Can you use Venmo on Amazon? If yes, when can you use Venmo on Amazon, and how does it work? In the past, Venmo wasn’t a viable option if you wanted to make purchases on the eCommerce giant. However, PayPal has recently partnered with Amazon to allow Venmo to work with the platform. How can you use it? Here’s what you must understand about this new payment method if you want to use it for online shopping.
For recurring payment concerns, here’s our Venmo recurring payments guide.
What Is Venmo?
Can you use Venmo on Amazon? Before we proceed, we need to know about the Venmo app first. Venmo is a virtual wallet that lets users send or accept money from other users. It’s a helpful way to settle payments with friends without having to use cash physically. With it, you can split bills like rent, groceries, utilities, or even something as simple as dinner.
However, while Venmo seems limited at first glance, it does have more robust features that distinguish it from other alternatives. For example, you can avail of a Credit Card with Venmo that offers up to 3% cashback. Hence, you don’t have to apply for a credit card with a bank as you would traditionally.
In addition, the card even has a custom QR code that’s designed to make sending and receiving payments much easier. Venmo has also diversified itself by providing the ability to purchase cryptocurrency with the app.
Where can I use Venmo? Like other digital wallets, you can use Venmo to shop or pay for services in partner physical stores. You may also use it for digital purchases if the merchant has it as an available payment option. Overall, it’s great for both average citizens and businesses who want instant transactions and the seamlessness of cashless payments.
Can You Use Venmo on Amazon?
Previously, if you had asked the question, “can you use a Venmo card on Amazon?” the answer would’ve been no. However, in 2021, PayPal announced a partnership with Amazon that would allow its digital wallet platform to be accepted.
This feature grants over 90 million Venmo users the ability to pay for Amazon products without a credit/debit card. You will only need a Venmo account to proceed. Moreover, the feature should work with Amazon’s mobile app. Hence, you don’t need to be on a proper computer to check out.
Why did Amazon and PayPal create this partnership? Firstly, apart from providing more convenience to customers, both companies know that Venmo users do a lot of shopping. In fact, according to PayPal, Venmo users are 19% more likely to become repeat customers. They also shop much more frequently than the average buyer
With that said, can you use Venmo to pay on Amazon? Yes, but you may need to sit still until Black Friday to be able to use it. That’s because even though it’s been a year since the announcement, PayPal, Venmo, and Amazon haven’t officially launched this feature. At least, they have yet to release it all across the United States.
On the other hand, Amazon has already started rolling out the feature to select customers since the end of October. Therefore, it might or might not be available when you open your Amazon account. You can verify this by looking through the available payment options upon checking out your Amazon basket.
What About PayPal: Can I Use Paypal or Venmo on Amazon?
Can you use Venmo on Amazon? With the answer to this question being a resounding yes by the end of November, people are curious about PayPal. After all, Venmo is a PayPal company. How can you use Venmo on Amazon without being able to use PayPal as well? Doesn’t Venmo’s existence as a payment method mean you can freely use PayPal for Amazon purchases, too?
Unfortunately, using PayPal like you would on other sites still isn’t an option on Amazon. For whatever reason, you cannot link your PayPal account freely and add it as a payment method. Perhaps it’s because PayPal has historically been linked with eBay. After all, the company was a part of eBay in the past and has strong ties to it.
Nonetheless, this doesn’t mean PayPal is completely out of the picture. That’s because you can use PayPal to pay for transactions if you have a PayPal card. For example, you can set up your PayPal Cash Card, PayPal Key, or PayPal Business Debit Mastercard on Amazon.
Of course, you would need one of these cards first before you can register PayPal as a payment method. Nonetheless, they’re the best alternatives if you truly want to use PayPal to pay for Amazon transactions.
When Can You Use Venmo on Amazon?
Can you use Venmo on Amazon without a card? Yes. However, the better question might be: when can you use Venmo on Amazon transactions?
