Most grocery stores these days, unless you’re maybe in a tiny town, employ “robots.” We’re talking about those self-checkout machine “robots” where you do all the work! You walk up, scan your groceries, bag them, swipe your card, and walk out the door. No human interaction needed.
Most people have a strong preference: They either like using the self-checkout or they hate it. “Get me a real human!” they’ll say.
Sure, sometimes the self-checkout can be much quicker. Robots are faster than humans, after all. But sometimes they’re not practical. If you have a lot of produce, it may take you forever to find, look up, and search for the proper code for your Brussels sprouts. In this case, it may be quicker for you to wait and go through a “real human” line.
Which do you prefer? Will you always do self-checkout? Most often do self-checkout? Or do you hate those dang robot machines so much that you’ll always or almost always go through the traditional “real human” line?
After you vote, please leave a comment. Thank you!
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If I find that I have an extra 10-12 minutes to waste, I’ll use the cashier check out, otherwise self-checkout.
If you can find an open cashier checkout.
Walmart has switched more to online and pickup shopping with dozens of ‘secret shoppers’ roaming the stores.
Plus these people block the aisles, rush in and out of aisles without looking and push themselves in front of personal shoppers.
Walmart prices are higher since they have to pay these people.
We now shop mostly at local grocery stores with actual customer service employees and lower prices.
Wally world has gone to the coon dogs.
People are more interesting.
We need to resist the “self check outs”. It takes away jobs without a cost savings to customers. At least it does not show to be one. If we give in we will be unloading trucks next!
I always use the self-checkout if available. That way I can monitor incorrect pricing especially when there is BOGO. Plus, I can usually get through the checkout process quicker than waiting at one of the FEW clerk assisted lines. The Market Basket in NH that we go to doesn’t offer any self-checkouts BUT they normally have most if not ALL of their checkouts open and staffed.
Having worked in retail and run a register I prefer self checkout. That being said not every one will be honest and scan all their items. So it’s a mixed bag as if stores should use self checkout. Being a cashier is not easy and customers can be troublesome.
The question was, what do you PREFER, not what do you use! If it was the old way, where all the lines were open, I prefer that!
Self checkout if I have a reasonably small number of items.
At the self checkout, I can fill my re-useable bags the way i want them. I can keep all my cold items together and know what is packed together.
I use Scan & Go at Walmart when there. Then Most of the time it’s Self Checkout. Because no one is trained how to bag Groceries anymore or how to stop the belt when the chute is full and your groceries are getting crushed. Even though I put heavy stuff up first. Although I do find it’s nice at some markets when they have someone bagging as your items are scanned. But I hate when they put one item in a bag. I bagged groceries when I was a kid and you were trained not to put heavy items on top of light ones and bread always went on top. You know, Common Sense.
I hear you Keith. And to add insult to injury we’ve had to bag our own stuff a lot while the checker just left the shoot running and it was our problem. There seems to be so little pride for work for many these days.
Yep…heavy jars thrown in on eggs or bread. Meat put in with drano. You name it, we’ve had the plethora of untrained checkout people try to do it.
We’ll check ourselves out. Faster and done right!
I would have liked to see “Use each one based on which made the most sense”. I’m not going to stand in line for a checkout person for one item and I’m not going to self checkout with 20 items.
I use the self checkout 90% of the time. I prefer that to waiting in line for a cashier. I only go to a cashier if there is no one in line and I have some produce that codes need to be looked up.
Self-checkout is okay for a few items, but it’s a real chore when you have a full cart! Often these days, it’s difficult to find a cashier, so one has no choice but to use self-checkout.
Depends upon where you show for groceries.
Kroger, Walmart and others, yes you have a choice. Human or machine.
Aldi the only choice is a human.
So, what’s the point of this Poll?
No Aldi’s in my part of the USA. Someday I’d like to go to one.
Yes, Aldi’s is in the United States. We’re in Alaska. But have been to Aldi’s Outside and that’s a different set of problems. I’ve never had the right change for a cart! Traveling, sometimes I don’t even have bags to take into the store.
