History Main / WeWillSpendCreditsInTheFuture

* ''Series/DoctorWho'': Most future human civilizations use credits. There's some inconsistency like ''Custodians'' saying that Britain uses credits in 2050 but ''The Last Dodo'' saying they use euros in 2062. Generally any story where humanity has colonized other planets will have everybody using credits. Some aliens living in the modern day like the Stoish and the Inter Minorians were shown using credits but these were likely different currencies than the ones humans would go on to use (The Inter Minorians called theirs "Credit Bars".

%%* ''Series/DoctorWho'': Galactic Credits.

* Used for a pun in ''Rocketship Voyager'' when the credit cards used by the crew turn out to be a magnetic-storage card programmed with Traben Imperial Credits.

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* ''Literature/ReadyPlayerOne'': The currency inside [[TheMetaverse the OASIS]] is known as the credit, likely as a nod to it's use in coin-op arcade games noted below. It's notably more stable than regular currency, on the EarthThatUsedToBeBetter.
-->'''Wade:''' The OASIS credit was the coin of the realm, and in these dark times, it was also one of the world’s most stable currencies, valued higher than the dollar, pound, euro, or yen.

* ''Literature/TheWarAgainstTheChtorr'' has caseys e.g. "kilo-calories”. Also a case of PracticalCurrency; they're backed by ''food'' - one casey can be exchanged anywhere in the civilized world for a one-thousand-calorie block of "[[FutureFoodIsArtificial soya]]". RealityEnsues in that the laws of supply and demand are still in effect - it takes a ''lot'' of caseys to purchase, say, a pound of caviar. Add in that the book ''begins'' at the [[ApocalypseHow/Class1 Class One]] stage of an anticipated ''[[ApocalypseHow/Class3A Class Three]]'' [[ApocalypseHow apocalypse]], nine-tenths of the world's [[DepopulationBomb population died]] ''before the first page'' and those same laws mean the casey is depreciating at an ''exponential'' rate because there's a surplus of food compared to the amount of manpower left in the world AKA ''humans left alive.''

* ''Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries''. Often mentioned indirectly, as in the episode "Catspaw":
-->'''De Salle:''' Maybe we can't break it, but I'll bet you credits to navy beans we can put a dent in it!
** And sometimes directly, as is "The Trouble With Tribbles" where there is a whole scene where people argue over how many credits a Tribble will be sold for.

* ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'' would ditch money altogether. Or, at least that was Gene Roddenberry's intention. That didn't stop Dr. Crusher from asking a merchant to charge her account on the ''Enterprise'', though. In the ''first episode'', no less. Maybe it was EarlyInstallmentWeirdness. However, this can be explained by the fact that although the UFP doesn't use money, Deneb IV, the planet where the first episode of TNG was set, wasn't a member of the UFP, so they might still have been using money. Obviously there needs to be some medium of remunerative exchange between Federation citizens and non-Federation citizens. Also Quark charges money, despite him working on a Federation-controlled space station. In fact, as mentioned in one episode, he also has his own vouchers, which he claims are as good as latinum, only for Riker to point out that, while that may be true, Quark's vouchers are only good at his establishment, while latinum is valid tender almost anywhere. Again though, Quark is not a Federation citizen, he's Ferengi, and they definitely ''do'' use money. Deep Space Nine is controlled by the Federation but operates under the authority of the Bajoran government, which may make a difference. In truth, the way the TNG and post-TNG Trek universe depicted money is highly contradictory and complicated. For example while many on Deep Space Nine use money as a matter of routine, there's a whole episode - "In The Cards" - in which Jake repeatedly and positively states that he doesn't have money because he is human. Despite that, there are many casual mentions of money here and there. Fans sometimes try and write these off as hyperbole. In truth it's just inconsistent writing. The simplest canon explanation is that only certain planets (Earth and Risa are two mentioned) are moneyless, while most planets have their own currency and use gold-pressed latinum as a medium of interplanetary exchange. Bashir can afford Quark's holodecks because he gets a stipend from the Federation while stationed on [=DS9=], Jake can't because he's not employed by the Federation or anybody else during that episode (although later in the series he does work a couple jobs). One thing they don't explain is how Sisko's dad on Earth can have a restaurant staff without a payroll... It may be the same thing as with Picard's wine, it's more of a hobby than a way to earn a living. As for credits, it may be the only reason why the Federation even has them is to deal with non-federation planets. ''VideoGame/StarTrekOnline'' uses several currencies, of which the most basic is Energy Credits or EC for short. These are mostly used on the Exchange, the in-game item auction house. GPL, as well as dilithium (in both raw ore and refined forms), and various other currencies (including Perfect World's microtransactional currency ZEN) can be used too.

