# Self-serving checkout lines at stores **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 28, 2005, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-serving-checkout-lines-at-stores/332988 "2005-11-28T01:54:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Uncommon\_Sense](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Uncommon\_Sense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uncommon_Sense)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2005, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-serving-checkout-lines-at-stores/332988/21 "2005-11-28T16:02:36Z")
> [@Dewey Finn](#): > > So do the self-checkout registers actually save any time for customers, or do they just perceive that it does while actually taking more time? They probably don’t save customer time, they save employee time. The bottom line is store profit, if they can keep 8 cashiers in front instead of 9 or 10 they are saving themselves money. Why do customers use them then, you ask? Becuase there’s usually no one in line to use them so the overall checkout time is faster but the actual point-of-sale checkout itself is slower. ---
**Author:** ![GargoyleWB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gargoylewb/32/199_2.png) [@GargoyleWB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GargoyleWB)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2005, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-serving-checkout-lines-at-stores/332988/22 "2005-11-28T16:04:37Z")
> [@Dewey Finn](#): > > So do the self-checkout registers actually save any time for customers, or do they just perceive that it does while actually taking more time? In most places in my area, the human cashier lines are usually quite long while the self-check machines have no lines. I think that most people don’t yet have the technology confidence to make the plunge. Consider how often you get stuck behind the annoying luddite who insists on writing personal checks while balancing their checkbook in the express line, or who needs the cashier’s help to use the PIN pad. I’m happy that right now my uber-elite computer skills allow me to zip right through using the usually empty self-check machines. ---
**Author:** ![chrisk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6de8d8/32.png) [@chrisk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chrisk)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2005, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-serving-checkout-lines-at-stores/332988/23 "2005-11-28T16:10:01Z")
I’ll add that I like using these checkout stations, and that I make a point out of using them unless: - There’s a noticeable queue for them that’s equivalent to the lines for the regular conveyor belt checkout terminals (which is rare) - If I have a bunch of little koolaid packets to buy I’ll often skip the auto-checkout, since the scales do not seem to be sensitive enough to register their weight correctly. Thus, I’ll swipe one packet, place it in the bag, and the station keeps on reading ‘please place your item in the bag’ and won’t let me scan the next one. (sighs.) ---
**Author:** ![KlondikeGeoff](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3e96dc/32.png) [@KlondikeGeoff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KlondikeGeoff)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2005, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-serving-checkout-lines-at-stores/332988/24 "2005-11-28T16:45:52Z")
> [@Tuckerfan](#): > > …plus there’s usually folks watching you on security cameras so even if you stuffed it in your bra or whatever, they’d know about it. **Snailboy** wears a bra? :eek: ---
**Author:** ![eviladam\_part\_2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/da6949/32.png) [@eviladam\_part\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eviladam_part_2)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2005, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-serving-checkout-lines-at-stores/332988/25 "2005-11-28T16:52:33Z")
the various times i’ve had problems in the automatic lane, the employee doesn’t even check what the problem is-they just come over and clear it out. i’m pretty sure that the primary security is the honor system. and the cameras. (even though there’s probably nobody watching). for all you aspiring Sam’s Club shoplifters, i was recently told by an employee that they don’t even prosecute unless you’re trying to steal a cart full of computers or something. if you get caught with a bunch of dvd’s in your jacket they just ask you to leave. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2005, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-serving-checkout-lines-at-stores/332988/26 "2005-11-28T16:58:20Z")
[QUOTE=snailboy] So what would prevent a person from swiping a product across the yellow thing without scanning it and walking out without paying for it? [QUOTE] Morality? Decency? Upbringing? That’s what would stop me. ---
**Author:** ![Nimue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/d26b3c/32.png) [@Nimue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nimue)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2005, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-serving-checkout-lines-at-stores/332988/27 "2005-11-28T17:01:09Z")
I have also always wondered what prevents people from “accidentally” ringing up the wrong kind of produce. Say, ringing up organic tomatoes as the regular bulk kind, or baby bella mushrooms as the cheap white button variety? (On a side note, I have seen my mom deliberately go to young, distracted-looking cashiers hoping to get more expensive produce rung up as the cheap variety. It’s happened before.) FWIW, I never bother with self check-out at grocery stores, even if I have to wait in line, because a) I’m too busy scanning and bagging products to keep my toddler sufficiently entertained, and b) I ALWAYS have problems with the coupons I bring, especially if they’re for free items. And I use a lot of coupons. Although, self checkout machines do not seem to notice expiration dates on coupons, either. ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2005, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-serving-checkout-lines-at-stores/332988/28 "2005-11-28T17:19:07Z")