Unfortunately, the feature isn’t in full force just yet. That’s because both platforms have stated that the feature will start rolling out on Black Friday this year (November 25). Hence, unless Amazon has selected your account for the initial roll-out, you may need to wait to access the feature.
Once the feature officially launches, you can pretty much use Venmo on Amazon whenever you want. You can even add it as your preferred payment method going forward. Moreover, you don’t need to have a balance in your digital wallet to use it. This is because you can also use the funds from your bank account that’s linked to Venmo to make payments.
Why Use Venmo on Amazon?
Can you use Venmo on Amazon? While many avid Venmo users may ask this question, it may not always be the right question to ask. Perhaps the more pressing question is: why? Why should you use Venmo to make payments on Amazon?
To answer, we must examine how Venmo affects Amazon users. Amazon payment methods have been mostly limited to verified debit or credit cards in the past. Unsurprisingly, this new Venmo option changes the game in more ways than one.
Firstly, you’ll no longer need a debit or credit card to buy stuff on Amazon. This makes the process infinitely more convenient, especially if you’re a regular Venmo user. It also streamlines your finances a lot more if you dislike having to switch between cards and payment methods.
With this feature, you no longer need to refill multiple online wallets or bank accounts just to make online purchases. You can use Venmo for everything — and you don’t even need a positive balance on your account. That’s because if you don’t have enough within Venmo, the app will automatically use your linked bank account for payments.
In addition, Amazon doesn’t charge any additional fees for using Venmo as a payment method. It also ensures your transactions are secure through the company’s A-to-Z Guarantee. Furthermore, Venmo reassures its users by covering Amazon purchases with its Purchase Protection Program.
With all of that said, it’s clear why using Venmo on Amazon is beneficial. It’s easy to set up and the payment is convenient, especially if you use Venmo a lot. Moreover, both Venmo and Amazon don’t charge extra fees for the feature. Both companies have also put protections in place to ensure these transactions are safe. If you trust Venmo, you should trust this new feature quite easily, too.
How Do I Add Venmo to My Amazon Account?
If you’re interested in using this peer-to-peer digital wallet as your Amazon payment method, you can easily do so. The only requirement is to have a Venmo account, download the Venmo app, and link it to your Amazon account. Refer to the process below for how to use Venmo to pay:
- Visit the App Store (iOS) or Google Play Store (Android)
- Search “Venmo” and install the app on your device
- Launch Venmo
- If you don’t have a Venmo account, apply for one
- Open Amazon on your device
- Check out one of your items
- Press “Select a payment method”
- Choose “Add a Venmo account”
- Note: the Venmo app should open automatically
- Authorize Venmo to make the purchase
- Back in Amazon, you may also set Venmo as your default payment method
- Submit the transaction to complete the purchase
Remember that you can only arrange for Venmo to be your default payment method when you check out an item. It’s also the best place to set Venmo as your default payment method if you want to use it moving forward.
However, you can easily change your payment preferences on your Amazon account through the Venmo app. Simply launch the app and head to “Settings.” Afterward, choose “Connected Businesses” to modify your payment settings.
Can You Use a Venmo Debit Card on Amazon?
In the past, using Venmo directly to make purchases on Amazon was impossible. Whenever people asked the question whether they could use Venmo on Amazon, the answer was no. As a result, people resorted to using workarounds just to use Venmo as a payment method. They did this by using their Venmo debit card as a means to make transactions on Amazon.
This was a decent workaround because Amazon accepts all Mastercard and Visa debit cards in their transactions. Hence, while you couldn’t link Venmo directly before, you could use the debit card details to make purchases.
Of course, this method did come with its pitfalls. For instance, you had to have a Venmo card first before you could execute it. You would have had to avail of it in the app by tapping the hamburger icon and choosing “Venmo Card.”
Afterward, you’d need to select “Get the Venmo Card” and request one first. Venmo will then let you personalize your card and add your details. Furthermore, it will ask for some verification information to complete the process.
