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Comparing Ways of Paying for Your eBay Purchases

There are a number of ways to pay on eBay. Some payment options offer more protection than others. After the listing closes, paying promptly will help ensure that you get your item as soon as possible.

If you have any questions about how to pay your seller, contact the seller directly by email. You can find the seller's email address by clicking on the User ID in the listing or by looking in the End of Listing email that you received when the listing closed.

Sellers may not ask or require you to pay by instant cash wire transfer services such as Western Union or MoneyGram. They may not ask you to pay by cash. These payment methods are not permitted on eBay. Please refer to the Accepted Payments policy for details on permitted and non-permitted payment methods. Payment services that are not permitted on eBay may, in fact, be outstanding services for consumers in other contexts. eBay’s evaluation relates only to whether a particular service is appropriate for the eBay Marketplace. If a seller asks you to pay with a payment method that is not permitted on eBay, report the seller.

Permitted payment methods include the following:

Payment Method

Highlights

PayPal
Send funds directly to a seller from a verified bank account or from a credit card

Advantages

  • Immediate and convenient.
    Payment is deposited directly into the seller's account.
    You can pay directly from the listing page.

  • No requirement that you use your credit card (you can transfer money directly from your bank account).

  • Sellers don't see your credit card number (it is safely encrypted through PayPal's server), which limits the risk of unauthorized use.

  • Automatic payment tracking.

  • PayPal Buyer Protection offers up to $200 coverage on eligible transactions at no additional cost. However, the majority of transactions may be covered up to $2000. See eligibility.

Learn more about sending payments with PayPal.

Credit Card

Advantages

  • Immediate and convenient. 

  • Traceable. 

  • Limited liability. Credit card companies typically provide some level of identity and purchase protection.

Listed below are links to some popular credit card protection policies:

Contact your credit card company to learn more.

Disadvantages

  • Since credit card purchases are generally protected by your credit card company, you must check with your credit card provider for protection terms and conditions.

Personal or Cashier's Checks

Advantages

  • Traceable to a particular mailing address.   

  • Provides proof of payment.  

  • Most banks offer a stop payment service if problems arise before the check is cashed.

Disadvantages

  • Sellers must wait for funds to clear.  

  • Extremely difficult to recover in cases of fraud.

Money Orders

Advantages

  • Traceable to a particular mailing address.  

  • Provides proof of payment.  

  • Some services offer the option to stop payment if problems arise before the payment is cashed, but you don't always have this option.

Disadvantages

  • Sellers must wait for funds to clear.  

  • Extremely difficult to recover in cases of fraud.

Escrow

Advantages

  • Payment is held by the escrow service until you receive and approve the item.  

  • For eBay transactions, you should only use eBay-approved escrow companies. Learn more about how escrow works and which sites are eBay approved.

Disadvantages

  • There have been reports of fraudulent sellers using nonexistent escrow companies, so make sure you verify any escrow service other than eBay's recommended escrow partner.

Bank to Bank Wire Transfer

Advantages

  • Payment is sent directly from one recognized bank account to another account.  

  • Immediate and convenient.  

  • Payment is deposited directly into the seller's account.

Disadvantages

  • Payment is difficult to recover in cases of fraud.

Tip: If you are unsure about using this option, you can request the seller's contact information and verify that it is consistent with the information on the bank account.

Payment problems

If you have paid for an item but have not received it or the item is significantly not as described, you can use the Item Not Received or Significantly Not as Described process to help resolve the issue. For additional information, take the Item Not Received Process Tour.

Note: Eligibility for buyer protection services is determined by the payment method that you use and the eBay country site where the item was purchased. You can review how your purchase is protected on the item page.

You can only open a dispute through the specific eBay country site where you purchased the item. If you try to open a dispute on an eBay country site other than the site where you purchased the item, you will be asked to continue your dispute on the appropriate eBay site.

Please view the FTC Guide to Online Payments for additional information on electronic payments, safety, and how to report problems if they arise.



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