PayPal is a payment tool used by millions of people around the world thanks to the fact that it allows us to pay quickly, easily and securely without needing to know all the numbers on our card by heart and with the protection provided by knowing that they will return us the money in case the purchase does not go well. But it is not the only one and there are many alternatives to PayPal that you can find, wallets or payment platforms that you can use in your day to day.
The great advantage of PayPal is, basically, the ease : you write your email and password and you log in and pay. You do not have to look for the card in the wallet or purse and copy the digits one by one to confirm the purchase. In addition, it also has other functions such as receiving money from friends or sending money to your friends or colleagues in case you have any outstanding debt. But like PayPal, there are others that you can also use online and in physical stores.
What is Paypal
PayPal, as we all know, is a service that allows you to send money or accept payments from acquaintances, but it also allows you to pay in many online stores in all countries and in many different currencies. It is enough to make a PayPal account, for free, and enter your credit cards to pay in any online store or application without the need to always copy your data by hand.
Advantages of using PayPal or other platforms
It is a very simple system because you can associate your bank card or several available cards and you will only have to log in to make your payments. It is quick and easy because you will not have to copy your card number every time when making an online purchase or ordering food at home or booking a hotel or tickets. Basically you have to enter your email and your password and pay.
It is safe because you will not have to enter your card number in any store and risk that it is not reliable. PayPal also allows you to open investigations to get a money back if you have suffered a scam or made an online purchase from which the products have not been sent to you. Investigate and return the amount.
It’s free Using PayPal is free for buyers and you don’t have to pay commission in most cases. The commission is charged to the seller, but some stores may try to charge you that commission. Signing up and using it is completely free so you won’t have to pay anything to enjoy the service.
It is cross-platform because you can use it on any device, on your computer but also on your mobile phone or control it from any application.
Alternatives to PayPal
Google Pay
Goole Pay may be one of the best alternatives to PayPal and we can use it to pay in physical stores and all kinds of establishments from our mobile phone or watch, but it also allows us to pay online. You do not need to pay by card in physical establishments but neither online because there are many applications and online stores that allow you to use this service. For example, large companies such as Etsy, such as Privalia or booking apartments and hotels on Airbnb or Hotel Tonight or flights with Vueling, among others. Also tickets and concerts with Groupon or Ticketmaster directly from Google Pay and without inserting your credit card.
To pay online with Google Pay you simply have to access the store or the website you want and you will see the Google Pay icon among the available payment options of the store. You can pay with the card you have linked in the same way that you do with PayPal. There are many physical stores that allow it and more and more are adding Google Pay as payment support.
Bizum
Bizum has become one of the most common platforms to send money between friends because it allows us to collect our debts quickly, from the mobile phone and in just a few minutes. But Bizum has also allowed us to pay online for a long time. You can make online payments through this service such as booking hotels or buying movie tickets. To be able to do this you need to go to the Bizum website, access the “Buy online” section and activate it. Your bank will explain how to buy with Bizum and obtain the necessary key to do so.
One of the requirements that are necessary to pay with Bizum is that it is accepted by the online store where you are going to pay. It is a matter of time that it is as global as PayPal but so far we can use this service to pay bills at Iberdrola, to pay movie tickets at Yelmo Cinemas, to buy bus tickets in Alsa or for any type of purchase in Decathlon, for example. But you can check the list of all the shops that allow payments with Bizum.
Amazon Pay
Amazon Pay is an online payment system and one of the most reliable and practical alternatives to PayPal, although in Spain it is not especially widespread. The operation is the same and the benefits are the same as PayPal: it is safe, it is fast and it does not require complications when paying and you only need to log in with your username and password to do it quickly and safely. To have Amazon Pay you just have to have an Amazon account and go to stores or services that are compatible with this payment option. Purchases and charges you can check once you register with name and username at pay.amazon.es to keep track and from here you will see all the orders you have made with this system.
The compatibility of Amazon Pay is quite wide and there are many online stores that offer it to us. For example, you can book hotels of the Meliá chain with this payment system or also from Room Mate, travel with Logitravel or Transmediterranea, among others. You can order Burger King or you can buy clothes and shoes from brands like Muroexe, Scalpers, Giossepo or Mustang. It is a fairly complete option and does not require paying to use it, nor does it have transaction fees or subscriptions.
Apple pay
Apple Pay allows online purchases but also physical purchases through the iPhone or Apple Watch and it has become one of the most widespread methods in stores, gas stations or any other type of establishment. Beyond doing it when you leave home, you can pay with Apple Pay when you make purchases online without having to enter your card details. Of course, it is a much more closed system than the previous ones but one of the most useful alternatives to PayPal if you are a regular user of apple products.
In the case of MacBook Air or MacBook Pro with integrated Touch ID, you can use Apple Pay by tapping on the sensor to complete the payment safely as long as the online store or the web accepts Apple Pay as a payment method. Purchases are private, the card number you are going to use is never stored and payments are protected with security systems. It is compatible from mobile phones to use Touch ID and FaceID and you can use it to pay in stores like Zara or Etsy or in the AppStore but also in services like ShowroomPrivé or EasyJet.
Samsung pay
Samsung Pay is a less widespread option since it is limited to Samsung brand devices, although beyond paying through the clock or the phone when we go to a physical store, restaurant or gas station, we can also do it in online purchases as long as the store supports this payment method. One of the advantages of Samsung Pay is that you can store your cards not only to pay but also loyalty cards like Travel Club or Repsol in case you are going to use the application on your mobile. You can also accumulate points, the Samsung Rewards, for each purchase or payment you make and you can redeem them for watering them.
The operation is similar to any other option: Choose Samsung Pay as a payment method, accept the conditions and log in to the account that you usually use to pay. You will automatically receive a verification on your smartphone to accept the payment. It is comfortable and safe although with the inconvenience that you will have to have your phone close to confirm and accept the payment online even if you do it from the computer or from the tablet.
Masterpass
Mastercard also has Masterpass, one of the alternatives to PayPal available in Spain and is a similar service suitable for any user. It is a digital wallet that allows us to make purchases online and that stores payment details safely so that we do not necessarily have to write our card when we go to make a purchase. Not only is it compatible with Mastercard but it also supports credit, debit and prepaid cards from American Express, Diners Club International, Discover Network or VISA. Another advantage of Masterpass is that it works on mobiles, tablets or on a computer.
The operation is similar to the previous ones: create a free account, you store your cards and when you go to make the payment you only have to log in and the merchant will collect without the need to fill out the form. The downside is that it is usually less common to see it as a payment option than others on this list.