Our Aldi has automated checkouts and one manned checkout.
What is Aldi???? Never heard of it.
Ron, go to Aldi.us
Self Check or Clerk Check…which do YOU prefer? The poll has nothing to do with which type of check-out stores have. Hope that helps
I will almost always stand in line for a human checker rather than do self check. I hope I’m doing my part to keep people working.
I will never use self checkout. I waited 20+ minutes at a Home Depot for the only cashier to finish their lunch. The Self Checkout guy tried to get me to use the self checkout. I told him I would rather go across the street to Lowes than use self checkout.
Use the human, keep people employed!
EXACTLY! I will only use self-check if lines are very long and I only have a few items.
I have a real issue when I can be arrested for shoplifting if I make a mistake at the self checkout.
We shop Market Basket on the east coast, it’s all human contact you won’t find not one single self check out, and registers are ringing away. Walmart 20 registers and only 3 open and self checkout backed up. Frustrating.
We discovered Market Basket on our last trip to Massachusetts. We loved it. No other grocery store we’ve been to compares to it. I wish they would expand to the Midwest.
🤔 Walmart 50 registers 1 human oh yeah nobody wanna work ☹️
I don’t like other people touching my food and groceries, let alone bagging my fresh produce with cleaning chemicals and other stuff that shouldn’t be bagged together. Didn’t used to be that way; I was mad like everybody else until I watched some “real humans” bagging up other people’s stuff. Enough for me. Always self checkout.
If you want jobs back, stop using the self serve options! It does not lower prices, it only reduces jobs. I hate them, and do not use them anywhere.🇨🇦
Depends on how much being purchased. Like real person as long as no line to check out.
I almost always use self check out. I would prefer a human but there are never enough available and the wait times are very long, at least in my area. I believe having a reduced number of humans available is the plan to get us to use the self check out. I guess it works!
If I have to do all the work required by going through self-check out, then I want a 15% discount at check-out. You can call it a “Tip” if you want.
I like self check-out because I know the guy.
😃
Self checkout takes jobs away from people who need them. I don’t care if I have to wait an hour in line, I WILL NEVER USE SELF CHECKOUT!!
Having worked in grocery stores when I was younger I see things from a different perspective, Self checkout is fine if one has only a few items & often has a 15 item limit. The problem is that they are generally slower to use to check out. While I understand the issues, one is not allowed to start bagging your items until after your purchase is completed making the process slower than it could be otherwise. On the other side of the coin, many clerks at the cash register make the process slow due to often using only one hand. Customers are not prepared to complete the transaction & are often in no hurry to bag their groceries……
Or their cards declined 😡
It is interesting that a recent study showed that the average check-out time is longer ar the self-serve registers than the ones with a cashier. The reason given for this is that the cashier knows how to scan things quickly. The study was done by an independent group but was sponsored by the Food Handlers union. Self-serve checkouts are marketed as quicker, but the real reason is to reduce the number of employees.
Does that include waiting in line? I doubt it.
Good point!
Self checkout for a few items, human for the rest.
I absolutely despise it when employees watch me do their job to ensure I do their job well. Asking to see my receipt to ensure I bought my goods is also annoying as heck.
I get it. There’s unscrupulous people out there skip scanning and stealing. Cool, shut down the kiosks and go back to the way that actually prevented such.
I much prefer to self checkout in most cases. I always bring my own bags and like to pack them in certain ways.
My favorites are the self checkouts with conveyor belts for when I have quite a lot of items. My husband loads them while I scan and bag.
I was disturbed that some Walmarts have limited their self checkout to 15 items.
I found it interesting that the most “reasons” people chose self checkouts were because of the bagging – if that’s the issue, what’s stopping them from bagging where a human is doing the scanning? You can still bag your stuff while the checker is scanning, just tell the bagger you want it “your way”. This way you keep people employed and you get your stuff bagged the way you like it – win-win.
Great response! 😃
I shop mostly wal mart and use self checkout
It drives me crazy that when it comes to checkout that have the stations are closed because they don’t have enough people to “watch” the customers
I write checks (yes, I’m old school). You can’t write checks and go through the self-checkout line. So I always use the human.
