PayPal is renowned the world over. Arguably the first digital payment method for retail and other online purchases, PayPal had a considerable leg-up on its competition. Given its global appeal, it is no surprise to see PayPal accept over twenty-five currencies, including US dollars, euros, British pounds sterling and many others. PayPal’s number of users has increased exponentially over the years, rising from an average of 227 million in 2017 to 377 million in 2020. The total value of annual PayPal transactions numbers into billions of dollars.
As a world-renowned option, PayPal is known and trusted by millions of casino players. This naturally makes it an attractive option for any casino operator. It is worth noting that while PayPal used to have a broad range of casinos offering its service, they virtually withdrew from the casino world over a decade ago. Today, PayPal is making a comeback and is most prominently used by casino players based in the United Kingdom. At those casinos, you will find the greatest coverage of sites offering the e-wallet payment option. Read More
All the above makes PayPal an attractive option for any online casino player, assuming that they live in one of the limited countries where casinos accept the e-wallet. This is not typically down to a lack of trying by the casinos. It is PayPal that is exceptionally selective about which operators they work with and in which countries.
PayPal is widely recognised as the first significant e-wallet to go live online. Founded over twenty years ago, in December 1998 as Confinity by a group of members including one, Elon Musk, PayPal went public in 2012, when eBay snapped it up in a deal valued at $1.5 billion. PayPal acquired VeriSign a few years later. In 2007, it announced an agreement with MasterCard, which saw PayPal Secure Card go live. This would allow users to pay via a MasterCard linked to their PayPal account without that website directly accepting PayPal. This was considered hugely important because it was around this time that PayPal began to withdraw from the online casino world.
PayPal continued to grow and had roughly 100 million users by 2010. A move in 2011 with Discover Card would allow PayPal payments to be made in stores without being online. Further acquisitions, such as Palo Alto and Zong, would follow. In 2014, PayPal split from eBay in a move that would later see PayPal return to the online gambling scene for the first time in years.
Today, PayPal is once again available as a payment method at online casinos. However, only selected casinos currently offer it as an option. PayPal has been cautious about the countries where it offers itself up as a deposit option. The United Kingdom is one of those countries, as is Ireland. PayPal ensures that any casinos that it works with are fully transparent, secure, and exceptionally well-regulated. They only work with online casinos that are licensed out of specific jurisdictions, such as the UK Gambling Commission. This is excellent news for players (despite how it sounds), as it ensures that any casino offering PayPal as a funding method is one of the best and most secure in the business.
There are several types of PayPal e-wallet accounts you can have. Personal is the most common and is the one you will want to use to play at online casinos and gambling sites. Premier is a high-rate version of that and includes a prepaid MasterCard, which is linked to your account. Business accounts are ideal for merchants, while Student accounts work for small-scale sums. Neither of the latter is particularly relevant to casino players. Of course, it is entirely possible for those with businesses to have Personal/Premier and Business accounts side-by-side.
PayPal is an e-wallet. This has its advantages, as it ensures that you do not need to provide any of your personal bank details to the casino in question. Instead, you only need to enter your e-wallet address to fund your account. Given that most players do not put vast sums of money into their PayPal account, the risk for losing money via hacking or theft is minimal, making PayPal one of the safest and most secure options around.
There will be min and maximum deposit limits at online casinos, but these tend to change. On average, we would expect to see minimum limits of €10 up to €25, and maximum caps of €500 up to €5,000. Again, these will change depending on where you play.
There are fees associated with PayPal, but these concern your e-wallet account and not funding your casino account. There are a select few occasions when you might find yourself facing a PayPal fee. Ignoring merchant fees (as they will not trouble online gamblers), you can expect to see a small fee when you fund your PayPal account via a credit or debit card or when you transfer money from your e-wallet to your card. Transferring money to your bank account via PayPal will not see you incur a fee, though. Any fees associated with PayPal can vary from country to country. There is also an added fee if you need to convert currency, and again, this will change from region to region.
How do you set up an account at a PayPal casino to play, though? Follow these short steps to get started…
Withdrawals via PayPal are just as straightforward as funding your online casino account. This process is free, too. It should be noted that withdrawals via this option will take between a few hours up to 48 hours, depending on the speed of the casino in question.
While cashing out your winnings from an online casino is free of charge, what you do with those winnings after that may see you incur a fee. If you leave them in your PayPal account, you are good to go. However, if you wish to move them on from your e-wallet to your bank, that is also free. However, transferring winnings from PayPal to your credit or debit card will see you incur a fee. As mentioned repeatedly in this article, that fee can vary.
To help simplify the issue, just follow these short steps…
You will not find any casino bonuses tied explicitly to PayPal. This would go against what PayPal believes in. The casino payment provider is finicky about only appearing at responsible gambling sites, and casinos that push promotions based on payment methods would fall foul of that. However, while this means that you cannot claim special bonuses for depositing only with PayPal, it does not mean that conventional bonuses are off-limits with the payment method.
You can still claim all manner of traditional online casino bonuses. These include welcome bonuses, reload offers, free spins and no deposit bonuses, loyalty program perks, VIP club deals and monthly specials. You can also still compete in tournaments and competitions when you deposit with PayPal at gambling sites.
Before claiming any casino bonus, we would urge you to check the terms and conditions attached to those bonuses. You should keep an eye out for wagering requirements, as you will likely need to clear these before any PayPal withdrawals are processed at casino sites.
PayPal is ideal for conservative players and high rollers alike. The deposit limits attached to the casino payment method make it suitable for players who only want to play penny slots, as they can be considerably small. Similarly, the withdrawal caps associated with the casino payment method at gambling sites are suitably high, so high rollers who win vast sums on games will find PayPal useful, too.
There are no limitations when it comes to the types of games you can play. Expect to see all the following at online casinos:
If you still have a few questions and queries related to depositing (or cashing out) with PayPal, then this brief FAQ (frequently asked questions) guide may be exactly what you need. Here is how we can help…