All About Making Purchases Online

You need a form of payment that is accepted online to shop online. This usually entails using a credit card, though there are still options for those without such a card who wish to shop online. Some examples are your debit card, prepaid card, gift card, PayPal, Amazon Cash, a bank account, or even a borrowed card from a friend.

Put your online purchases on a debit card. Online purchases with a debit card require the full 16-digit number, expiration date, security code, and billing address to be entered.

This purchase will be charged to the debit card's associated checking account. If you don't already have a debit card associated with your checking account, you can either ask your bank for one or create a new checking account at a local financial institution.

Using a debit card for purchases isn't entirely secure. Users of debit cards are personally accountable for any fraudulent charges made with their cards.

Make Purchases with Prepaid Cards

Prepaid cards function like debit cards, except the money is stored in a separate account rather than a checking account. Be sure that the prepaid card is affiliated with a major credit card company logo like Visa, MasterCard, Discover, or American Express.

If you don't have access to a bank account or credit card or prefer not to have one, a prepaid card may be the best alternative. Prepaid cards are available at many major retailers, including CVS, Walgreens, and Walmart. Use a Store Credit Card, Gift Card, or Gift Certificate as Payment Gift cards issued by Visa or MasterCard, for example, can be used at any merchant that takes payments through those networks. Gift cards from certain stores can also be used online, though usually just at that store's online storefront. For instance, a gift card from Macy's can be used only at Macy's.

Gift cards can be bought wherever prepaid cards are sold. Gift cards for specific stores are sold at many of these outlets, though you can also buy them directly from the store. Gift cards don't offer the same protections as checking accounts, so if your money is stolen from either, you may not be able to get it back unless you report the fraud quickly.

Spend Amazon Gift Cards

When you use Amazon Cash, you don't need a credit card or debit card to make purchases on Amazon.com. At eligible retailers, you may add cash to your Amazon Balance. You may easily add money to your Amazon account by scanning a unique barcode or entering your cell phone number.

Pay with PayPal or Your Other Merchant Account You can have your PayPal balance automatically taken from your linked bank account when you purchase.

When making a transaction with PayPal, the funds will be deducted from your PayPal balance before being sent to your bank account. Many online stores now accept PayPal as a payment option, and you can see a full list of them on the PayPal website.

Online payment alternatives are not limited to PayPal; other services, such as Venmo, provide comparable services. Venmo's Purchase Protections offer purchasers peace of mind when making large purchases using the service.

Online shoppers can "buy now, pay later" at some stores thanks to new partnerships with external lenders. Customers in this situation can use a POS installment loan during online checkout to make their purchases.

Use a Mobile Wallet

The term "digital wallet" refers to storing financial data digitally. PayPal and Venmo are two examples of digital wallets, but many more are out there, such as Apple Pay and Google Wallet.

You can only make purchases online using a digital wallet if you are using a compatible device (phone, tablet, or computer). The option to use your wallet as payment will be available at checkout at stores that participate.

Tokenization is a mechanism digital wallets use to generate a one-time use code for each transaction. Since your card number is never shared with the store, identity thieves cannot use stolen numbers to make transactions.

Unlike a regular bank account, users don't need to provide personal information to make a transaction; this can be a safety feature. The increased sense of independence from using cryptocurrencies appeals to many consumers.

Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, on the other hand, have only been around for a short while. Thus, they are subject to substantial swings in value, and the absence of oversight may worry some.