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* ''Webcomic/{{Freefall}}'', as seen [[http://freefall.purrsia.com/ff1300/fc01292.htm here.]]

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* ''Literature/ChakonaSpace'' uses Fed Creds. Galaxy-wide currency and e-currency.
* ''WebAnimation/MundoUltimateNewsCp'' Icetown citizens uses Barpoint quantum cryptocurrencies.

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* ''Film/DemolitionMan'': "John Spartan, you are fined one credit for a violation of the verbal morality statute." We don't know quite how widespread the use of credits are, as [[MarySuetopia San]] [[SugarBowl Ang]][[{{Deconstruction}} eles]] is apparently independent from the rest of the US (on which we get no clear information) following "the Big One" earthquake devastating California and leading to a merger of San Francisco with Los Angeles, thus its name.
* ''Franchise/StarWars'': Many factions mint and back their own "credit" with varying acceptance. Credits are often chits or coins, or just transferred electronically, but in ComicBook/MarvelStarWars, they [[http://images.plurk.com/68f3c28f0475105ebd649e6a69cf56ad.jpg look like bills.]] Come the reboot, both ''ComicBook/DarthVader'' and ''WesternAnimation/StarWarsRebels'' establish that credits are physically small metal bars.

** It also appears that "credits" may just be a generic term for money-at one point Qui-Gon Jinn, when asked for credits, refers to "Republic dataries". The merchant he's talking to promptly laughs in his face, since Republic credits are no good on Tatooine.
** It's noted in Literature/TheThrawnTrilogy that the New Republic and the Empire both use credits. But since neither recognizes the other as even ''existing'' as a legitimate government with the authority to issue money, there's no official exchange rate. Instead, anybody who does business on both sides of the border has to rely on the black market's ''unofficial'' exchange rates, which might not be particularly favorable.

* ''Series/BabylonFive''': The only credits seem to be the Earth Alliance (i.e. human) ones; other species have their own currency (and even Earth Alliance member states have their own, such as the Northam Dollar). Since humans are one of the major merchant powers of the ''B5-verse'', credits seem to be accepted fairly widely; it helps that they're all-electronic. Nevertheless, the Centauri ducat seems to have more [[JustForPun currency]] in interspecies transactions--particularly in shady dealings, as the ducat can come in hard cash (gold coins, it seems) and is thus untraceable.

* ''Series/TheOuterLimits1995'': In "Stasis", the unit of currency is the V-credit.

* ''TabletopGame/EclipsePhase''

* In ''Tabletopgame/BattleTech'', [=ComStar=] - a telecommunications NGOSuperPower that controls the SubspaceAnsible network - issues their own currency, the C-Bill, which [[PracticalCurrency directly translates into transmission time]] on the network. The C-Bill's name is derived from [=ComStar's=] 'Letters Of Credit' used in the organization's early history when negotiating transmission privileges with governments. While C-bills are the preferred payment method of PrivateMilitaryContractors due to its stability and nigh-universal acceptance, the various Great Houses each produce their own currencies, collectively referred to as 'H-Bills'.

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* the-n.com uses "creds" to buy gear for avatars. You get creds just for surfing, and you get them for snitching. Considered a ScrappyMechanic by ''Series/DegrassiTheNextGeneration'' fans who don't go to the-n.com, but an obsession of the-n.com users.
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* ''VideoGame/FZero'' doesn't bring up currency very often, being a straightforward racing series. In the comic that came in the original ''F-Zero'' manual, Falcon states a bounty is worth 500,000 "Galactic Credits," however, in a story mode cutscene in ''GX'', gambling is apparently done using "space credits."

* ''VideoGame/FZero'' doesn't bring up currency very often, being a straightforward racing series. When it is brought up, like in the story mode cutscenes in ''GX'', it's very clearly referred to as "space credits".

* ''Franchise/StarWars'': Many factions mint and back their own "credit" with varying acceptance. Credits are often chits or coins, or just transferred electronically, but in ComicBook/MarvelStarWars, they [[http://images.plurk.com/68f3c28f0475105ebd649e6a69cf56ad.jpg look like bills]], Come the reboot, both ''ComicBook/DarthVader'' and ''WesternAnimation/StarWarsRebels'' establish that credits are physically small metal bars.