Getting a Venmo will take time as the company must ship the physical card to you at a later date. In addition, Venmo will have to approve your request before they can ship the card to you. Nonetheless, once you have it, you may add it to your Amazon payment method as you would other debit cards.
With that said, you can now skip all this process and directly add Venmo as your payment method on Amazon. You no longer need to request a debit card before you can use your Venmo account’s balance. However, the feature is still available so you may use your Venmo debit card as your payment method on Amazon.
Advantages & Disadvantages of Using Venmo on Amazon
There are many reasons why you may want to use Venmo on your Amazon transactions. We have already covered them before. However, to summarize, Venmo is easy to use and is well-protected by policies from both platforms.
It’s also convenient as you don’t need to switch between various payment services and cards just to make payments. You can have all of your finances channeled through one app. This includes payments regarding online shopping, physical shopping, or peer-to-peer transactions.
Finally, using Venmo incurs no additional transaction fees when you use it on Amazon. Hence, you need not concern yourself regarding extra costs when you’re paying using the platform.
Now, while all of that is well and good, aren’t there any disadvantages to using Venmo on Amazon? There are — though they may or may not exactly be deal-breakers. Some of them will make more of a difference than others but it’ll all depend on your preferences. What are they?
Firstly, adding a new payment method on Amazon can be a little tedious. After all, if you’ve already been shopping just fine using your credit card, switching over to Venmo doesn’t make sense. That’s especially true if you’re already earning lots of points using your existing card on Amazon transactions.
In addition, linking Venmo means your account will be debited automatically when you make payments. Hence, it’s not helpful if you prefer staggering your payments in installments like you would with credit cards.
Furthermore, if you don’t use Venmo, registering an account with the app is an unnecessary extra step. If you’re not using Venmo’s other features like peer-to-peer money sending or in-store shopping, creating an account is pointless. In this scenario, it’s better to stick to what you’ve already been using on Amazon so far.
Venmo to Amazon Alternatives
Using Venmo on Amazon transactions may be useful in some cases. However, it’s not the best option for everybody who uses the platform. Many alternatives can serve you as well as — or even better than — Venmo can.
That’s why it’s important to discuss the alternatives to Venmo. After all, how can you use Venmo on Amazon (or even think of doing so) if there are better alternatives? With that said, we’ve outlined a couple of options you might want to consider before you jump into Venmo.
Credit/Debit Cards
The easiest substitute to Venmo is by using traditional debit or credit cards. These are tried and true payment methods that have historically rarely failed with Amazon payments. Amazon has also supported them for a long time so they should be easy to set up. Moreover, there are more resources out there that may aid you when errors during checkout.
Furthermore, credit cards tend to earn more points. Sure, Venmo does have its own rewards system, but that’s only if you use the app’s credit card, too. With that said, using credit and debit cards is the most convenient way to pay for things on Amazon. That’s especially true if you rely on them for other transactions in other online shops as well.
Apple Pay
Apple Pay is a decent alternative to Venmo if you often use the feature. It’s convenient and works seamlessly with merchants that support it. Through Apple Pay, you can easily purchase many items from Amazon’s store without a hitch.
However, it does have one caveat: support. That’s because not every merchant on Amazon supports Apple Pay (or online wallets in general). Hence, it can be a hit-or-miss situation when using this method.
PayPal Card
You may not be able to link PayPal directly to Amazon, but you can with a PayPal card. These essentially act similarly to the first option. However, they’re unique in that you pull funds from PayPal instead of your banks. It’s a solid alternative, especially if you use PayPal often for private and professional transactions.
Final Word
Can you use Venmo on Amazon? Yes, you can. However, the feature won’t roll out until the end of the month. Nonetheless, if you’re a big Venmo user, it’s certainly a feature worth postponing checking out your holiday shopping cart for. Just be sure your items don’t run out of stock before then.