I’d like to know how sensitive these machines are to weight. For example, you put a box of cereal in your bag and the computer expects it to weigh 16 oz. But what is the sensitivity- will it reject 15.995 oz.? or 16.1 oz? Certainly there must be slight variations in weight even among packages that supposedly weigh the same. What fraction of a pound/ounce is permissible variation? ---
**Author:** ![chaoticbear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f07891/32.png) [@chaoticbear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chaoticbear)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2005, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-serving-checkout-lines-at-stores/332988/29 "2005-11-28T21:06:44Z")
> [@Nimue](#): > > I have also always wondered what prevents people from “accidentally” ringing up the wrong kind of produce. Say, ringing up organic tomatoes as the regular bulk kind, or baby bella mushrooms as the cheap white button variety? (On a side note, I have seen my mom deliberately go to young, distracted-looking cashiers hoping to get more expensive produce rung up as the cheap variety. It’s happened before.) > > FWIW, I never bother with self check-out at grocery stores, even if I have to wait in line, because a) I’m too busy scanning and bagging products to keep my toddler sufficiently entertained, and b) I ALWAYS have problems with the coupons I bring, especially if they’re for free items. And I use a lot of coupons. Although, self checkout machines do not seem to notice expiration dates on coupons, either. Point 1: I am guilty of this myself. It is difficult for me to tell the difference between flat-leaf parsley and cilantro (Well, I could taste them…) in a short amount of time, and through plastic bags. I always just ring up cilantro because it’s cheaper. Point 2: At Wal-Mart, at least, the self-checkouts and the regular registers can somehow read the barcode to tell you if a coupon is expired. Also, there’s a rudimentary check to see if you had the right product, but it’s not entirely accurate, and sometimes the employee has to override it. > [@BobLibDem](#): > > I’d like to know how sensitive these machines are to weight. For example, you put a box of cereal in your bag and the computer expects it to weigh 16 oz. But what is the sensitivity- will it reject 15.995 oz.? or 16.1 oz? Certainly there must be slight variations in weight even among packages that supposedly weigh the same. What fraction of a pound/ounce is permissible variation? Wal-Mart’s are accurate to .01 lb. If your 1 lb box of cereal comes up as 1.01 lbs, a red flag goes up. ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_Robson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gary_robson/32/3448_2.png) [@Gary\_Robson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_Robson)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2005, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-serving-checkout-lines-at-stores/332988/30 "2005-11-28T21:34:03Z")
> [@Shagnasty](#): > > The bag did have a scale under it. The whole platform is a scale. This made it amusing the first time my wife tried to use a self-checkout. When it came time to use the credit card, she set her purse down by the bag and the machine started griping at her. > [@Dewey Finn](#): > > So do the self-checkout registers actually save any time for customers, or do they just perceive that it does while actually taking more time? I don’t think it saves any time for customers. If neither register has a line, it’s quicker to have the three-person assembly line (I take the items out of the cart, the clerk scans them, the bagger bags them) than to do it all myself. I’ve gotten in line for the self-checkout a few times at our local grocery store, and I’ve never actually used it, because the people in front of me goofed the thing up and it was quicker to go to a regular lane than to wait for a clerk to show up and fix the self-checkout system. ---
**Author:** ![Troy\_McClure\_SF](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troy_mcclure_sf/32/4150_2.png) [@Troy\_McClure\_SF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Troy_McClure_SF)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2005, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-serving-checkout-lines-at-stores/332988/31 "2005-11-28T21:49:33Z")
There’s only one supermarket convenient to me with self-checkouts, and the line is always as long as the regular checkouts, plus people forget to bag them right or some other nonsense, so I find it’s not much quicker to go self-serve. If this weren’t the case, I’d definitely use them. ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2005, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-serving-checkout-lines-at-stores/332988/32 "2005-11-28T22:39:05Z")
> [@Dewey Finn](#): > > So do the self-checkout registers actually save any time for customers, or do they just perceive that it does while actually taking more time? What’s important to me is that they reduce human contact. I don’t get asked “Did you find everything OK?” and I don’t get told to “have a nice day.” ---
