Send money to PayPal from gift card

• You can add a gift card to your PayPal account to use as a payment method.
• However, the gift card has to be a prepaid gift card from brands like Visa, American Express, MasterCard, or Discover in order to use it on PayPal.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

One of the obvious perks of the holiday season is gift cards galore.

Prepaid gift cards sold by credit card companies are a particularly great gift, because you can put the balance toward just about anything — including your PayPal account.

And adding a gift card balance to your PayPal account might be a good idea if you often use PayPal. 

It's also a great way to eliminate the possibility of forfeiting your funds before you've even had a chance to splurge — a lot of us are prone to losing physical copies of things. 

Here's how to add a prepaid gift card from Visa, American Express, MasterCard, or Discover to your PayPal account.

How to add a gift card to PayPal

1. Go into your PayPal Wallet on a desktop computer.

2. Click "Link a debit or credit card."

3. Tap "Link a card manually" if given the option to link manually or through a bank.

4. Enter the gift card information.

5. Tap "Link Card."

Sometimes, you might run into an error trying to add a gift card to your PayPal account as a payment method because gift cards lack personal identifiers, unlike traditionally-issued credit cards. 

If you run into this kind of trouble, register your gift card — there should be instructions on the card that will direct you to a website for registration.

Additionally, there are also ways to exchange non-credit card gift cards for money in your PayPal account, but the cost of the transaction is significant — usually a minimum of 10% of the value of the gift card.  

Related coverage from How To Do Everything: Tech:

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• How to check your PayPal balance on desktop or mobile

• 'Does PayPal have fees?': Yes, but not for all transactions — here's how you can avoid fees on PayPal

Emma Witman is an Asheville, NC-based freelance journalist with a keen interest in writing about hardware, PC gaming, politics, and personal finance. She is a former crime reporter for a daily newspaper, and has also written extensively about bartending for Insider. She may or may not judge your drink order when behind the bar. Follow her on Twitter at @emwity.

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What’s with all the gift cards? What happened to “cash is king”? It’s like we don’t have enough plastic in our lives already. 

If you got a VISA gift card and want to transfer money to your PayPal balance, you’ve come to the right place because we have a couple of solutions for you. Here’s our recommendation.

There’s no need to transfer money from a gift card to PayPal. Simply link the gift card to your PayPal account and fund any PayPal purchases that way.

Nevertheless, if you’d still like to transfer money from your VISA gift card to your PayPal balance, you can. It will cost you, however. 

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How to Add VISA Gift Card to PayPal

It’s easy to add a gift card, debit, or credit card to your PayPal account. To do it on a computer:

1. Click on “Wallet” at the top of the page
2. Click on “Link a card” on the left side of the page
3. Under “Link a card manually”, click “Debit or credit card”
4. Enter the card’s number, expiration date, security code, and address
5. Tap “Link card”

You can also add a gift card using the PayPal App on your smartphone. It’s a similar process:

1. Tap on “Wallet”
2. Tap “+” beside Banks and Cards
3. Tap on “Debit and Credit Cards”
4. Link your card manually 
5. Enter the card’s number, expiration date, security code, and address
6. Tap “Link card”

Now that your gift card is linked to your PayPal account, you can use the gift card balance to pay for things and services with PayPal.

READ ALSO: How to Put Money on PayPal Card (5 Ways)

How to Transfer VISA gift Card Money to Your PayPal Balance?

If you don’t want to simply fund your purchases by adding a gift card to your PayPal wallet, but instead want to transfer the money from your VISA gift card entirely, you can do so via CardCash. 

CardCash is a third-party online gift card marketplace where you can buy and sell discounted gift cards. 

