Secure payment

About Payment Method

PayPal allows you to make payments using a variety of methods including: PayPal balance, a bank account, PayPal Credit, debit or credit cards, and rewards balance. Because your protection against undelivered or defective goods will vary with each method, you should review this page to understand how you can select a payment method and how protection differs depending on your payment method.

This page does not address unauthorized transactions. For information on your protection against unauthorized transactions, please see the Error Resolution section of the PayPal User Agreement.

Selecting a preferred payment method

You can choose any of the payment methods in your PayPal account as your preferred payment method in the Payments section of your account settings. If you select a preferred payment method, it will be shown as the preferred payment method when you make a purchase online, in-store, or when you send money via goods and services.

You can select different preferred payment methods for online transactions and in-store transactions.

If you choose an in-store preferred payment method and do not have any money in your PayPal balance, your preferred payment method will be used for your entire purchase. If you have money in your PayPal balance, your PayPal balance will be used first, and your preferred payment method will be used for any remaining amount due.

If no preferred payment method, it’s still your choice

There may be times when your preferred payment method cannot be used. For example, if you select a credit card as your preferred payment method and the card has expired, you will not be able to pay with that card. Also, the availability of certain payment methods may be limited based on a particular seller or the third-party website you are using to complete the transaction.

If you have not selected a preferred payment method, or your preferred payment method is unavailable, we will show you available payment methods, including the payment method you use most often or most recently, at the time of transaction. You can also click on the “Manage” link to see all of your available payment methods, or add a new one, and select a payment method during the transaction.