Can You Buy Groceries With PayPal? (Yes, Here’s How)
With over 300 million active users, PayPal has been a trusted payment system between buyers and merchants for over two decades.
PayPal started as an online payment service provider. Over the years, they partnered with large US retailers and mobile wallets to be an in-store payment platform.
If you’re wondering whether you can use PayPal when grocery shopping, the answer is yes!
You can buy groceries with PayPal if you add your PayPal account to Google Pay or Samsung Pay. You can then use PayPal at grocery stores which accept Google Pay or Samsung Pay as a payment method.
At the time of this writing, Apple Pay users cannot add PayPal to their mobile wallets.
I will give you step-by-step instructions on how to add your PayPal account to Google Pay and Samsung Pay.
I will also share the list of major grocery stores and grocery delivery services that accept PayPal.
So let’s get started!
How to Add Your PayPal Account to Google Pay
Adding your PayPal account to Google Pay is an easy task. You can find the instructions on how to do it on desktops and mobile devices below:
On desktops:
- Go to the Google Pay website and sign in to your account
- Click the “Payment methods” tab on top of the screen and then click the “Add payment method “button.
- Select “Add PayPal” and click the “Save” button.
- You will then be re-directed to PayPal to verify your account.
On mobile devices (Android):
- Open the Google Pay app and tap “Payment methods”
- Tap the button that says, “Add payment method”
- You will see the payment methods at the bottom of the screen. Select “PayPal”
- Enter your PayPal e-mail address and tap “Allow” to confirm your information. And finally, tap “Accept” to complete the process.
Please note that if you have an iPhone device, you cannot add your PayPal account to Google Pay using the Google Pay mobile app.
As a workaround, you can follow the instructions above for desktops and do it on your computer. You will then see PayPal listed in the Google Pay app on your iPhone.
I tested this workaround personally, and it works without any issues.
Once you add your PayPal account to Google Pay, you can see it in the Cards section of the Google Pay mobile app.
You can review your recent activity, remove the PayPal account, or set it as the default payment method.
If you want to make any changes to your PayPal account, such as changing the automatic top-up amount ($10, $20, $50, $100) or the PIN, then you need the open the PayPal app and click Settings in the top right corner.
How to Add Your PayPal Account to Samsung Pay
You can add your PayPal account to Samsung Pay on your mobile device. Download the Samsung Pay app and follow the instructions below:
- Open the Samsung Pay app and select the wallet tab at the bottom of the screen
- Click “+” followed by Add PayPal icon and log into your PayPal account
- Like most debit card transactions, you may need to enter a PIN at the grocery store terminal to authorize the payment
- You can create or change your PIN within the PayPal app on your mobile or PayPal website under the Samsung Pay section.
List of Grocery Stores That Accept PayPal
Now that you linked your PayPal account to Google Pay or Samsung Pay, you can start buying groceries with PayPal wherever these mobile wallets are accepted.
Please keep in mind that the accepted payment methods may vary based on the grocery store location.
The company may be in the process of rolling out mobile payment systems, or smaller stores may not accept mobile payments at all.
Before visiting your local store, I would recommend contacting them to confirm which mobile payments they accept or bring a backup payment method with you (credit/debit card, cash, check, etc.)
Below you can find the list of grocery stores that accept PayPal using Google Pay or Samsung Pay.
Please note this is not the complete list of grocery stores that accept PayPal. I compiled the list based on my research:
| Albertsons | Raley’s |
| ALDI | Ralphs |
| Bashas’ | Save Mart |
| BI-LO | Schnucks |
| BJ’s Wholesale Club | Shaw’s |
| Brookshire’s Food & Pharmacy | Shop n Save Supermarkets |
| Costco | Shoppers |
| Cub Foods | Spring Market |
| Dillons | Sprouts Farmers Market |
| Farm Fresh | Star Market |
| Food Lion | Stater Bros. Markets |
| FoodMaxx | Stop & Shop |
| Fred Meyer | Super 1 Foods |
| Giant Eagle | Supervalu |
| Giant Food Stores | Target |
| H-E-B | The Fresh Market |
| Hornbacher’s | Trader Joe’s |
| Jewel-Osco | United Supermarkets |
| King Soopers | Vons |
| Kroger | Wegmans |
| Lin’s Fresh Market | Whole Foods Market |
| Martin’s Foods | WinCo Foods |
| Meijer | Winn-Di |
| Publix |
List of Grocery Delivery Services That Accept PayPal
Grocery delivery services are gaining popularity since more consumers are shopping for groceries online.
Some grocery stores have their home-delivery service, but many establish partnerships with companies like Instacart, which is a third party that delivers groceries to your home.
We compiled the list of grocery delivery services that accept PayPal directly or via Google Pay:
| Delivery Service | Accepts PayPal (Directly) | Accepts PayPal (via Google Pay) |
| Instacart | Yes | Yes |
| Thrive Market | Yes | Yes |
| Walmart.com | Yes | No |
| Target.com | Yes | No |
| Hmart.com | Yes | No |
| Brandless | Yes | No |
| Uber Eats | Yes | Yes |
| DoorDash | Yes | No |
| GrubHub | Yes | Yes |
| Postmates | No | Yes |
Buying Groceries with PayPal QR Codes
Most grocery stores do not accept PayPal QR codes. But you can use it to buy groceries if your local store accepts this payment method.
You can do this by opening your PayPal app and selecting the “Scan/Pay” option. It will turn on your phone’s camera, and you can scan the QR code provided by the store.
Enter the amount you need to pay and tap the Send button to complete the transaction.
After the COVID-19 pandemic, more retailers are implementing contactless payment methods in their stores.
A good example would be the recent announcement from CVS. CVS announced that 8,200 of its US stores would start accepting PayPal QR codes in the fourth quarter of 2020.
More retailers may follow this trend because contactless payments help to prevent the virus spread. If more retailers adopt QR technology, you may use PayPal QR codes at more grocery stores nationwide.
Buying Groceries With PayPal Cash Card
Another option to buy groceries with PayPal is by using the PayPal Cash Card. You need to have a PayPal Cash Plus account to get this card.
PayPal Cash card can be used at any grocery store that accepts Mastercard payments.
Most grocery stores accept Mastercard payments in-store and online, so this is a convenient way of buying groceries using your PayPal account.
There are no monthly fees or minimum balance requirements for PayPal Cash Card. There is also no fee for using it online or in-store.
There are no fees to add funds to PayPal Cash Card if you are using direct deposit or transferring funds from a bank account.
There is a fee of up to $4.95 if you are loading cash to your card at a participating retail store.
The daily limit for loading cash at the retail stores is $1,500. There is also a $5,000 monthly limit for loading cash at retail stores.
PayPal defines a “day” as a 24-hour rolling period and a “month” as a calendar month.
There is also a daily limit on how much you can purchase using a PayPal Cash Card. The daily purchase limit is $3,000.
Most of us will not spend over $3,000 every day, so PayPal Cash Card is still a good option to pay for groceries.
Summary
You can buy groceries with PayPal if the grocery store accepts Google Pay or Samsung Pay. I explained how to add your PayPal account to these mobile wallets in the article.
You can also review the list of major grocery stores and grocery delivery services that accept PayPal.
Lastly, I covered PayPal QR codes and PayPal Cash Card, which are additional ways of buying groceries using your PayPal account.
If you are interested in more grocery shopping tips, check out the articles below:
Related Articles:
16 Grocery Stores With Home Delivery (And How Much It Costs)
What Grocery Stores Take Apple Pay? (And How to Use It)
21 Grocery Stores and the Accepted Payment Methods
