PayPal, what for?

PayPal is an independent tool which allows buyers or sellers to send and receive online payments. It is an internet classic since eBay bought it in 2002. PayPal is for professional and personal use, like me.

Why do I use PayPal?

As we all can perform online payments through credit card of through cheque, why are more than 100 million people using PayPal?
Mainly for security.
Indeed, since the credit card information is transmitted to PayPal at inscription, you do not have to give it anymore. A simple email is then enough. Additionally, PayPal is a serious company which pay back in case of a litigation.
As an occasional online seller, I also use PayPal, in order to avoid registering to an online bank service and thus entering in a complex and long process. PayPal is then also really useful.

Is PayPal free?

No.
Inscription to PayPal service for personal use is free, but: Concerning buyers, PayPal take a fixed amount of 1 euro for a transaction for which the value is less than 100 euro from PayPal account to bank account.
Concerning sellers, it is necessary to subscribe to a "certified" PayPal account. In this case, PayPal take a fee (like a traditional bank would do) at transaction:
For a amount less than 2 500 euro: 3,4% of the total amount + 0,25 euro. For example, a product sold at 150 euro will be charged 5,5 euro.

A PayPal "certified" account, why?

Certifying a PayPal account is validating the credit card linked to the bank account registered in PayPal.
Ugrading to certified PayPal account did not cost me a penny. PayPal takes a small amount of the bank account and gives the validation code at the same time. This small amount of money is then given back at the next purchase. The validation code of the certified PayPal account is written on the paper account statement of the bank account associated to the credit card registered in PayPal.
Then, fulling using a PayPal account takes some time.

How to open and manage a PayPal account?

It was really easy. I needed a credit card and an email account.
The official PayPal website is: http://www.paypal.com
Since you subscribed, you are allowed to transfer money from your registered bank account to the PayPal account. The opposite is of course possible.
If you do not have enough money on your PayPal account for the item you purchased, no worries, PayPal will transfer the money from your bank account. There is no fee or jobbery on a PayPal account.

PayPal inconvenients and risks

PayPal is associated to one of your bank account, so be careful to manage the PayPal outcomes linked to it. Money is not virtual with PayPal.
PayPal is a private company, its business is based on fees. Please refer to official web site: Tarifs PayPal
The main risks related to a PayPal account use are the scams and cons made by third party. For example, you receive an email from "PayPal" asking you accept the newest contract conditions. In order to do it, you have to click on an external link looking like a PayPal link. In fact, you will be directed on a similar looking web site which will record your email and password.
In order to avoid it, the rule is simple: Only go on PayPal website using the official link www.paypal.com. Only use an external link in a email if your requested it (if you lost your password for example, as I did).
For information, a website report some problems occurred with PayPal: http://www.paypalsucks.com/.


Finally, PayPal is secure (you do not give your credit card number when you do electronic transactions), easy to use, well known and allow the pay back in case of a litigation.




Best regards,
Laurent