advantage bitcoin over other payment methods online

[Este Nuno]

I would add that it is also safer. Paying with a credit card or check requires handing over information about your account. Often all the information needed to access your money. With bitcoin I can pay without divulging anything that gives any access to additional money. Even if my account is hacked, the attacker can see my purchases but can't spend.   

Well, that's arguable I think. If you're 100% sure computer wise then bitcoin is safe as long as you don't make any big mistakes like losing your wallet or sending to the wrong address, but these things seem to happen to a lot of people right now.

With credit cards if someone uses your card fraudulently they company will refund the money as long as you sign some papers. I had my credit card number stolen before and it wasn't an issue getting it cleared up. But of course you're paying for this safety through fees and interest.

I'm certainly not saying credit cards are better than bitcoin but at this point it's not necessarily clear that bitcoin is safer for the average person.

I see your point about messing up and sending to the wrong address or something. But in the last few months I have had to replace my debit card due to the Target security breach. During this same period I gave my Overstock.com account info to some friends and asked them to try stealing from me. They found no money or card info to steal.
I didn't have to pay for a new card directly, but MasterCard is a business and MUST make a profit off me. They will get that money via fees and such. If done correctly, bitcoin is fundamentally more secure as a system.

It's fundamentally more secure overall, I agree with that. But as a consumer you don't get the same protections that you would with a credit card. If someone scams you, or you buy a product and it never ships and you don't get a refund you can request chargeback and get your money back from Mastercard or Visa.

On the other hand that's a huge downside for merchants. So bitcoins lack of chargebacks is a huge plus for them.

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[davidgdg]

I would add that it is also safer. Paying with a credit card or check requires handing over information about your account. Often all the information needed to access your money. With bitcoin I can pay without divulging anything that gives any access to additional money. Even if my account is hacked, the attacker can see my purchases but can't spend.   

Well, that's arguable I think. If you're 100% sure computer wise then bitcoin is safe as long as you don't make any big mistakes like .... sending to the wrong address, but these things seem to happen to a lot of people right now.

How would that happen? It is almost impossible to type in a valid but "wrong" address by accident. The transaction just won't go (like entering wrong details for a bank transfer)

[Ron~Popeil]

I would add that it is also safer. Paying with a credit card or check requires handing over information about your account. Often all the information needed to access your money. With bitcoin I can pay without divulging anything that gives any access to additional money. Even if my account is hacked, the attacker can see my purchases but can't spend.   

Well, that's arguable I think. If you're 100% sure computer wise then bitcoin is safe as long as you don't make any big mistakes like losing your wallet or sending to the wrong address, but these things seem to happen to a lot of people right now.

With credit cards if someone uses your card fraudulently they company will refund the money as long as you sign some papers. I had my credit card number stolen before and it wasn't an issue getting it cleared up. But of course you're paying for this safety through fees and interest.

I'm certainly not saying credit cards are better than bitcoin but at this point it's not necessarily clear that bitcoin is safer for the average person.

I see your point about messing up and sending to the wrong address or something. But in the last few months I have had to replace my debit card due to the Target security breach. During this same period I gave my Overstock.com account info to some friends and asked them to try stealing from me. They found no money or card info to steal.
I didn't have to pay for a new card directly, but MasterCard is a business and MUST make a profit off me. They will get that money via fees and such. If done correctly, bitcoin is fundamentally more secure as a system.

It's fundamentally more secure overall, I agree with that. But as a consumer you don't get the same protections that you would with a credit card. If someone scams you, or you buy a product and it never ships and you don't get a refund you can request chargeback and get your money back from Mastercard or Visa.

On the other hand that's a huge downside for merchants. So bitcoins lack of chargebacks is a huge plus for them.

The cost of the credit card system is 40% fraud. This means lower prices for the consumer and more protection for the businesses. The inability to charge back means that instead of relying on some credit card company to do our due diligence and protect us from our bad choices we must make smarter choices. 

[PolarPoint]

If you hand over your credit card for a payment, stores can over charge you and you will have to initiate a long investigation to get a chargeback. Scammer stores can use your credit card details to duplicate your card and spend your money. This does not happen with bitcoin.

When you use your credit card overseas, their exchange rate a bit higher than the spot exchange rate. Does not matter if the amount is small. For larger amounts, the exchange rate difference is a concern.

[Ron~Popeil]

If you hand over your credit card for a payment, stores can over charge you and you will have to initiate a long investigation to get a chargeback. Scammer stores can use your credit card details to duplicate your card and spend your money. This does not happen with bitcoin.

When you use your credit card overseas, their exchange rate a bit higher than the spot exchange rate. Does not matter if the amount is small. For larger amounts, the exchange rate difference is a concern.

