Sign Up for PayPal

Sign Up for PayPal

Step1

Determine what type of PayPal account you need. There are three main types of accounts: a personal account for use with online shopping, a premier account for use with periodically selling online (such as on eBay) in addition to shopping, and a business account for business owners who do a majority of their commerce online.

Step2

Have a valid email address to use as your PayPal ID. All PayPal-related correspondence and financial transactions will be tied to this address. You may add up to five email addresses to your account, but you will need to designate one as a primary address.

Step3

Decide whether you want to have your PayPal account tied to a credit card or a bank account and have the account information at hand. Every PayPal account must be attached to some sort of already-established financial information.

Step4

Visit PayPal's website and click the "Sign Up" link at the top of the page (see Resources below). Select your country, language and the type of account you have decided to open.

Step5

Fill in all the fields on the online informational form, making sure to choose a password which is both secure and easy to remember. Your password will need to be a string of at least eight characters and is case sensitive.

Step6

Read the user agreement in full before accepting it. Knowing the terms and conditions for sending and receiving funds will prevent misunderstandings in the future. Once you have read the agreement, check the box acknowledging that you accept it and submit your application form.

Step7

Watch your email for a confirmation message from PayPal. When you receive it, click on the provided confirmation link which should bring you to the PayPal homepage. Enter your password on this page and click the "Confirm" button.

Tips & Warnings

• If you so choose, you may open both a personal and business account, but they must have separate financial information and email addresses.
• After confirming your account, be very careful when responding to emails that seem to originate from PayPal. There are numerous "phishing" schemes which send emails that look like they are from PayPal. Never enter any personal information through an email. Instead, type the PayPal address into your browser and sign in from the homepage. Any necessary updates will trigger a visual alert on your account page.