Venmo, a product of PayPal, is one of the popular apps to make payments to friends and family and for your daily purchases. If you are new to Venmo and wondering do you have to have a Venmo card to use Venmo, you are on the right post to get the complete answer.
While Venmo offers a Venmo debit card that is auto-linked to your Venmo balance, it is not mandatory to get a Venmo card to be able to use Venmo. However, getting the Venmo Card means you can use Venmo almost everywhere where MasterCard is accepted and allows you to do more with Venmo.
Let’s first simplify how Venmo works-> Venmo allows you to pay, send and receive money. Do note that the balance you carry in Venmo is not FDIC insured (unless you have money added by way of direct deposits or mobile check deposit) and there is no interest paid on such balance.
Venmo facilitates you to make payments either by using the money you hold in your Venmo balance or you can make the payment directly from your bank debit card or bank account that you have added to Venmo (similar to Apple Pay).
Your Venmo balance consists of money you received in your Venmo account from other Venmo users or the money that you have added to Venmo from your own bank account or debit card.
Do you have to have a Venmo Card to use Venmo?
No, you can still use Venmo without a Venmo card. However, with a Venmo Card, you get the ability to withdraw cash from ATM and add money to Venmo from a linked bank account. You can also use Venmo to make payments at any place where MasterCard is accepted.
Without a Venmo card, you can use Venmo in the following ways:
- Send money to your friends using Venmo balance or a linked payment method like a bank account added to Venmo
- Receive money from friends on Venmo
- Pay to merchants who accept payments via Venmo QR code
- Pay to merchants online which allows payments directly via Venmo wallet
Without a Venmo debit card, you CAN NOT:
- Add money to your Venmo balance from your bank account or debit card linked to Venmo
- Make payments to merchants who accept only cards and do not accept direct Venmo payments via QR code etc.
- Withdraw money as cash from your Venmo balance at an ATM or get cashback at a store using PoS. Do note that Venmo allows fee-free ATM withdrawals only at MoneyPass ATMs. You will have to pay fees if you use any other ATM (Venmo fees $2.50 per withdrawal + ATM fees)
- Cash a check on Venmo (unless you have set up a direct deposit with Venmo)
Must have requirements for using Venmo
- You must be physically located in the United States
- You must have a U.S. cell phone number (not used by another Venmo account)
- You must be at least 18 years old (or the age of majority in your state of residence)
If you ever want to transfer money from your Venmo account to your bank account (most users do), you need to add a U.S. bank account or debit card eligible for Instant Transfer.
If you don’t have access to a Venmo balance, you’ll need to add a U.S. bank account, credit card, or debit card to make a payment.
If you do have access to a Venmo balance, you’ll need to add a U.S. bank account, credit card, or debit card if you want to make a payment larger than the amount in your Venmo balance.
Can you add money to Venmo without a Venmo card?
No, you cannot add money to Venmo from a linked bank account or debit card, without a Venmo Card. However, you can still receive money on Venmo by requesting your friends and family.
Currently, only Venmo users who have been Venmo Card have the option to add money from a verified bank account directly to their Venmo balance.
Users who attempt to add money to Venmo without a Venmo debit card get the following message:
“At this time, only users who have applied for and activated a Venmo Debit Card have the ability to add funds to their Venmo balance manually. That being said, you don’t need to add money to your Venmo balance to pay friends or businesses in the app since you can fund those payments directly with a bank account or card on file. I hope this helps!”
Unlike Cash App, Venmo also does not have an option to add cash at a retail store.
Do you need a bank account for Venmo?
No, you don’t need to have a bank account to use Venmo.
However, if you have not linked a bank account on Venmo, you cannot:
- Make payment for an amount that exceeds your Venmo balance [unless you add some other payment method like a credit card]
- Cannot cash out or transfer your Venmo funds to a bank
- Cannot add money to Venmo on your own from such a linked bank account
How to get money from Venmo without a bank account?
If you have not linked a bank account in Venmo, but have the Venmo Card, you can withdraw cash from your Venmo balance at ATM or even a bank.
However, this is subject to fees unless you withdraw money at a Money Pass ATM (you can find use the online MoneyPass ATM locator)
You can also use a Venmo card to get cash back from your Venmo balance, at a retail store by performing a transaction using PoS check out. This option works without any Venmo fees.
Can you use Venmo without Identify Verification?
You need to complete identity verification to be able to make payments using your Venmo balance. However, without identity verification, you can still make payments directly from a linked bank account or debit card that you have added to Venmo.
If you have not completed identity verification, you can only receive money from other Venmo users and transfer or cash out the money to your own linked bank account or debit card.
Wrap Up
So there you go, Venmo has a lot of options even if you don’t want to opt for a card or link a bank account. You should decide based on your usage. Opting for a Venmo card definitely gives you much more flexibility to be able to make payments at most places and withdraw cash from Venmo.
