Debit cards are the future according to Oct 2025 statistics from the Meltwater group. Hong Kong, Canada and South Korea are the only places with high penetration rates of both card types.
The data represents the percentage of adults aged 15+ who own or use each card type. The table below is sorted by the largest absolute differences between credit card and debit card usage, highlighting whether a country leans heavily toward debit or credit.
Debit cards carry lower merchant fees than credit cards, and also offer favorable exchange rates without the foreign transaction fees. See my review of best HK multi-currency cards to learn more.
| Country | Debit Card (%) | Credit Card (%) | Difference (Debit - Credit) | Dominant Card Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bulgaria | 81.0% | 12.6% | +68.4% | Debit |
| Hungary | 82.9% | 15.9% | +67.0% | Debit |
| Malaysia | 80.1% | 13.2% | +66.9% | Debit |
| Poland | 81.4% | 20.3% | +61.1% | Debit |
| Netherlands | 97.2% | 37.4% | +59.8% | Debit |
| Vietnam | 64.8% | 5.8% | +59.0% | Debit |
| Czechia | 88.1% | 29.9% | +58.2% | Debit |
| Greece | 80.8% | 23.2% | +57.6% | Debit |
| Chile | 80.8% | 24.3% | +56.5% | Debit |
| Singapore | 95.0% | 41.7% | +53.3% | Debit |
| France | 92.7% | 39.8% | +52.9% | Debit |
| Serbia | 75.3% | 24.3% | +51.0% | Debit |
| South Africa | 59.8% | 9.7% | +50.1% | Debit |
| Sweden | 97.8% | 48.4% | +49.4% | Debit |
| Thailand | 56.9% | 8.0% | +48.9% | Debit |
| Portugal | 87.0% | 38.5% | +48.5% | Debit |
| Croatia | 88.8% | 40.6% | +48.2% | Debit |
| Belgium | 96.4% | 49.8% | +46.6% | Debit |
| Russia | 71.5% | 25.1% | +46.4% | Debit |
| Saudi Arabia | 76.0% | 30.1% | +45.9% | Debit |
| Nigeria | 48.3% | 3.2% | +45.1% | Debit |
| Romania | 65.4% | 22.2% | +43.2% | Debit |
| Australia | 91.9% | 51.4% | +40.5% | Debit |
| U.A.E. | 66.3% | 26.8% | +39.5% | Debit |
| Ireland | 94.2% | 55.0% | +39.2% | Debit |
| Denmark | 97.3% | 58.5% | +38.8% | Debit |
| Germany | 94.8% | 56.5% | +38.3% | Debit |
| Austria | 95.5% | 59.0% | +36.5% | Debit |
| New Zealand | 93.7% | 57.2% | +36.5% | Debit |
| Indonesia | 41.4% | 5.9% | +35.5% | Debit |
| Turkey | 79.1% | 43.7% | +35.4% | Debit |
| Argentina | 64.1% | 29.9% | +34.2% | Debit |
| Finland | 98.9% | 65.3% | +33.6% | Debit |
| U.K. | 95.6% | 62.1% | +33.5% | Debit |
| India | 37.6% | 4.6% | +33.0% | Debit |
| Israel | 48.6% | 79.1% | -30.5% | Credit |
| Brazil | 73.8% | 43.5% | +30.3% | Debit |
| Norway | 96.0% | 66.7% | +29.3% | Debit |
| Spain | 85.9% | 56.6% | +29.3% | Debit |
| Morocco | 27.2% | 0.6% | +26.6% | Debit |
| Mexico | 40.1% | 14.2% | +25.9% | Debit |
| Taiwan | 88.3% | 63.8% | +24.5% | Debit |
| Peru | 36.7% | 12.6% | +24.1% | Debit |
| Italy | 81.0% | 57.9% | +23.1% | Debit |
| Japan | 91.5% | 69.7% | +21.8% | Debit |
| U.S.A. | 87.4% | 66.7% | +20.7% | Debit |
| Switzerland | 86.4% | 69.2% | +17.2% | Debit |
| Philippines | 20.1% | 3.0% | +17.1% | Debit |
| Hong Kong | 88.2% | 71.6% | +16.6% | Debit |
| Kenya | 19.5% | 4.4% | +15.1% | Debit |
| Canada | 94.5% | 82.7% | +11.8% | Debit |
| South Korea | 79.6% | 68.4% | +11.2% | Debit |
| Ghana | 14.8% | 4.4% | +10.4% | Debit |
| Pakistan | 10.6% | 1.6% | +9.0% | Debit |
| Bangladesh | 7.7% | 1.7% | +6.0% | Debit |
Greatest Debit card lead
Bulgaria, Hungary, and Malaysia show the largest disparity gaps (up to 68%), where debit card adoption completely eclipses credit card penetration.
Credit outlier
Israel is the only listed market where credit card adoption explicitly exceeds debit card adoption (by 30.5%). I haven't researched why yet, but it's probably not worth understanding since the data for the rest of the world says debit is better.
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