
Fees for personal use: Sending rates from 0.41% conversion rates from 0.41%.Luckily, once you succumb to peer pressure, you have a rock-solid PayPal alternative waiting for you. Pros and cons aside, Venmo is so popular that someone’s bound to ask you to use it. Unless you really want your entire friends list to see who you’re paying and for what, I see no reason to broadcast this sensitive data. Set a 4-digit PIN so that if someone borrows or steals your phone, they can’t Venmo themselves the maximum $3,000 (happens more often than you’d think). Settings > PIN code and biometric lock.There are also a few default settings I’d strongly recommend you change if you download Venmo. Plus, if you use it to invoice clients, there’s no “tip” option on their end - they have to manually initiate a separate payment. It takes between one and three days to withdraw your Venmo funds to your bank account, or you can pay a 1% instant transfer fee. There was even a time when Venmo showed you the precise amounts they were paying for rent, food, and more, but naturally that TMI feature was retired.

Transfers are free, payments to friends and family are free, and the app even has a built-in “newsfeed” showing who among your friends is paying whom for what. PayPal handled a total of $330 billion in transactions in 2021, while Venmo handled $230 billion - up a staggering 44% from the previous year.Īnd there’s a reason why so many people use Venmo as their go-to payment app: it’s simple, safe, and reliable.

Venmo is so widespread these days that “Do you have Venmo?” has become the new “Cash is king.”Įven though Venmo is technically a subsidiary of PayPal, the numbers show that the former is now nearly as popular as its big brother.

Wise: Best for international transfers and currency conversions.
