Whether you are looking to send money to your friends and family, make purchases from the comfort of your phone or to even make a little money on the side, there is no doubt that money is on everyone’s mind. The good news is, that means there are a plethora of Apps just waiting for you to make the most out of their features. So today let’s dive into that giant pit of virtual payments methods to see which new App will be the one for you.
No.1 Cash App
AndroidiOS
Cash App
Features:
- Earn money via completing tasks
- Pays directly to your PayPal account
- No hidden fees
The first App I’m going to discuss, is actually an App that allows you to make money. Cash App asks users to complete simple tasks such as watching videos, filling out surveys, trying online services, giving your opinions and feedback or making use of some free trials for products.
With no hidden fees or catches, Cash App is transparent in what it asks from its users. There are no deadlines or contracts in which you can complete any task in a time frame which suits you best. So, no stressing out over having to complete your tasks within a certain time limit.
Cash App is a useful little App which lets you make money in your spare time. Simply complete a task, wait for it to get marked and there you have it. Payments are made directly to your PayPal account. An App we will discuss a little later.
No.2 Venmo
AndroidiOS
Venmo
Features:
- Send and receive money
- Earn cash back when purchasing at certain stores
- Purchase Cryptocurrency
- Link Venmo with your business
Venmo is a great alternative payment method. A simple to use App which also offers its own Credit and Debit card. As you would expect from such an App you can easily link your current bank account to Venmo and send or receive money at the tap of a button. A family member needing some news shoes? Send money to them. Need a little extra cash before payday? Ask your friends or family to give you a quick loan.
Venmo also gives its users an incentive to purchase with them by offering up to 3% cash back when you purchase items from select stores or even splitting payments with your friends. This includes any purchases with the Venmo Debit Card, which is incredibly handy for those shops which don’t accept contactless payments. If they do allow contactless payments, simply open up the App and let them scan your QR code linked to your account.
Starting a small business? Well, Venmo can help you there too. You can create your own business profile through the App and have all payments and service charges go directly into your Venmo business account. If investing is something you are looking to get into, Venmo can help you there too by giving you the option to purchase Cryptocurrency. Just be sensible when doing this as the Crypto market is known to rise and fall at any moment.
Venmo is a great choice for those of you looking for an online payment alternative or wanting to look for a new way to save your money. There’s no doubt it’s a convenient App to send and receive payments and it could very well be your new virtual wallet of choice.
No.3 PayPal
AndroidiOS
PayPal - Send, Shop, Manage
Features:
- Send and request money for free
- Buy now pay later
- Monthly payment options
- Exclusive deals and cash back
PayPal is the most popular and widely known App being discussed today. Starting as a go between option when making payments online, PayPal has grown to be an almost online only bank account for its users. PayPal is my personal choice when it comes to making purchases online.
Let’s start with my favourite PayPal features. PayPal is widely recognised so it’s one of the most used payment options when buying online which is highly convenient. The biggest feature I love is the option to either buy now and pay later or to Pay in 4, this option lets you make a purchase then pay for that purchase across 4 monthly payments. This is incredibly useful for when something unexpected happens and you need to buy something which you weren’t prepared to pay for.
PayPal gives you the option to make your own account allowing you to transfer money to and from that account when needed instead of directly using your bank account. It’s a great way to save money for emergencies or to send and receive money from friends and family. Simply click on a contact linked with your PayPal account and send them money or request a specific amount which they can transfer to you instantly from their PayPal account.
PayPal is a great choice when it comes to alternative payment methods. It’s incredibly easy to set up and use, massively popular and recognised worldwide and gives you multiple ways to make purchases. Even those of you wanting to buy, sell or hold Cryptocurrency can do so from the PayPal app. I can easily recommend you use PayPal thanks to all these features.
No.4 Wise
AndroidiOS
Wise
Features:
- Send money to over 80 countries
- A debit card recognised in over 200 countries
- Hold over 50 currencies in your account
- 50% of transfer are instant or arrive within an hour
Wise is one of the lesser-known Apps on this list but is still an equally viable alternative payment method. More so than PayPal, Wise wants its users to make the most of their accounts by using them instead of their current bank accounts. You create a UK bank account, complete with account number and sort code but also allow you to get paid in multiple currencies as well as making purchases worldwide either through the App or via the Wise Debit card.
Wise is a great choice when looking for a bank account or alternative online account when it comes to getting paid for your services as a business. Thanks to being recognised worldwide, you can make this your main business account. For those of you who work online, this is very appealing. Are you an artist working on commission for clients across the world? Well, this could be a handy option for you to use. Especially as you can hold over 50 currencies in this account.
Travelling around the world and don’t want to make purchases with your bank account due to the extra conversion costs? Again, Wise can help you out with this as it instantly converts and uses whichever currency you need straight from your Wise account. Not only this but when transferring money across multiple accounts can take as little as an hour to complete. It’s an incredibly useful feature especially when needing money abroad.
Wise is an App best suited to those of you either making purchases from multiple countries or for those of you who travel the world. That’s not to say it’s not useful to those of you looking for a new bank account option but you may not get the most out of this App.
No.5 Google Pay
AndroidiOS
Google Pay
Features:
- Instantly send and receive money
- Contactless payment
- Secure payments thanks to encryption
- Rewards and cash back
Google Pay prides itself in being the safest and most helpful way to manage your money. A bold claim but with the amount of features it has, it certainly lives up to it. Let’s start with how easy it is to send and receive money. Simply choose a contact, enter an amount and there you have it, that money has changed accounts instantly. Need to send money to a group of people who may have to work to a budget, add those people to a group, choose an amount to store within that group and there you have, everyone in that group now has access to that money.
Google Pay is not only an online wallet but you can use it just like any other contactless bank card. Off to the local supermarket but forget your wallet, simply open up your App tap to pay, move your phone over to the contactless machine and voila the payment has been made. You can also use Google Pay to purchase meals from your local takeaway or if you want a night out, view menus from your local restaurants and make a reservation.
The more you use Google Pay, the more it gives back. Literally. Google Pay offers rewards and cash back to those of you who use it, giving exclusive discounts to various stores as well as adding money back into your account depending on which stores you have made purchases from.
Google Pay has so many useful features for everyday use. Especially with how secure it is, with each purchase requiring authentication so you don’t need to panic if your phone is lost or stolen. Even giving your phone a unique virtual account number hiding your bank card number from businesses. It really is one of the safest options for you to use.
And there we have it, from an App that pays you to use it, from virtual wallets recognised worldwide. There are many available choices waiting for you to make the most out of them and I am sure some of these Apps will suit you more than others but they all have their own unique selling points.
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