Technology

If credit cards users pay higher prices than non-users, checking accounts are secure from erroneous/unauthorized transactions, and transfers are instant, then the use case for credit cards is less clear.

If they don’t cost you any more, then those are the once which are expensive on the stores you buy from.

That changes the trade-offs a bit. I missed the assumption that credit card users pay the same prices (& no extra fees) as everyone else: processing fees are typically paid by the vendor who includes it in prices everyone pays regardless of credit card.

In the US, credit card users basically get short-term, interest-free loans subsidized by the hidden costs in processing fees everyone is paying. Since consumers in the US mostly can't avoid the hidden costs, they don't benefit as much by avoiding credit cards as consumers in other places where consumers can avoid those fees by not using credit cards.

It doesn't help that those credit cards compensate (poorly) for deficiencies in our financial system as I'll explain.

A normal bank card is way harder to even get into a situation where you need to open a dispute

Maybe yours. Here, online payments only need some numbers on the debit card & your name & billing address.

Unauthorised debits are such a rare thing

All it takes here is debit card information or an (e-)check. A check openly shows your routing number & bank account number & states to pay from there. Low barriers to fraud.

most credit card companies do not care about you getting scammed either btw because you authorised the transaction

Different here: by law no one who disputes a charge within 60 days is obligated to pay it until the dispute is resolved (within 90 days). It's usually charged back immediately. Due to weak security, authorization is easier to dispute, and they won't simply assume it.

Transfers between accounts are instant these days

Maybe in more civilized parts of the world. In the US, transfers & payments between financial institutions usually take business days to settle. Real-time payment is still uncommon there.

You also mean unauthorised credits

I agree that makes more sense in accounting. It's often stated as I did with bank accounts & I gave up trying to figure that out.

I could lock the money for a year to get like 2.9% interest instead of the 1.2%.

My regular & emergency savings go in an account like this with 4.3 APY, and that's "instantly" (as fast as a checking account) accessible. The slow settlement times, security risks, and "free" credit cards may offer some insights into our haphazard financial landscape & stopgap "solutions". The stronger use case for credit cards here is a byproduct of this broken system.