Can you use PayPal on Amazon?

PayPal is often associated with eBay, but the online payment platform has long outgrown its former owner. PayPal is now a massive payment transfer platform in more than 200 countries worldwide. With all that expansion, you’d think it would be easy to use PayPal on Amazon, the world’s largest e-commerce platform. In reality, the situation is more complicated.

Read more: Everything you need to know about using PayPal

Can you use PayPal on Amazon

Yes, you can technically use your PayPal account to buy things on Amazon, but you will need to jump through some hoops. This may discourage you, but there are several methods to try if you have a large PayPal balance to spend.

Does Amazon accept PayPal natively? No, it does not. There is currently no way to link your PayPal account directly to Amazon, despite thousands of other online retailers allowing customers to use PayPal without the hassle.

Before we get into the workarounds, you might want to ask yourself whether or not you need to use Amazon for your purchase. Many other retailers carry the same items and feature price matching options. Amazon made its name as the convenient everything store, but with PayPal, this isn’t the case.

The other thing to consider is why PayPal isn’t officially accepted on Amazon. One reason is its historical association with eBay, one of Amazon’s main competitors. Another is that PayPal competes with Amazon’s own payment service, Amazon Pay. This could make both companies shy away from integrating their services more natively.

With that out of the way, there are two main ways to use your PayPal balance to buy products on Amazon. One involves applying for PayPal’s (free) Cash card, credit card, or prepaid cards. The other uses gift cards to get around the lack of integration entirely.

Use PayPal on Amazon with a PayPal Cash card, credit card, or prepaid card

One of the most useful accessories to a PayPal account is the PayPal Cash card, which is effectively a Mastercard tied to your PayPal balance. It’s accepted anywhere a regular Mastercard is accepted, including Amazon. This means you can use the physical card in shops or the card number in countless online shops.

What’s more, applying for a PayPal Cash card is completely free. There are some fees involved in withdrawing money from an ATM, but it doesn’t cost a penny to maintain the card or make purchases on Amazon. It’s worth noting that it isn’t available in all countries, and even if you are in one of the supported countries, there are some special requirements. This includes not having outstanding account issues. You will also need to link and confirm your telephone number, address, birth date, and social security number.

If your PayPal account meets all the requirements above, all you need to do is apply here. Business account holders can also apply for a PayPal Business Debit Mastercard, but the process is essentially the same. Once you have your PayPal Cash card, it’s a breeze to use it to buy products on Amazon. Enter the card number at checkout, and Amazon will accept it like any other debit card.

You can also get a PayPal Cashback credit card. Like the Cash card, it’s powered by Mastercard and can be used on Amazon like any other credit card. Of course, you will need to apply and get approved for the credit card. Similarly, you can also buy a PayPal prepaid card. You can quickly and easily transfer money from your PayPal funds to the prepaid card.

Use PayPal to buy an Amazon gift card

If it’s not possible for you to get a PayPal Cash card, you still have one more option to buy products on Amazon with your PayPal balance: gift cards. There are countless ways to buy Amazon gift cards with your PayPal account, like BestBuy.

BestBuy is safe, but you should be cautious and vet other retailers selling gift cards online. If you want to be even safer, buy a gift card for a small amount and try that first. Spending your entire PayPal balance on an expired or fake gift card is an easy way to ruin your day.

Once you have purchased the Amazon gift card with your PayPal account credit, it just takes a few moments to add it to your Amazon account. The next time you buy on Amazon, you can use your PayPal-purchased gift card balance at checkout. Note that if the value of the purchase exceeds your Amazon balance, you can still pay the difference with a debit or credit card.

Read more: Is PayPal safe?

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