I can't believe there's a number of people in this thread that apparently do not know how credit cards work. Seriously?
I am in the U.S. A credit card does not cost most customers any money in the U.S. Some credit cards you have to pay an annual fee for (usually those with additional perks) but many have no annual fee. I have a Chase Freedom Card for every day purchases. It has no annual fee. I got $150 for signing up with the card. I pay no interest charges. I get cash back on purchases. Specifically, I get 5% back on certain purchase categories.
https://www.nerdwallet.com/card-details/card-name/Chase-Freedom-100-Cash-BackThat is the experience of the customer of the card. If I have a problem with a transaction, I can call the credit card company and dispute the charge. If my card is stolen, my total liability for unauthorized usage on the card is $50. This is a requirement of the FCBA (Fair Credit Billing Act):
http://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/0213-lost-or-stolen-credit-atm-and-debit-cardsI pay my balance off each month so I don't incur any interest charges or other expenses. I just get cash back. Yes, the merchant has to pay merchant fees for processing credit cards. No, I don't ever see them. The price is normally the same if I am paying cash, with a debit card or with a credit card. At some gas stations, you get different prices whether you pay with cash, debit or credit but for most purchases, there is no difference in price at all.
My credit card has a chip in it, a new recent requirement for all credit cards in the U.S., and many credit card readers now (all are supposed to) read the chip instead of the magnetic strip. The chip stops skimmers from working. Most of Europe is chip and pin, in the US it is chip and signature (which isn't as good as chip and pin). I can use the credit card pretty much anywhere in the U.S. When I travel to Japan, I bring cash because cash is still king in Japan.