While 57% of Canadians aged 18-to-34 would welcome this option, only 30% of those aged 55 and over concur.
Vancouver, BC [January 29, 2025] – The way Canadians pay for things has not changed much over the past year and a half, and the country’s youngest adults remain supportive of the use of biometrics to make purchases, a new Research Co. poll has found.
The online survey of a representative national sample asked Canadians about the way they bought things over the past month.
More than a third of financial transactions in Canada (37%, -3 since a similar Research Co. survey conducted in August 2023) involved a credit card, while just under three-in-ten (29%, +1) required a debit card.
Fewer financial transactions were completed with cash (18%, =), a smartphone (7%, =), an e-transfer (7%, +1) or a cheque (2%, =).
“Almost half of all purchases made by Canadians aged 55 and over (46%) entailed a credit card,” says Mario Canseco, President of Research Co. “The share is lower among Canadians aged 35-to-54 (37%) and aged 18-to-34 (29%).”
More than one-in-ten transactions made by Canadians aged 18-to-34 (11%) entailed the use of a smartphone. The proportions are lower among Canadians aged 35-to-54 (7%) and aged 55 and over (2%).
More than two thirds of Canadians (67%, +4) recall a moment in the past month when they did not have any paper money with them and had to buy something worth less than $10 with their credit or debit card.
Ontario (70%) and Quebec (69%) boast the largest proportions of residents who used a credit or debit card for a small purchase in the past month. The numbers are lower in British Columbia (67%), Alberta (also 67%), Saskatchewan and Manitoba (61%) and Atlantic Canada (58%).
As was the case last year, Canadians are divided on the issue of biometrics payments. Almost half (46%, +2) say they would like to see people relying on fingerprints, palm recognition or iris scans to buy things in their lifetime.
An almost exact proportion of Canadians (45%, =) say they would not like to see body measurements and calculations being used to make purchases, while 10% (-1) are not sure
Support for the eventual implementation of biometrics payments is highest among Canadians aged 18-to-34 (54%, +3), followed by those aged 35-to-54 (48%, +4) and those aged 55 and over (30%, -1).
About one-in-five Canadians (21%, -2) expect to be able to pay through fingerprints, palm recognition or iris scans in the next five years, while three-in-ten (30%, -3) think this will happen in the next 10 years.
Methodology: Results are based on an online survey conducted from January 3 to January 5, 2025, among a representative sample of 1,002 adults in Canada. The data has been statistically weighted according to Canadian census figures for age, gender and region in Canada. The margin of error—which measures sample variability—is +/- 3.1 percentage points, nineteen times out of twenty.
Find our data tables here and download the press release here.
For more information on this poll, please contact:
Mario Canseco, President, Research Co.
778.929.0490
[e] mario.canseco@researchco.ca