WHEN Was the Last Time You Wrote a Regular Check?

SELF | May 2, 2026 | PJ-Comix

[PJ-Comix]

It struck me earlier today that I have NOT written a regular check in years. Yes, I have written a few bank checks but as far as personal checks I can't think of any that I have written any in at least 5 and more likely 10 or more years. At one time in my life and in the lives of many others, writing checks were a frequent activity. However, after the onset of the Internet and doing transactions over the web my check writing activities dwindled further and further until it has reached ZERO except for the few times I needed to write bank checks for the transferal of larger than normal funds.

So WHEN was the last time you wrote a regular check? And are there people here who still write checks frequently? I can't even remember the last time I wrote a regular check and it could have been as long ago as 20 or 25 years.

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TOPICS: Business/Economy
KEYWORDS: checks; currency; internet; money; noonecares; onlinepayment; vanity

[vaskypilot]

Just the other day to a Catholic religious organization as a donation for mother and father’s day masses. I do not write checks for household bills. We do use checks for property and income taxes.

[DFG]

I have written 2 physical checks in the last 10 years:

2021 : About $11,000 for a new air conditioner
2016 : Marching band fees when our daughter was a high school senior (trombone)

I pay all of our bills online.

[Brian Griffin]

I’ve written checks to FR.

I have checks to pay contractors. I paid a plumber $1,200. Two point seventy-five percent of that would be $32.

[jttpwalsh]

Her sister must be the one where I shop. Never occurs to her to dig the checkbook out of her huge and cluttered purse until at least a minute after the final item has been rung up.

[Chickensoup]

LOL!

Yes.

And the SIGHS!

[Karliner]

Every month. I pay old school. Don’t like seeing auto pay subtract from my account on their times and having access to to what only the IRS does and has done.

[ChronicMA]

I had a checking account that I had not used in about 7 years. I wrote a check on it and a week later I received a new box of checks free of charge.

The bank name had changed and the checks had a new routing number; they requested that I no longer use my old checks.

[Karliner]

hahaha as long as you’re not clipping coupons and have a half dozen returns.

[eastexsteve]

Every now and then. I wrote two last month.

[PJ-Comix]

I use my IBM Selectric II

One of the great inventions of the latter half of the 20th Century. I used to buy and sell those. However, the "upgrade," Selectric III was a bust. The funny thing is that I once bought a Selectric III fairly cheap from some dude. I mean for like less than $100. It's a long funny story how I got him to sell so low but to get back to what happened it was right at the time when people had just started to realize that Selectric III was a really lousy. Fortunately, a company a week later answered my classified ad for that Selectric III and they wrote me out a company check for $650 when I delivered it to their office on Century Blvd. near LAX. First thing I did was hoof over to their bank which was nearby and cashed their check. I didn't want them to put a stop payment on the check when they realized how disappointing Selectric III typewriters were.

[Steve_Seattle1]

Yesterday. I HATE this trend of doing everything on your phone. It has totally screwed up my income tax return because I can’t get the app to work.

[albie]

Yesterday. Mortgage, car payment, MC bill, electric. However I do have a friend that lost $10,000 in a wiring scam. So no thanks

[dfwgator]

"Pay to the order of Iron Balls McGinty....One Dollar and Nine Cents!"

[Antoninus]

Uh, yesterday? And guess what? I even taught my kids how to write them.

[Antoninus]

Just another activity in our lives that was at one time normal but is now exceedingly RARE due to the Internet.

I'm actually writing more now than I did even five years ago. Why? Because the small vendors near me are starting to tack 3.5% credit card fees onto their bills. Whenever I see that, out comes the checkbook.

[roving]

I do it once a year for my property tax.

[Deaf and Discerning]

I’ve not written one in over 30 years. My wife does all the paperwork.

Besides, due to my arthritis, I cannot even read anything I write...

[freds6girlies]

I have a Selectric I that I taught my kids to type on
I also have 2 Selctric II that I use regularly
The machines are just a joy to use

I get frustrated using a laptop with the keys all flat

[BradyLS]

My money goes. But checks give me the opportunity to wave goodbye to it. 😕

[desertsolitaire]

Yesterday. But it’s now only once or twice a month. I can’t remember the last time I re-ordered paper duplicate checks.