Factors Influencing User Preferences for E-Wallets Compared to Traditional Payment Methods

E-wallets have emerged as popular digital payment systems, offering contactless transactions and enhanced convenience. However, traditional methods such as cash and cards remain widely used, often perceived as more secure. This study aims to examine the key factors influencing user preferences between e-wallets and traditional payment methods in Malaysia, focusing on perceived ease of use, convenience and usability, privacy and security, and user satisfaction. A mixed methods approach was adopted, combining quantitative and qualitative designs. The quantitative component involved a purposive sample of 115 e-wallet and traditional payment users who completed a structured questionnaire distributed online. Qualitative insights were gathered through open-ended survey responses and user observations. Data were analyzed using SPSS 27, applying reliability tests, descriptive statistics, correlations, and regression analysis. The results reveal that satisfaction is the most influential factor (β = 0.272, p < 0.1), followed by convenience and usability (β = 0.267, p < 0.1), and privacy and security (β = 0.220, p < 0.5). Perceived ease of use had a weaker, non-significant effect (β = 0.173). These findings highlight the importance of improving user satisfaction, trust, and usability to promote digital payment adoption.