** Social networks have also given rise to personal reputation as an economic driver, being usable to obtain goods and favors. Rep doesn't go very far in the old economies, serving more of a barometer of success or prestige rather than an incentive for labor or goods. The post-scarcity "New Economy" habitats and settlements use [[MatterReplicator public nanofabricators]] to take care of all basic needs, and can allow those with access to have a fairly high standard of living not tied to wealth. As such new economies are often [[UsefulNotes/{{Anarchism}} mutualist anarchists]] who use forms of the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gift_economy gift economy]]; they spurn wealth as a driver of inequality, and instead use rewards of reputation to serve as a means of exchange. In other words, do good work and be a good neighbor, and you can thrive, be a dick or a layabout, and you'll eventually be forced out of the habitat.

* Series/{{Andromeda}} used to have this, but it went away with the fall of the Commonwealth. Many systems use "thrones" and "guilders" though.

* ''VideoGame/EscapeVelocity: While credits in ''Override'' are used throughout all of known space, there are still currencies used beneath the interstellar level (in fact, Earth alone still has ''several'' currencies -- changing to a single UE currency is a matter of ongoing negotiation and preparation). It is entirely possible that credits are a [[GameplayAndStorySegregation gameplay simplification]], and that what the pilot ''actually'' has is a bank account.

* An in universe case in ''LightNovel/SwordArtOnline'': the futuristic CyberPunk MMO ''Gun Gale Online'''s currency is credits.

* The sci-fi film ''Film/TotalRecall1990'' is set in 2084, where a company offers FakeMemories of a two-week Mars holiday to the hero for 899 credits.
* {{Parodied}} in ''Film/{{Spaceballs}}'', where the currency is always referred to as "[[SpaceX space bucks]]."
* The universally accepted currency in ''Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy'' is "Units".

* Averted in ''Creator/EricFlint'''s ''Literature/SixteenThirtyTwo The Saxon Uprising''. Jeff Higgin's 3rd Regiment needs some supplies, so they decide to issue their own currency. Someone proposes calling it a "credit", to which all of the down-timers immediately object , because of the Catholic Church issuing credits. They end up naming it after Jeff's boss's wife: the becky.
* Creator/IsaacAsimov's ''Literature/FoundationSeries'':

* The ''Literature/{{Lensman}}'' series by Creator/EEDocSmith is the TropeCodifier:

* [[DiscussedTrope Discussed]] in "The Marching Morons" by C.M. Kornbluth. A man is roused from suspended animation hundreds of years in the future. Assuming that life is like science fiction, he asks about their money -- supposing they use credits -- and is told they use dollars.
* The currency inside [[TheMetaverse the OASIS]] in Ernest Cline's ''Literature/ReadyPlayerOne'' is known as the credit, likely as a nod to it's use in coin-op arcade games noted below. It's notably more stable than regular currency, on the EarthThatUsedToBeBetter.

* ''Series/DoctorWho'' (Galactic Credits)

* In the ''[[VideoGame/{{X}} X-Universe]]'', the local ProudMerchantRace backed the creation of a single currency for the Commonwealth governments. Prior to this, each race used its own currency.
* ''VideoGame/DeusEx'', and its sequels and prequels.
** Though Dollars are mentioned by name in the first game's dialogue, and [[FridgeLogic menus in Paris apparently are in Pounds Sterling]] by 2054.
* ''VideoGame/EscapeVelocity''

* ''Videogame/WingCommander''
* ''Videogame/MechQuest''
* ''VideoGame/MasterOfOrion''. The standard unit for Galactic governments is the "BC" or "Billion Credits".

* ''VideoGame/SecretOfEvermore'': In Omnitopia, complete with an Icon of a Credit Card

* ''VideoGame/SaGaFrontier''

* ''VideoGame/VegaStrike'' (currently, at least) has even outlaws and aliens not allied with major human groups trade in Credits.
* ''{{VideoGame/Uplink}}''

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* Many factions in ''Franchise/StarWars'' mint and back their own "credit" with varying acceptance. Credits are often chits or coins, or just transferred electronically, but in ComicBook/MarvelStarWars, they [[http://images.plurk.com/68f3c28f0475105ebd649e6a69cf56ad.jpg looked like bills.]] Come the reboot, both ''ComicBook/{{Darth Vader}}'' and ''WesternAnimation/StarWarsRebels'' seem to have established that credits are physically small metal ingots.

* The Solarian League in ''Literature/HonorHarrington'' uses credits, among at least 3 other interstellar currencies, although many other polities have their own, non-credit currencies. For instance, the Kingdom of Manticore uses dollars.