**Author:** ![bobk2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6de8d8/32.png) [@bobk2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobk2)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2005, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-serving-checkout-lines-at-stores/332988/33 "2005-11-28T23:22:59Z")
I don’t know about grocery stores or Wal-Mart, but around here each of the Home Depots have some of those self-serve stations. There are many things which you can scan through there yet that will not fit in the ‘bag area’ and consequently don’t get weighed. You wouldn’t use it for, say, a sheet of plywood, but you might use it for a bag of mortar mix. There is always an attendant. The system is not fool-proof and probably depends on a mix of personal honesty and fear of getting caught. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2005, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-serving-checkout-lines-at-stores/332988/34 "2005-11-29T00:04:37Z")
> [@Dewey Finn](#): > > So do the self-checkout registers actually save any time for customers, or do they just perceive that it does while actually taking more time? When the local supermarket first introduced self-service lanes, an enterprising reporter checked out a basketful of stuff through the regular checkout line, the express line and the self-service line. He found that the express line checkout was faster than either the regular line OR self-service (the express line checkout was a shorter lane without a conveyor, so the checker didn’t have to wait for the belt to bring the items.) Since the difference between all three was only a few seconds, the answer came down to which line was shortest. ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2005, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-serving-checkout-lines-at-stores/332988/35 "2005-11-29T00:09:43Z")
I doubt I could beat a cashier versus checking myself out all things being equal. However, most people don’t use the self-checkouts and I can almost always get one quickly even if the other lines are long. I am sure that it usually saves me time especially because I usually have a only a few items. ---
**Author:** ![Carnac\_the\_Magnificent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Carnac\_the\_Magnificent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Carnac_the_Magnificent)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2005, 12:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-serving-checkout-lines-at-stores/332988/36 "2005-11-29T00:10:32Z")
> [@sangfroid](#): > > But you might be surprised at the intensity of retail theft these days. It is simply out of control. FWIW, much theft is internal. Is professional theft of grocery items by non-employees that big a phenomenon–at least, in the burbs? Any studies? ---
**Author:** ![Excalibre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/898d66/32.png) [@Excalibre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Excalibre)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2005, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-serving-checkout-lines-at-stores/332988/37 "2005-11-29T01:36:42Z")
> [@Shagnasty](#): > > I doubt I could beat a cashier versus checking myself out all things being equal. However, most people don’t use the self-checkouts and I can almost always get one quickly even if the other lines are long. I am sure that it usually saves me time especially because I usually have a only a few items. At least at the grocery stores I go to, the self-checkout lines are labeled as express lines (although I’ve tried it. They certainly don’t stop you after 12 items.) I doubt the efficiency of having multiple people working on the order (customer, cashier, bagger) comes into play when dealing with only a few items, so I suspect the difference in time is minor, but then it depends on whether the line is filled with people who can actually work the machines or folks who get all confused and flustered when it asks them to insert cash. At any rate, it’s not easy to use a personal check with them, and I swear that the goddamn check writers are the biggest problem in the grocery store line. The luddites who still use checks are always too clueless to have the check filled out in advance (seriously, I used to be a cashier at a grocery store. I can’t begin to enumerate the times when I rung up a $100+ grocery order and the person only seemed to realize that payment was required at the very end. Then they carefully, carefully filled out their check, choosing each word with deliberateness and writing as slowly as they possibly could . . . AAARGH!! I HATE YOU, CHECK WRITERS! DAMN YOU ALL TO HELL!) So if you get in the self-checkout line, chances are good you won’t be stuck waiting behind someone who’s furrowing their eyebrows and trying to remember how to make those marks what make up their signature. ---
**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2005, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-serving-checkout-lines-at-stores/332988/38 "2005-11-29T01:54:08Z")
How do self-checkouts handle age restricted items (eg alcohol and tobacco)? I live in PA so no supermarkets sell booze and the state stores sure as hell don’t use 'em. Also most supermarkets keep tobacco behind the counter. ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2005, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-serving-checkout-lines-at-stores/332988/39 "2005-11-29T02:29:30Z")
> [@alphaboi867](#): > > How do self-checkouts handle age restricted items (eg alcohol and tobacco)? I live in PA so no supermarkets sell booze and the state stores sure as hell don’t use 'em. Also most supermarkets keep tobacco behind the counter. The only “restricted” items I buy are things like paints, glues, auto supplies, etc. A light goes on, the clerk comes over, pushes about 20 buttons and I’m good to go. For about 4 seconds and then he/she has to do it all over. These systems are _definitely_ not faster than clerks in a one-on-one race. (Forget lines and all.) Like it’s been said, it’s a money saving (supposedly) gimmick for the store. I’d also give an “F” to any student in my Software Engineering course that would design such a horrible user interface. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/self-serving-checkout-lines-at-stores/332988.md?page=1)