Here’s how to trade in your unwanted VISA gift card:

1. Go to CardCash
2. Enter the merchant’s name 
3. Enter the balance on your gift card
4. Click “GET OFFER”
5. If an offer is available, you’ll see the amount of PayPal balance you can exchange with this gift card
6. You can add another card by entering the information below and clicking “ADD CARD”
7. If you agree to the deal, click Continue
8. Enter your gift card number and PIN
9. Click “Connect with PayPal”
10. Log in to your PayPal account
11. Fill in the required fields 
12. Click “Get my PayPal balance”

Although this is an easy and fast process that generally takes one business day, it can be expensive; costing you a minimum of 10% of the gift card’s value! The fees and rates for gift card exchange vary from company to company.

You can, however, exchange as many gift cards as you like. 

Can You Send Money as a Gift on PayPal?

Okay, now that we know how to connect a gift card with PayPal, or even redeem the gift card balance, what if we want to send money to someone as a gift?

You’ll be happy to know that it’s easy to do. It’s a handy present for any special occasions such as birthdays or graduations. To send money as a gift:

1. Click “Send & Request”
2. Click “Send”
3. Enter the receiver’s name, email, or phone number 
4. Click “Next”
5. Enter the amount.
6. Click “Change” next to “Paying for an item or service”
7. Click the present icon 
8. Choose a card theme and enter a personal note or message
9. Click “Next”
10. Click “Continue” to verify the transaction

READ NEXT: Can You Send Money From Venmo To PayPal? [and vice versa]

VISA Gift Cards FAQ

VISA gift cards are generally easy to use. But, you might have some lingering questions about them. Here are the answers to some of them.

My VISA gift card is empty. Can I throw it away?

If you’re like me, you have dozens of old cards lying around in a drawer somewhere. Is that smart or stupid? Well, if you bought something with your VISA gift card and you need to return it at some point, you’ll need the card. 

Do VISA gift cards work abroad?

VISA gift cards are generally international and can be used abroad. However, if your gift card has a sign on the front that says “Valid only in the United States”, you can only use it domestically.  

Can I reload a VISA gift card?

VISA gift cards can’t be reloaded. What money is on there can’t be replenished with additional funds. You can purchase a VISA prepaid card that can be reloaded indefinitely. 

What can I do if my VISA card is stolen or lost?

If someone stole your VISA gift card, or you’ve lost it, call the phone number listed on the card issuer’s website or in the card documentation. To get it canceled or replaced, you will need to provide the card’s number.

It’s best to register your card online as soon as you get it as this will make it way easier to report it as stolen or lost.  

PayPal Gift Cards

You may not be aware, but PayPal sells digital gift cards as well. They have an excellent selection of brands and include most of the popular ones such as iTunes, Spotify, Nintendo, Sony, Subway, Google Play, and many others. 

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The best way of buying a gift card is to visit PayPal’s dedicated gift website.

1. Visit the PayPal store and find the perfect gift cards
2. Choose a gift card you’d like to buy
3. Choose the value you want to load
4. Enter the recipient’s email address
5. Enter your name 
6. Write a short personal message to be sent with your gift card
7. Choose the date when to send
8. Add to cart
9. Log into PayPal to complete the purchase

READ ALSO: Cash App vs PayPal: Which Is Better For Your Payments?

How do PayPal’s digital gift cards work?

So, you may be wondering what does the gift card receiver get? They get a gift card in the form of a code. They can use the said code to redeem the gift card. 

If you’re buying it for yourself, PayPal emails it to you. And if you’re buying it for someone else, they’ll email the recipient. The email will include instructions for redeeming the gift card.

Conclusion

There are several ways to use your VISA, or other gift cards, with PayPal. The best way is to add it to your PayPal wallet to fund your purchases. 

If you decide to transfer the money from your gift card to your PayPal balance, it could cost you a good amount of money and might not be worth it for everyone. 

Adrian Volenik is a fintech enthusiast who loves testing and reviewing digital banking apps and financial products in general. How many digital banking accounts can one man have? Not enough, if you ask Adrian. As his wallet will soon explode if he doesn’t cut back on the number of cards.

Can I transfer money from a gift card to PayPal?

How do I transfer money from gift card to PayPal wallet?