Can you still swipe a credit card with a chip?

This question is about Chip and PIN Credit Cards

Alex Wise, penny pincher

@Alex_Wise 05/04/20

Permalink Report

You can swipe a credit card with a chip, but not in all situations. All credit cards in the United States currently still have magnetic stripes because not all merchants adopted chip technology. If a merchant does not support chip technology, you will swipe your card and sign for your purchase, treating your card as a basic, magnetic stripe card.

However, when making purchases at merchants who support chip technology, you will be prompted to insert your card into the terminal and enter your confidential four-digit PIN.

WalletHub Answers is a free service that helps consumers access financial information. Information on WalletHub Answers is provided “as is” and should not be considered financial, legal or investment advice. WalletHub is not a financial advisor, law firm, “lawyer referral service,” or a substitute for a financial advisor, attorney, or law firm. You may want to hire a professional before making any decision. WalletHub does not endorse any particular contributors and cannot guarantee the quality or reliability of any information posted. The helpfulness of a financial advisor's answer is not indicative of future advisor performance.

WalletHub members have a wealth of knowledge to share, and we encourage everyone to do so while respecting our content guidelines. Please keep in mind that editorial and user-generated content on this page is not reviewed or otherwise endorsed by any financial institution. In addition, it is not a financial institution’s responsibility to ensure all posts and questions are answered.

Ad Disclosure: Certain offers that appear on this site originate from paying advertisers, and this will be noted on an offer’s details page using the designation "Sponsored", where applicable. Advertising may impact how and where products appear on this site (including, for example, the order in which they appear). At WalletHub we try to present a wide array of offers, but our offers do not represent all financial services companies or products.

Ask a Question

140

Ask Question

WalletHub Transparency

We are committed to being fully transparent with our readers. Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone. WalletHub editorial content on this page is not provided, commissioned, reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any company. In addition, it is not any company’s responsibility to ensure all questions are answered.