In 2009 credit cards were nearly useless. By 2013/2014 I noticed a marked increase in acceptance - restaurants, taxis, etc

nowadays it is getting pretty rare to find a place that doesn’t at least accept Suica/PASMO which can be charged via card - or paypay as an alternative to cash. Paypay is a bit of a pain for visitors as you need to get the app from the Japanese store.