Answer
How much cash float do I need for a cash discount?
The offer moves money into your till, not out of it — but it changes the shape of what you hold. Most venues need more small change and a slightly larger opening float, not more capital.
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Short answer
How much cash float do I need for a cash discount?
Size the till float from your expected cash sales rather than total sales: most small retail and hospitality venues running a cash discount need an opening float in the low hundreds of dollars weighted towards coins and $5 and $10 notes, because on-site ATMs dispense $20 and $50 notes. Review the float weekly for the first month, then monthly. The cash the customer pays with comes from the ATM, so the venue is not funding the notes — under free ATM placement the operator funds the machine and the cash inside it. General information only, not financial advice.
Definition
Float, change and ATM cash are three different things
A till float is the money you start a shift with so you can give change. A change order is the mix of coins and small notes you buy in to keep that float usable. ATM cash is the money loaded into the machine so customers can withdraw — and under a free placement agreement, that is funded by the ATM operator, not the venue.
Confusing the three is what makes cash discounts sound expensive. The venue's obligation is the float and the change mix. The notes customers actually spend come out of the machine.
| Item | Purpose | Funded by |
|---|---|---|
| Till float | Giving change at the counter | The venue |
| Change order | Coins and small notes for the float | The venue |
| ATM cash | Customer withdrawals on site | The operator, under free placement |
| Cash-in-transit for the ATM | Replenishment and collection | The operator, under free placement |
Sizing it
How to work out the float
Start from your expected cash sales per shift rather than total sales. If a cash discount moves a quarter of your transactions to notes, your change requirement rises roughly in proportion — but only on the small denominations, because the customer is arriving with $20 and $50 notes from the machine.
That is why the practical adjustment is a change-mix adjustment. Venues that simply add more $50s to the float find themselves short of $5s and coins by the middle of a busy shift.
- Estimate cash transactions per shift after the discount, not total transactions
- Weight the float towards coins, $5 and $10 notes
- Add a second change bag for peak trading blocks rather than one large float
- Set a mid-shift cash lift level so the drawer never carries too much
- Recount and re-size the float weekly for the first month
Banking
What it does to your banking costs
More cash takings can mean more deposits, and business banking arrangements sometimes price cash deposits differently from card settlement. Check your own account terms before setting the discount level, so the discount is priced against your full cost picture rather than card fees alone.
For many small venues the extra deposit cost is small next to the card acceptance cost avoided, but it should be a number you have looked up rather than assumed. If deposits are expensive on your account, a smaller discount or a percentage-based discount on larger sales may be the better shape.
Security
Handling more notes safely
An ATM on site does not change your cash-handling risk profile in the way people expect, because the machine's cash sits in a certified safe serviced by the operator's cash-in-transit provider rather than in your drawer.
- Regular cash lifts to a safe, on a schedule staff know
- Two-person counting where staffing allows
- Nothing counted in view of the shopfront
- Deposit runs varied in time and route
- Signage that makes clear how little cash is held at the register
Where the notes come from
The ATM is the supply side of the offer
A cash discount needs a supply of notes at the point of decision, and that is the ATM's job. Where the machine is inside the venue and visible from the counter, customers withdraw and pay cash in the same visit; where it is not, they use a card and the offer never runs.
Under free ATM placement the operator funds the machine, the install, the cash float inside it, the connectivity, the monitoring and the servicing, and the venue earns a share of every withdrawal surcharge. The venue's cash planning stays limited to its own till float and change mix.
Review
The weekly numbers to watch
Track three figures for the first month: cash as a share of takings, coin and small-note shortfalls per shift, and the withdrawal count on the on-site machine. Together they tell you whether the float is sized correctly and whether the offer is being taken up.
If cash share rises but the float keeps running short on coins, the fix is the change order. If cash share does not move at all, the problem is signage or sightlines, not the float.
FAQs
Questions people ask
Not under free placement. The operator funds the machine and the cash inside it and handles replenishment through a cash-in-transit provider. The venue funds only its own till float.
Australian retail ATMs commonly dispense $20 and $50 notes, which is why a venue running a cash discount needs its float weighted towards coins and smaller notes for change.
It can, depending on your account and how often you deposit. Check your business banking terms for cash deposit charges and factor them in before you set the discount level.
On a schedule set by the machine's usage and monitored remotely, so refills happen before it runs out rather than after. Monitoring and replenishment are part of the placement arrangement.
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Keep reading
Related pages
- How do I pair a cash discount with an ATM?Siting, sightlines, signage and staff wording.
- Who fills an ATM with cash?How replenishment, monitoring and cash-in-transit work.
- Discount for cash — every state and tradeThe silo hub: states, cities, regional towns and business types.
- Offering a discount for cashThe national explainer, with each Reserve Bank source linked in full.
- How do I set up a cash discount?The five setup steps, pricing and the rules that apply.
- Free ATM placementA fully managed machine at no cost, with a share of every withdrawal.
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