Most popular payment methods in Japan 2021

In a survey conducted in January 2021, more than 90 percent of the respondents in Japan named cash as the most commonly used payment method. Credit cards were the leading non-cash means of payment, chosen by more than 70 percent of the respondents.

Credit cards

In Japan, cash payments are still the preferred payment method for many. This is reflected by a comparatively low share of cashless payments in the country. Broken down by payment method, credit cards have accounted for the major share of cashless payments in past years, followed by electronic money, debit cards, and QR code payments.
Since their introduction in the 1960s, credit cards have become a popular means of payment in Japan, and more than 290 million cards had been issued by 2020. Credit card ownership was particularly high among older age groups, and leading areas of credit card usage included retail stores, online shopping, and regular payments, such as phone bills.

Electronic money

Electronic money is another widely spread cashless payment method in Japan. Transactions with e-money exceeded six trillion Japanese yen in 2020, equal to a share of close to two percent of the private final consumption expenditure. E-money exists since the early 2000s: in 2001, an electronic money service based on IC smartcards was introduced by Edy (Rakuten Edy) to Japanese consumers. The corresponding contactless IC chip technology, called "FeliCa" was invented by the Sony Group. FeliCa is not only used for automated fare collection via smartcard but also enables NFC payments on mobile devices such as smartphones.