Cash withdrawals from ATMs and through cashback facilities across the country is declining – apart from Donegal.
Donegal was the only county not to show a decline in the amount of cash being withdrawn from banklink machines.
New figures from the Banking and Payments Federation of Ireland (BPFI) show that the number fell by 7.1% last year to 82.2 million, compared to 2024.
But Donegal has bucked the trend and we still love a visit to the ATM and we’re still asking for cashback at the till.
The Head of Payments at BPFI, Gillian Byrne, said the data highlights the continued popularity of contactless payments among Irish consumers.
“This trend was reflected across the country with the value of cash withdrawn falling in every county except Donegal, where the value was unchanged,” she added.
The value of the withdrawals has also fallen, down by 4.2% to €12.2 billion.
The banking body said contactless payments accounted for 88.7% of all POS card payments in 2025.
A total of 62.4% of all the contactless payments were made using mobile wallets such as Apple Pay or Google Pay, rather than cards.
“Notably, of the 298 contactless payments made per person in Ireland on Irish cards in 2025, 159 were made through mobile wallets, highlighting how smartphones are becoming the preferred payment method over physical cards for many Irish consumers,” she said.
‘We’re cash mad!’ Donegal only county where ATM usage has not dropped was last modified: February 19th, 2026 by Staff Writer