Can I currently use Venmo to buy or sell merchandise, goods, or services?
Venmo was originally designed for people who know and trust each other to send each other payments. However, we’re in the process of growing our services to accommodate the varying needs of our customers. The only way to accept payments for goods and services on Venmo is to be explicitly authorized to accept Venmo for purchases, either by applying for a business profile or tag a payment to a personal profile as a purchase.
As a customer or “buyer”, you may use Venmo to pay for goods or services in the app by paying an authorized business profile or tagging a payment to a personal profile as a purchase when it’s available. You can also use your Venmo account to pay for goods and services, by using a Venmo Debit Card at merchants that accept the card, through mobile websites or apps that are approved to offer Venmo as a payment option, or by using your in-store QR code at select merchants.
For more information about accepting payments for your business in the Venmo app, you can read more about business profiles or learn about making payments for goods and services to personal profiles.
Venmo may NOT otherwise be used to receive business, commercial or merchant transactions, meaning you CANNOT use Venmo to accept payment from (or send payment to) another user for a good or service, unless explicitly authorized by Venmo.
Unless directly given the option by Venmo, DO NOT USE VENMO TO TRANSACT WITH PEOPLE YOU DON’T PERSONALLY KNOW, ESPECIALLY IF THE TRANSACTION INVOLVES THE PURCHASE OR SALE OF A GOOD OR SERVICE (for example, concert tickets, electronic equipment, sneakers, a watch, or other merchandise). These transactions are potentially high risk, are not allowed under Venmo’s User Agreement, and Venmo does not have a protection program for such transactions unless directly offered. So:
- If you send a Venmo payment to an unauthorized business profile or another individual for a good or service without identifying the payment as for goods and services, you could lose your money without ever getting what you paid for.
- If you accept a Venmo payment from someone for a good or service via your personal profile and the buyer didn’t identify a payment as for goods and services, we may later review the payment. When that happens, we may reverse the payment, meaning you could lose both the payment and the item sold. This review process may not occur until after you attempt to transfer the funds out of Venmo.
Thank you for your cooperation!
Can I use Venmo to collect donations for my non-profit or otherwise?
Venmo offers charity profiles for charitable organizations (and 501c3s) that have confirmed their charity status on PayPal. If you have a PayPal charity account, you can connect to Venmo from the PayPal App Center. Learn more about signing up for a Venmo charity profile.
You may also be able to work with PayPal or Braintree to integrate Venmo as a checkout option in your organization’s app or website. You can find more information about accepting Venmo for your business here.
Personal profiles should not be used to receive funds for user-created donation campaigns or non-profits.