Select Amazon customers can now pay for their purchases using a Venmo balance. This system does not require a Venmo debit card, and it will be available to all U.S. Amazon customers by Black Friday, November 25th.
For those who don’t know, Venmo is a popular money transfer app that allows you to quickly send or receive cash. It’s similar to Cash App or Zelle, and it’s a popular option for splitting bills, paying rent, or sharing money with family.
You can withdraw money from Venmo for free, but only if you’re willing to wait a few days. Immediate withdrawals cost money. This new Amazon integration gets around the problem (kind of), especially if your Venmo balance is larger than that of your bank account (an unfortunately common problem).
Interestingly, you can’t check out at Amazon with PayPal (Venmo’s parent company). It’s an odd situation, though PayPal is a bit more business-oriented than Venmo, so I guess it makes sense. (You can check out at Amazon using a PayPal debit card, of course.)
To add Venmo as an Amazon payment option, simply select “Add a Venmo Account” in the payment window during checkout. Note that this feature will finish its rollout by Black Friday.
Source: PayPal, Amazon
