Want To Open A PayPal Account? Here’s What You Should Know

published on: 20 September 2023 last updated on: 30 September 2023
open a paypal account

There is no doubt that PayPal is currently dominating the digital payment picture. It has approximately 360 million active users that are spread across more than 200 countries and has assisted with 4 billion payment transactions in Quarter 3 of just 2020. Let’s Find Out How To open a paypal account?

Since 1998, PayPal has been popular for giving customers alternative ways to conduct purchases and send money online. Paypal allows you to pay for things online through an active bank account rather than using a credit card. It also keeps your banking information private and hidden from third party merchants. 

PayPal has made sending money relatively easy and, in most cases, free. 

PayPal has also made costly wire transfer services and checks almost obsolete. 

Decades since it was established, PayPal has successfully remained the best choice for online shopping or money transfers. 

If you already do not have PayPal linked to your bank account, here is everything that you need to know to open a PayPal account. 

So, without any more delay, let us get started. 

What Is PayPal And How Does It Operate? 

What Is PayPal And How Does It Operate

PayPal is an online payment system that makes online payments for things; receiving or sending money is not just easy but also secure and safe. 

When you link your PayPal account with your bank, debit card, or credit card, you can use PayPal to make payments without having to go to a store. Basically, PayPal acts as a middleman between your bank and the merchants while at the same time keeping all your payment information protected. 

You may also use PayPal to safely send money to your family and friends, as well as get money from other people. This is a very beneficial feature if you want to split the rent with your roommates, for instance, or get money for your birthday.

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How To Open A PayPal Account? 

How To Open A PayPal Account

Before we get into any other details, it is important that you learn how to open a PayPal account. Follow the steps given below to act out on the process. 

  1. Down the PayPal app from Google Play or App Store or simply open the paypal.com. 
  2. Click on the blue button that says “Sign Up.” 
  3. Select the option of “Personal Account.” 
  4. Put in your phone number, and you will get a text message with the security code or teh OTP that you will have to enter on the screen that comes next. 
  5. Enter your official name, your email address, and a strong password. 
  6. Then, you will have to enter your mailing address and agree to the privacy policy of PayPal. You will have an account by your name. 
  7. Finally, add in a bank account, debit card, or credit card to your PayPal account to make payments. 

Types Of PayPal Accounts 

In the steps above, you surely may have seen the mention of a “Personal Account.” this may have made you question if there are any other existing accounts on PayPal to choose from. 

The answer is yes.

There are mainly two categories of accounts that customers can choose from: 

  • Personal PayPal Account 
  • Business PayPal Account 

Let us now see what purpose these accounts serve. 

Personal PayPal Accounts

This is one among the most common types of PayPal accounts. They are mainly used for individual use. They are the best choice to receive and send money. You may also use it to make online purchases. This account also allows customers to access their purchase history, add credit cards, and add new bank accounts to their PayPal account.

Business PayPal Accounts

PayPal also provides accounts to businesses to accept online PayPal payments as well as debit cards and credit cards, or even in person. This is also applicable if the customers of the business do not have a PayPal account. 

Service based professionals or businesses may also send invoices to their clients and receive secured online PayPal payments. 

Why Should You Use PayPal?

Why Should You Use PayPal

While a lot of people use PayPal as per their own convenience, there are two main reasons as to why most people prefer using PayPal as the most efficient way to make online payments. 

Secure Transactions

There is a chance that merchants can get access to your payment details when you use your debit or credit card to make online payments. 

To solve this, PayPal comes with an extra layer of protection for its customers by making sure that merchants never get access to your personal data. PayPal also uses multiple features that help keep the account safe, which include two-factor authentication, end-to-end data encryption, and email confirmation for all transactions.

Convenient And Easy

After American Express, Mastercard, and Discover, PayPal is now the fifth most welcomed payment option and is available at thousands of online stores. 

Has it ever happened that you wanted to make an online payment but did not have your debit card or credit card handy? These are the times when PayPal can be your rescuer. 

You can use PayPal to make payments through the cards that are linked to your account without retyping the numbers on your card. All you will ever need is to remember your PayPal login information to make payments with PayPal. 

Is PayPal A Free Application? 

It will cost you no fees to open a PayPal account, and most of the personal transactions are also free. However, a customer will be subject to a certain amount of fees for specific transactions. 

Purchase Fees

You will not have to pay any fees for making online purchases with retailers that accept PayPal as long as that is not associated with any currency conversion.

There is a 3% to 4% foreign transaction fee for those purchases that involve foreign currencies. 

Personal Transaction Fees

When you send money or receive the same from your family or friends – basically, transactions that are not commercial, PayPal will consider those as personal transactions. There is a special “Friends and Family” tab available on PayPal, which you may use while conducting personal transactions. 

While some of these transactions may incur a fee, others will not. The fees will mainly depend on when and where you are making the transactions. 

Withdrawing Fees

There are some other fees that you would have to encounter while using PayPal. While there are no fees as such to withdraw money from your PayPal account, the process may take some time. If you want instant withdrawal, you will have to pay a 1% fee. 

The Bottom Line 

It is not always possible for people to carry around their debit or credit cards or even remember the number on them. Does that mean they cannot make online payments if they do not have access to cards? 

The answer is no. 

You can easily open a PayPal account and link it to your bank, debit, and credit cards. This ensures easy and convenient payments from anywhere in the world. 

They are easy, free, and, most necessarily, safe. All the information that you put in your PayPal account is completely protected. Therefore, no third party can ever have access to it.

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upasana sarbajna

Upasana is a budding journalist who has a keen interest in writing. She considers writing as therapeutic and is most confident when she writes. She is passionate about music, movies and fashion. She writes in a way that connects with the audience in a personal level. She is optimistic, fun loving and opinionated.

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