too, but i recently paid off all my credit cards so, the one i carry is for emergency uses.

Gah!

Saving change is awesome, but those Coin Star things are such a rip-off! Don''t they charge like 9% of what you put in? I used one once a few years ago when I didn''t realize how high the charge was and will never do it again. $100 worth of change and I have to give them almost one roll of quarters for the convenience? No thanks!

I never understood why anyone uses those coin counting machines. Why not just take your change to the bank? That''s what we do. They''re always very nice about counting it, and they never ask if I bank there or anything. I just changed out over $130 in change for cash the other day.

 

[musey]

Usually $40-60.

 

[Cehrabehra]

in the states I carried between nothing and about $60 usually... I never really worried or cared. Here my husband insists I carry at least $100 usd all the time.

 

[katamari]

$0 actually on me. But, I put a budgeted amount in a debit account at the start of the month and that is my spending money. Like kenny, I do keep at least $20 in my car because when I do need actual cash, that is when I need it (unexpected toll, parking fee, etc.).

 

[Diamond*Dana]

I don''t usually have cash, I use my debit card for everything. If I do have some, it is less than $10.

 

[KimberlyH]

None. If I get cash for some reason and there is money left over I give the excess to my husband.

 

[pennquaker09]

Nate makes sure that I have at least $100 at all times. But more often than not, I end up giving some of it back to him because I don''t like carrying more than 40 bucks.

 

[monarch64]

Date: 1/6/2010 8:37:39 PM
Author: Dancing Fire
$300-$500...i feel naked w/o cash in my pocket.

I think carrying that much cash must be a "guy thing." My dad always has a roll of cash in his pocket that he just rubber bands. He''s done it for years and years, it is something his dad and his grandfather did as well I believe. The bad thing about it is that it''s mostly hundreds with a few of each other denomination on the outsides. My mom and my brother and I are always telling him it''s not very safe to carry all that cash but he insists on it for whatever reason.

I really don''t understand the logic behind it, I mean, his daily expenses consist of lunch and Starbucks. That''s like, $10 a day.

 

[monarch64]

Date: 1/6/2010 8:51:02 PM
Author: Haven

Date: 1/6/2010 4:43:37 PM
Author: monarch64

Date: 1/6/2010 2:49:26 PM
Author: vip0802
i always have cash on me, and it can range from as little as a few dollars to $100+. then again, i work at a sports bar so it's a given that i'll leave work with cash. i'll use it for groceries, gas and little odds and ends, and then i'll deposit most of it in our account. whatever coins i get from change, i dump into our 5-gallon water jug 'piggy bank' at the end of the day. every 6-months or so, we'll take it to Coin Star and whatever cash we got out of it goes into our savings.

i also carry my check card and credit card too, but i recently paid off all my credit cards so, the one i carry is for emergency uses.

Gah!

Saving change is awesome, but those Coin Star things are such a rip-off! Don't they charge like 9% of what you put in? I used one once a few years ago when I didn't realize how high the charge was and will never do it again. $100 worth of change and I have to give them almost one roll of quarters for the convenience? No thanks!

I never understood why anyone uses those coin counting machines. Why not just take your change to the bank? That's what we do. They're always very nice about counting it, and they never ask if I bank there or anything. I just changed out over $130 in change for cash the other day.

Haven, I think maybe they are convenient for people who don't have a chance to get to their bank due to their work schedule, and also people who don't have a bank account for whatever reason. Some banks require you to have an account before they'll agree to change out your coins, some don't...but if a person doesn't bank there or doesn't have an account period he/she may feel intimidated even inquiring.

VIP, the Coin Stars are pretty convenient. I mean, you can run into the grocery or Wal-Mart 24/7 depending on where you shop. I didn't know the coin sorters weren't very reliable! That kind of defeats the purpose of them, haha!

Random side note: SO has a weird change obsession. He has like a hundred of those plastic coin rolls full of quarters in a big box under his bed. And he takes pennies to the recycling station and melts them. It's very odd and quirky and I don't get it at all. I told my dad about it and of course he thought that was great.