PayPal
Reviews and Complaints

Since December 2024, I've been fighting with PayPal over a refund of $185 for digital products I purchased: photography presets that simply didn't work on my device. From the start, the seller's listing didn't clearly explain compatibility issues, and when I tried to use the presets, they generated error messages and were completely unusable.

I submitted over 20 screenshots to PayPal proving the product was broken. But instead of acknowledging this, PayPal initially dismissed my case saying I didn't like the product. That was a huge misunderstanding because my complaint wasn't about preference; it was about a defective product that didn't function at all. I had casually used that phrase in my explanation, but the technical evidence clearly showed the real problem.

After I escalated the dispute and appealed, the seller blocked me and refused any further communication. Yet PayPal still denied my refund. To make things worse, they changed their reasoning midway and even questioned whether I was who I claimed to be despite already corresponding with me. Even more frustrating is that PayPal cited updated policies that came into effect after I filed my dispute.

I never agreed to these new terms, yet they were used against me. This experience has been exhausting and disappointing. PayPal's buyer protection process, which is supposed to safeguard customers, failed me. It left me vulnerable to a broken product and a seller who dodged responsibility, with PayPal siding against me despite clear evidence.

I'm sharing this story not to attack PayPal but to raise awareness. If you rely on PayPal for buyer protection, please be cautious. Their dispute system can be inconsistent, slow, and sometimes unfair—especially when sellers block communication or when policies shift mid-dispute. For those who live paycheck to paycheck, losing money like this hurts deeply.

I urge PayPal to be more transparent, honor original policies during disputes, and protect buyers better from shady sellers. If you have a similar experience, don't stay silent.

Keep reporting, sharing, and demanding accountability. We deserve better.

Yes, I opened up a PayPal account over 2 years ago. Someone paid me in my PayPal account $175.00.

My phone number was different on the account, so I called customer service and she helped me update my phone number. She told me to attach my bank account and my debit card, so I did. Then she told me to transfer money into my account from my bank, so I did. It transferred $10.00 into my account.

So when I go to transfer money into my bank account from my PayPal account, it's saying I still need to verify that it's me. I have the same email that I did when I opened up the PayPal account. I verified that. I verified my new number.

I verified my attaching my bank account for Chime and my debit card for Chime. I did verification on the phone through the credit bureau and it is STILL saying it needs to verify that it's me. This has been going on for a week now. All I want to do is transfer my money to my Chime account so I can be done with PayPal because this is the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard of in my life.

I mean, what do I have to do to get my money out of my PayPal account? Give you my blood? I am extremely frustrated with this process just to verify my freaking phone number. If it isn't one thing, it's another every time I call.

They said Boost Mobile needs to verify my phone number, so I called Boost and they have never heard of such. They said my number should be verified by you sending my phone a one-time passcode. So that was done. Yesterday they said they had to do a hard reset on my account and wait 5 hours.

I did that and it's still saying the same freaking thing. My phone number has been verified per the app I downloaded already, so what is your problem with someone trying to get their money out of their account? It isn't your money to keep, and I don't know who I have to report you to, but I will go to whoever I need to to get my money out of my PayPal account.

I promise you one thing: I will never ever have anyone deposit money into this account again because this is beyond ridiculous. You should be damn ashamed!

I´m trying to open my paypal account for weeks, and the access code only gets to the cellphone two days after I try to log in. I have a payment to make for something that is very important to me, and all my plans are delayed due to Paypal security.

I also don´t have access to my previous Paypal account because I don´t have anymore my old cellphone, although I have the email and the associated bank account, they won´t give access to that account and the money retained in it. I tried for many times and already lost my patience. They don´t answer by email, and I really hate talking on the phone, even that way the case was never solved. I have no access to none of my accounts due to the security policy, which is not safe at all, because if our phone is stolen, it has total access to our Paypal account and the associated bank account.

I also complain because I was told Paypal was free to use, and I opened specifically to receive a refund, and I was charged about 1 for receiving. I don´t mind to pay how much it is, but I don´t like when a company lies to me.

That 1 should have been charged to the company that sent my refund, not to me. I find that kind of procedure offensive for the costumer.