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The price is the same if you use cash or card. Really, after reward points, card tends to be even cheaper.

Visa/Mastercard/BNPL/Klarna etc. all have negotiated discounts for consumers, paid for by the merchant.

I'm skeptical that merchants would lower prices (stepping away from $x.98, etc) instead of pocketing the higher margins themselves.

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You're right that once prices have gone up, they rarely come back down. But if the price is the same, when you pay cash you're effectively subsidizing credit card reward programs, and lining Visa/Mastercard/issuer pockets.

Same can be said about health insurance: private insurance negotiate lower prices than the non-insured due to collective bargaining.

if all customers choose to us cash the merchant could lower price with 3%. If you are the only one paying cash then yes the price will stay the same.

Why would the merchant lower the price by 3% if consumers are willing to pay the current price?

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