The credit card you swipe may soon affect the price you pay

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00:00The credit card you choose to swipe could soon change the price that you pay.

00:04Visa and MasterCard just reached a settlement with U.S. merchants that, if approved by the courts,

00:09would let stores charge different fees depending on the brand of your card.

00:12This matters because merchants currently have to accept all cards from a network if they accept one.

00:17For instance, Costco only takes Visa, but it has to take every Visa card, from basic to premium.

00:23This settlement could loosen that rule, letting stores group cards into categories,

00:27and those categories come with surcharges.

00:29Analysts are saying basic cards might carry a 2.5% fee,

00:33while premium rewards cards, the ones with cash back or airline miles, could face 3-4%.

00:38That means those fancy perks that credit card companies use to incentivize you to sign up

00:42could cost you extra in the checkout line.

00:44Surveys show that two-thirds of shoppers would switch payment methods if faced with a 3-4% fee.

00:49Merchants, meanwhile, get a small win, a 0.1% drop in interchange fees,

00:54the behind-the-scenes cost they pay on every swipe.

00:56Bottom line, if the deal goes through, the card in your wallet won't just decide what perks you earn,

01:01it could determine how much you pay at checkout.

01:03So, will you stick with your rewards card even if it costs you,

01:06or is it time for cash to make a comeback?

01:08Let us know in the comments and follow us here for more.