Me, too, Diane.👍 And I love it when I go to a store and write a check and the cashier has to call someone over to find out whether to put the check into the machine right side up or upside down.🤣 We’re in quite the minority these days, I guess. Have a great day! 😀 –Diane at RVtravel.com
But ya holding up the line 😡
go to self check
I have to agree
same here, we use old school checks frequently…and I vote for discount if I use self check out.
My first choice is to use the ‘real human’ to checkout, but if I am in a hurry, and the self checkout looks faster, and I have only a few items, I will use it. When those stores try to push me to the self checkout lanes, I ask if I can get an employee discount, which never happens! My thinking is this: If self checkout saves the store money, then that savings needs to be passed directly to the customer immediately for choosing self checkout!
I prefer the FASTEST Line. The killer is they even CLOSE some self check out registers at times!
While I voted for the human operated line, the real truth is ‘whichever gets me through the checkout & payment process fastest’. I look at what is in our cart and the various lines. There is no question that human checkers are faster per item, But what if there are a couple full carts ahead of my less filled cart?
I miss customer service
I think most people in America miss real customer service.
I have hope for our country that it will make a comeback…people want American made…local businesses…competition! 🇺🇸
I get great customer service at the self-checkout. There is always someone there monitoring.
Oh how I miss the days of knowing the checkers…and them knowing you. Lines opening as needed…no one left waiting. Baggers who were trained “how to” and always there to help. I will say in my travels there ARE still stores like this and it’s always a joy to stumble upon them!
Aldi has the fastest human checkout clerks.
That’s unusual but it’s good
Whichever has the shortest line.
Underrated post.
Unless I have just one or two items AND the staffed checkout lanes are backed up then and only then will I use the self-checkout. There outta be some sort of discount for those who choose self-checkout since the primary reason for self-checkouts is to eliminate staffed checkouts.
My wife and I really enjoy using the self check out , as do most of the customers in our store. We can zip right through very quickly. We bring our own bags and fill them up as heavy as we wish and have rarely any issues that are quickly resolved. As a matter of fact we find it irritating to be required to interact with a checker. Another really good thing is using our phone app to scan the QR code to pay for our items.
I have never experienced a grocery store with self-check out. Hmmmm!
If Walmart paid me to use the self checkout lane I might consider it.
My mom retired from Kroger as a cashier and had regular customers who chose her line because she was so pleasant and knowledgeable. She’d be disappointed to see how grocery shopping has evolved. Unfortunately work ethics declined in most professions as did customer service. If I have a choice, I self-checkout or use a scan-and-go app.
Self check.
I loved playing store as a child and I still do!
😃
Self checkout. That way my bananas and avocados get put in with the lettuce and not the canned goods. 🤬
Sam’s club is moving to scan as you go, I think we will just go somewhere else.
Scan as you go takes some getting used to but really gets you out of the store fast which is especially great during busy times. Sometimes the lines at the ‘big box stores’ are long and slow.
Thank you for the question, RV Travel! Most often I prefer self-check, but if I have more than 15 items, then I have to go through a regular check-out. I do enjoy wishing a good day and having a chat with the manager standing watch over the self-check registers, but some of the cashiers are very pleasant too. Have a great day and safe travels!
Some stores have good self-checkout lanes and some stores are awful. One popular store I consider awful is Costco. Their lanes challenge your honesty by weighing each item as you move it to the scanned side and won’t allow you to bag or box your purchases as you go due to this weighing system. Nor can you move items to a cart as the scanned side fills up.
I almost always end up with an error or requiring assistance at self check outs, so I generally opt for the human experience.
The machines at our local store have no patience! Remove this! Place that! One time my friend and I were checking out at one of those things–she’s from the Bush–and the self-check machine went crazy for my friend’s “helping” by removing things from the “bagging area” before payment was made. Guess the thing takes note of the weight of the items scanned and moved over…. The self-check cashier and I have a personality conflict.