* In the ''Series/{{Firefly}}'' 'verse, the Alliance's central planets use credits (paper bills or electronic transfer) as currency, and 1 credit is about equal to $25 US according to the RPG. The [[SchizoTech lower-tech]] outer planets mint their own coins from precious metals (typically silver, gold, and platinum, in ascending order of value), and also frequently use barter.
** [[WeirdCurrency Bricks of compressed nutrients]]-- non-perishable emergency rations, more or less-- are sometimes shown as being a valuable trade good nearly analogous with cash but very easily traced.

* In the ''Franchise/{{Halo}}'' franchise, humanity uses credits, which is symbolized as cR. While it was mentioned in the canon, it wasn't until ''[[VideoGame/HaloReach Reach]]'' that the player could actually use them. Their ScaryDogmaticAliens enemy, the Covenant, don't accept credits for the simple reason that they're in the middle of a genocidal war and there's no (official) trade between the two. What little black market trade exists is done via direct exchange of goods, information, or barter.
** Post-war, it's implied that the collapse of the Covenant has made the credit much more widely accepted among ex-Covenant merchants, smugglers, etc., thanks in part to a thriving black market for ex-Covenant ships, munitions, and other equipment.
* While credits in ''VideoGame/EscapeVelocity Override'' are used throughout all of known space, there are still currencies used beneath the interstellar level (in fact, Earth alone still has ''several'' currencies -- changing to a single UE currency is a matter of ongoing negotiation and preparation). It is entirely possible that credits are a [[GameplayAndStorySegregation gameplay simplification]], and that what the pilot ''actually'' has is a bank account.

* ''WesternAnimation/BatmanBeyond'', as far as can be seen. Paper "Creds" don't even exist, it's all plastic cards.
** Also applies to its {{spinoff}}, ''WesternAnimation/TheZetaProject''.

** And sometimes directly, as is "The Trouble With Tribbles" where there is a whole scene where people argue over how many Credits a Tribble will be sold for.

* ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'' would ditch money altogether. Or, at least that was Gene Roddenberry's intention. That didn't stop Dr. Crusher from asking a merchant to charge her account on the ''Enterprise'', though. In the ''first episode'', no less. Maybe it was EarlyInstallmentWeirdness. However, this can be explained by the fact that although the UFP doesn't use money, Deneb IV, the planet where the first episode of TNG was set, wasn't a member of the UFP, so they might still have been using money. Obviously there needs to be some medium of remunerative exchange between Federation citizens and non-Federation citizens. Also Quark charges money, despite him working on a Federation-controlled space station. In fact, as mentioned in one episode, he also has his own vouchers, which he claims are as good as latinum, only for Riker to point out that, while that may be true, Quark's vouchers are only good at his establishment, while latinum is valid tender almost anywhere. Again though, Quark is not a Federation citizen, he's Ferengi, and they definitely ''do'' use money. Deep Space Nine is controlled by the Federation but operates under the authority of the Bajoran government, which may make a difference. In truth the way the TNG and post-TNG Trek universe depicted money is highly contradictory and complicated. For example while many on Deep Space Nine use money as a matter of routine, there's a whole episode - "In The Cards" - in which Jake repeatedly and positively states that he doesn't have money because he is Human. Despite that, there are many casual mentions of money here and there. Fans sometimes try and write these off as hyperbole. In truth it's just inconsistent writing. The simplest canon explanation is that only certain planets (Earth, Risa are two mentioned) are moneyless, while most planets have their own currency and use gold-pressed latinum as a medium of interplanetary exchange. Bashir can afford Quark's holodecks because he gets a stipend from the Federation while stationed on [=DS9=], Jake can't because he's not employed by the Federation or anybody else during that episode (although later in the series he does work a couple jobs). One thing they don't explain is how Sisko's dad on Earth can have a restaurant staff without a payroll... It may be the same thing as with Picard's wine, it's more of a hobby than a way to earn a living. As for credits, it may be the only reason why the Federation even has them is to deal with non-federation planets. ''VideoGame/StarTrekOnline'' uses several currencies, of which the most basic is Energy Credits or EC for short. These are mostly used on the Exchange, the in-game item auction house.

** Most of the inner system and the Jovian Junta run on what's termed as the "Old Economy," which is driven largely by creation and transfer of wealth to keep itself running. The old economies use credits as a universal currency. The negative aspect is that much of this form of scarcity economy, and the scarcity is maintained artificially by those who rise to power on controlled supplies and profits, or just plain paranoia driving distrust of resources from the outside and post-scarcity high tech, such as in the case of the Junta.

