How to Use a Credit Card at a Snack Vending Machine

Determine if the card you have is set up for charging privileges. Look at what cards the machine reader will take. Most snack vending machines don't take ATM cards, despite their VISA associations behind the scenes, and this should be stated on their ATM card reader on the machine itself.

Look at the card reader for a moment, to ensure that your card will be taken. All credit and debit cards (which come from a bank) have one of a variety of insignias (Visa, Mastercard, Discover, American Express, etc.). See if this insignia on the card matches one of the insignias stated on or near the card reader.

Look at the card reader to see just what way to swipe the card. You'll sometimes see the card reader to say to swipe with the magnetic strip to the left and sometimes the magnetic strip to the right.

Swipe the card in the reader from the very top to the very bottom of the reader, and wait for the reader to return a message that says that you've been approved. Most often times, at this point the screen says approved, the vending machine company has placed a temporary authorization payment on the account to ensure there really is money in the account and that they are able to take the money from you at any given time.

Make a selection and wait for the item to drop down. Type in the numbers on the keypad you are given near the reader to make your selection, just as you would have had you had cash and/or change.

Repeat this for as many items as you are intending to buy. Most companies will combine your charges into one combined larger charge

Press the button marked End on the card reader itself, to ensure your card cannot be reused any additional times by unauthorized users. This is a critical step that most first-time users tend to forget to do when using a vending machine with this type of payment form.