You either have a very different debit card system than the US, or a very different definition of the word sane. I assure you that in the US, debit cards are (generally) not the better option.

In fact, I can confirm it - you have it completely wrong. It is only debit cards that can have an overdraft. Credit cards are when you have an ongoing, semi-permanent line of credit available to you. Let’s say this limit is $1,000. Each time you use it, the credit card issuer pays the merchant. If you attempt a purchase beyond that line of credit, you may (and often are) denied the purchase. If it does go through, you will have to pay an over-limit fee. The credit issuer then sends an itemized invoice, typically at the same time each month, and you must repay them. If you don’t repay them in full by the deadline, you must pay interest. The main takeaway is that credit cards are always someone else’s money at the time of purchase.

Debit cards are typically linked to your personal checking account. They work differently on the backend, but are usually similar at the point of sale. Checks, which link to the same account on the backend, often bypass validation of funds. Your bank processes the transaction on your behalf, but (again, typically) has not granted you any line of credit. If you get a transaction through where you don’t have the funds, the bank is then forced by their agreements with the payment processor to extend you a line of credit. But the main takeaway is that debit cards are your own money, in your account, at the time of purchase.

It’s a common (but dangerous) trick when you’re low on funds to use credit cards to “float” an expense. Debit means you must have the funds presently available in your account, which often means they must have been deposited a few days ago. Credit means you have until your next statement to arrange them, which likely includes at least 1 payday.