Target Will Stop Accepting This Old-School Form of Payment
Starting July 15, Target will no longer accept personal checks as a form of payment. This decision is part of the retailer’s efforts to streamline the checkout process for shoppers.
In a statement to CNN, Target cited “extremely low volumes” of check usage as the reason for the change. Retail analyst Neil Saunders from GlobalData noted that while the move is unsurprising, it may disappoint some customers, particularly elderly ones who still rely on checks.
Despite this change, Target will continue to accept various other payment methods, including Apple Pay, SNAP/EBT, buy now/pay later services, Target Circle Cards, its store card, cash, credit, and debit cards.
A 2024 report by financial software company Abrigo found that around 61% of Americans still write checks. Interestingly, younger consumers, including Gen Z and Millennials, reported writing more checks than older consumers from Gen X.
Target is not alone in moving away from checks. Grocery chain Aldi and Amazon-owned Whole Foods also do not accept checks as a payment method.
This decision is part of a series of changes Target is making to improve the checkout experience. Earlier in March, the retailer announced it would limit the number of items accepted at self-checkout counters to 10 and allow store management to set hours of operation for self-checkout machines to combat rising retail theft.
Additionally, Target has been working to attract inflation-wary customers by cutting prices on more than 5,000 items, including popular household staples, following a period of declining sales reported earlier this year.