** Transitional economies are economies that are switching from old to new, or are deliberately locked between the two, such as is the case of the Extropian economies. Extropian economies are notable for being the vision of the setting's anarchocapitalists, in the vein of modern Objectivist and Libertarian ideals, and as such use both credits and rep as means of procurement.

* In ''TabletopGame/EclipsePhase'' most of the inner system and some Extropian habitats in the outer system use a universal "credit" currency. But the Anarchists that make up the majority of the outer system and the Titanian Commonwealth don't even use money, their economies are based on [[MatterReplicator public nanofabricators]] and favors from social networks, though Titan also quantifies citizens' social output as "kroners" used to fund various microcorps.

** "Literature/TheMule": While Bayta and Toran are on the PleasurePlanet of Kalgan, they discuss costs in terms of credits. When they're trying to fly past the territory of Filia, [[GlobalCredits their credits are accepted, despite not being from the same government]].

* The ''Literature/{{Foundation}}'' series by Creator/IsaacAsimov (well, less global than lenticular - it's used across the entire galaxy, except on one occasion where Asimov slips up and refers to "dollars" instead).

* ''WebAnimation/MundoUltimateNewsCp'' Icetown citizens uses BarPoint quantum cryptocurrencies.

Accounting lectures in the future must be terribly confusing things. [[SchmuckBait For fun]] try asking a real accountant [[BerserkButton what they think]] about naming a currency this in RealLife.[[note]]"So as you can see, on 10 June we credited 35 credits to your line of credit and debited 7 credits from your debit card. Then we debited 8 credits from your line of credit and credited 14 credits to your debit account."[[/note]]

A subtrope of GlobalCurrency, [[SubvertedTrope although not always.]] Also a subtrope of FictionalCurrency.

* ''VideoGame/EVEOnline'' has a little more complex a take on things. The currency, known as ISK (Inter-Stellar [[XtremeKoolLetterz Kredits]][[note]]which just happens to be the currency code for the Icelandic króna[[/note]]), is not so much a global currency as it is a global ''exchange'' currency. Planetary economies and sometimes individual planetary nations almost all have their own currencies, ISK was merely setup as an exchange medium to manage the obscene amounts of money being used at the inter-stellar level - the popular saying goes you can retire comfortably planet-side basically anywhere in the cluster on [[ZillionDollarBill single digit amounts of the stuff]]. And despite that, the economy is such that the de-facto unit of currency is in millions of isk. Ask someone for a price, and they say '50', they mean 50 MILLION isk. Guess the CasualInterstellarTravel isn't all that casual...
* ''Franchise/MassEffect'' - Similar to the EVE example. Every country/government/planet has their own currency, while "credits" are actually just a short hand exchange rate for money. There are several high powered accounting firms tasked with monitoring and adjusting exchange rates among every currency, so if you bought a gun your account would be subtracted dollars and they would be given ... whatever they use. Credits is just an easy way for everyone to get an idea of what prices are. They don't actually "exist" like money does.
** One can imagine that money doesn't "exist" either in an interstellar civilization. We're already on the verge of replacing physical currency.
** It's specifically mentioned that there was no universal currency until the Volus created the credit system, earning them an embassy on the Citadel, even though they're not an independent government (they were at the time; it's complicated).

* ''VideoGame/SecretOfEvermore'' - In Omnitopia, complete with an Icon of a Credit Card

* In ''Videogame/{{Warframe}}'', the Corpus MegaCorp, Grineer Empire, and [[PlayerCharacter Tenno]] all spend credits. It's not clear who backs the Credit, as it's extremely rare for the Grineer and Corpus to ''not'' be in - at minimum - low-level conflict.
* ''VideoGame/Doom3''. It's not completely clear if credits are a global currency or if they're limited to use in the UAC base, but given that spam emails from Earth found throughout the game also make references to credits, it's likely the former.

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-->'''Wade''': The OASIS credit was the coin of the realm, and in these dark times, it was also one of the world’s most stable currencies, valued higher than the dollar, pound, euro, or yen.

-->'''Foreman''': The physical universe uses heat to keep score. Actually, it's motion, but on the molecular level we experience it as heat. Just know that it's the only way one object ever affects another, so it's the only way to measure how big a difference an object really makes. We measure heat in [=BTUs=]. British Thermal Units. Calories. We want our money to be an accurate measure, so we use the same system as the physical universe: ergo, we have the KC standard, the kilo-calorie.

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-->'''De Salle:''' "Maybe we can't break it, but I'll bet you credits to navy beans we can put a dent in it!"

-->'''Dylan''' : Oh we have plenty of currency. It's just that none of it's . . . current.

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