Can You Use a Credit Card on Venmo?

You can use a credit card on Venmo, but paying a friend with it costs 3% of every payment, and your card issuer may add a cash advance fee and interest on top. Buying from an authorized merchant through Venmo has no fee, even with a credit card. Paying with a debit card, a linked bank account or your Venmo balance doesn’t cost anything either.

4 steps to add a credit card to Venmo

1. Open the Me tab.
2. Tap Wallet, then scroll to Banks and Cards.
3. Swipe left and tap Add a bank or card.
4. Choose a verification method and follow the prompts.

Venmo allows four cards on a rolling basis. A card counts against that limit for six months after you add it, even if you delete it.

Fees for using a credit card on Venmo

Venmo charges 3% on any payment funded by a credit card. On a $100 payment, that’s $3.

If your issuer codes it as a cash advance, you may also pay a cash advance fee and a higher APR, with interest starting immediately.

Check your cardholder agreement or call the number on the back of your card to find out how your issuer handles Venmo payments.

Read more >> How Electronic Transactions Like Venmo Impact Your Credit Score

How a $100 Venmo payment can cost $115 or more
If your issuer treats the payment as a cash advance, you’re looking at a $3 Venmo fee, a $10 cash advance fee, and about $2.57 in interest if you clear it in 30 days. That’s $115.57 to send someone $100.

And the interest starts the day you send it. Cash advances don’t get a grace period, so paying your statement in full won’t save you from that last piece.
Venmo charges nothing when you pay from a debit card, a bank account, or your Venmo balance.

Does using a credit card on Venmo count as a cash advance?

It’s determined by your card issuer. Some issuers code person-to-person Venmo payments, like paying a friend or splitting a bill, as cash advances instead of purchases.

Before you send one, look up two numbers in your cardholder agreement: the cash advance fee and the cash advance APR. Cash advances usually have a higher rate than purchases, and interest starts the day of the transaction, instead of after your billing cycle.

Read more >> How Does a Cash Advance Work?

How using a credit card on Venmo affects your credit

Credit utilization ratio

Any charge raises your card balance. If the balance is still there on your statement date, that’s usually the number reported to the credit bureaus, which raises how much of your available credit you’re using. That’s one of the factors in your credit score.

Payment history

Paying at least the minimum on time keeps a Venmo payment from hurting your payment history. The risk is the balance growing faster than you can pay it down.

Once a payment is 30 or more days late, your issuer can report it. And late payments are among the most damaging marks on a credit report.

Read more >> The Importance of On-Time Payments in Building Credit

Alternatives to using a credit card on Venmo

Debit card

Choose your debit card as the funding source when you send a payment. Venmo doesn’t charge a fee for that.

Bank account

Payments funded by a linked bank account are free, and so are standard transfers from Venmo back to your bank. Instant transfers cost 1.75%, with a $0.25 minimum and $25 maximum.

Venmo balance

If you have money sitting in your Venmo balance, use it first. That reduces or removes what goes on your card.

Bottom line

A credit card works on Venmo, but a debit card, bank account, or Venmo balance sends the same money without the 3% fee.

What shows up on your credit report isn’t the Venmo payment. It’s how you handle the card balance afterward. A Kikoff Credit Account adds on-time payments to your Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion reports, with no credit check to sign up. Plans start at $5 a month