Each purchase then ends up becoming a calculation on what benefits I'm gaining or giving up depending on payment method. If I'm purchasing a big ticket item, I'd likely want the protections that a credit card offers even with a surcharge. If it's a low value item, especially one that's consumable, I'd be less likely to be concerned about using cash or a debit card. (I'd probably default to cash over debit since a debit card has a direct link to a bank account presumably with more money.)

I'd also like to understand what percentage of merchants who have surcharges don't have their payments systems setup properly and are incorrectly applying a surcharge to debit transactions going over the Visa or Mastercard networks. Furthermore, what percentage of transactions do these represent? It's far from scientific, but I casually observe lots of people using debit cards for payment, especially at quick serve/fast food restaurants or cafes.