Doing business with people over seas gets easier as well. No transfer fees and exchange rate to take multiple bites of the apple.

[neofelis]

Big downside. Transactions are irreversible. Meaning, if you send bitcoin to the other side of the world, you better trust the receiving party does what you've agreed to. Otherwise, you have no recourse.

[Pierre11]

Hi all,

doing an assignment for school and I would like to find information on if and if so why it is cheaper to pay with bitcoin instead of a debitcard or a creditcard when purchasing something online or with a debitcard even in a physical location. I would like to find numbers on the costs involved in these payments?

Thx a lot

Bitcoin transaction cost is quicker and less expensive that the other payment mode.

We thinks world can economyze 120 milliards de $ with bitcoin in fees !!! 

[Ron~Popeil]

Big downside. Transactions are irreversible. Meaning, if you send bitcoin to the other side of the world, you better trust the receiving party does what you've agreed to. Otherwise, you have no recourse.

Yep, you have to do your own due diligence. Being responsible for your own wealth is something a lot of people don't seem willing to do. They would rather have banks and central planners do it for them.

[Harley997]

Hi all,

doing an assignment for school and I would like to find information on if and if so why it is cheaper to pay with bitcoin instead of a debitcard or a creditcard when purchasing something online or with a debitcard even in a physical location. I would like to find numbers on the costs involved in these payments?

Thx a lot

The cost of swiping your debit card or credit card (or entering it on a secure website) is near zero, to you, the consumer, at the time of the transaction. The majority of the costs are associated and paid for by the merchant. In general the merchant will pay ~3% of the transaction for credit/debit cards, and if 75% of their transactions are in debit/credit cards then they will have to raise their prices by ~2.25% to pay for this fee. So with society using debit/credit cards at the rate that it does causes prices to be higher on average by 2.25% in this scenario.

Another cost of using a debit/credit card is the cost of maintaining your account with the bank. Most checking accounts have a monthly fee if you do not meet certain criteria, although you are generally exempt if you maintain ~$2,000 at the bank. This is just a generalization but $2,000 will usually allow you to avoid a monthly fee. On the credit card side you have the issue of annual fee and possible interest charges if you are unable to pay you balance in full every month.

I do not have specifics as to how much the above usually costs the consumer, however it affects lower income people much more dramatically then it affect higher income people, both in terms of dollars and in terms of percentage of income.

[Este Nuno]

I would add that it is also safer. Paying with a credit card or check requires handing over information about your account. Often all the information needed to access your money. With bitcoin I can pay without divulging anything that gives any access to additional money. Even if my account is hacked, the attacker can see my purchases but can't spend.   

Well, that's arguable I think. If you're 100% sure computer wise then bitcoin is safe as long as you don't make any big mistakes like .... sending to the wrong address, but these things seem to happen to a lot of people right now.

How would that happen? It is almost impossible to type in a valid but "wrong" address by accident. The transaction just won't go (like entering wrong details for a bank transfer)

Not an invalid address, but this guy just sent 800 btc to the wrong address just a few days ago:

https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=636126.0;all

[Ron~Popeil]

I would add that it is also safer. Paying with a credit card or check requires handing over information about your account. Often all the information needed to access your money. With bitcoin I can pay without divulging anything that gives any access to additional money. Even if my account is hacked, the attacker can see my purchases but can't spend.   

Well, that's arguable I think. If you're 100% sure computer wise then bitcoin is safe as long as you don't make any big mistakes like .... sending to the wrong address, but these things seem to happen to a lot of people right now.

How would that happen? It is almost impossible to type in a valid but "wrong" address by accident. The transaction just won't go (like entering wrong details for a bank transfer)

Not an invalid address, but this guy just sent 800 btc to the wrong address just a few days ago:

https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=636126.0;all

That is still shocking. I get nervous and triple check everything when sending even .01 anywhere. 

[Harley997]

I would add that it is also safer. Paying with a credit card or check requires handing over information about your account. Often all the information needed to access your money. With bitcoin I can pay without divulging anything that gives any access to additional money. Even if my account is hacked, the attacker can see my purchases but can't spend.   

Well, that's arguable I think. If you're 100% sure computer wise then bitcoin is safe as long as you don't make any big mistakes like .... sending to the wrong address, but these things seem to happen to a lot of people right now.

How would that happen? It is almost impossible to type in a valid but "wrong" address by accident. The transaction just won't go (like entering wrong details for a bank transfer)

Not an invalid address, but this guy just sent 800 btc to the wrong address just a few days ago:

https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=636126.0;all

That is still shocking. I get nervous and triple check everything when sending even .01 anywhere. 

Most people are not as careful with their money because of the consumer protections that other payment methods have. Bitcoin does not have these consumer protections and this is probably the greatest determent to bitcoin being widely accepted.