Verdict: People that love to pay with Paypal, and frequent users of eBay, will find many benefits to having the Paypal Plus credit card. You earn 1 point per dollar that can be redeemed for vouchers, which allow you to pay for eBay purchases and more.
On the other hand – there are much better rewards cards out there. If you’re looking for the best rewards card, I would recommend the Discover More Card which allows you to earn 5% cash back on all gas, groceries and drugstore purchases (with the Paypal card you only earn 1% back on these categories and the rewards program is more limited). With Discover More you then can earn 1% back on all other purchases.
Overview:
The PayPal Plus credit card earns Paypal points, redeemable for vouchers. Vouchers are like gift cards that can be used to make purchases on Ebay and at other merchants that accept Paypal. The card is great for Ebay users, both buyers and sellers.
How This Card Works:
There’s no annual fee for the Paypal Plus Mastercard. You earn one Paypal Plus Reward point for every dollar you spend with your card, anywhere. Points can be redeemed for Paypal vouchers, good for a cash amount off of your Paypal purchases. These vouchers can be used to pay for items with sellers on Ebay and merchants outside Ebay that accept Paypal payments. The vouchers cannot be used for Ebay express purchases, subscriptions, and Ebay seller fees. Be aware that if the amount of the voucher exceeds the amount of the purchase, any unused amount will be forfeited. All vouchers come with an expiration date as well.
Travel and Shopping Benefits:
You get extended buyer protection when you make purchases through Paypal. You’ll also receive exclusive offers through Paypal. You earn reward vouchers when you make purchases with your card. You’ll earn 1 point for every dollar spent. Although there are limits to the vouchers, they offer great rewards to people that use Paypal frequently to pay for purchases.
Fees:
Update: The minimum APR for this card is now 19.99% . Thanks Rick!
The APR for your Paypal Mastercard will vary depending on your credit history but will be one of the following: 12.24%, 15.24%, 18.24%, or 21.24%. The default rate is 27.24%. Cash advances are subject to an APR of 21.24%. The grace period on purchases is at least 20 days. Transaction fees for cash advances is $10 minimum or 3%, and $5 minimum or 3% for balance transfers. There’s no annual fee for the card. Late payments are $19 for balances under $200 and $39 for balances over $200. Returned payments are charged a fee of $35. The overlimit fee is also $35.
Pros:
- You can personalize your card with a photo
- Earns Paypal vouchers
- APR as low as 12.24% with excellent credit
- No annual fee
- Extended buyer protection on purchases
- Exclusive Paypal offers
Cons:
- Standard APR can be as high as 21.24%
- Vouchers expire
Kevin Fleming founded CreditShout in 2008 to help people manage their credit and finances. Kevin wants to make it easy for anyone, regardless of their level of financial knowledge to understand credit cards and what may seem like the complex world of personal finance. | 
January 20th, 2010 at 1:00 pm
The minimum APR for the PayPal Plus Credit Card (MasterCard) is now 19.99% as of 1/20/2010. Why should I apply for this card when I have a VISA card at 10%. No thanks!
January 20th, 2010 at 2:31 pm
Rick,
You’re right this would not be a wise choice if you’re planning to carry a balance. If that’s the case there are cards out there (like Discover More) that have a much lower APR. However for those of you who pay off your card in full each month and use Paypal frequently this card does have its benefits.
May 29th, 2010 at 11:04 am
It is one of the worst credit card that is available. High APR, predatory practices. A big no no.
August 24th, 2010 at 7:40 pm
It’s almost impossible to find a site that will accept PayPal’s Reward Voucher.
PayPal says most eBay Stores that accept PayPal will accept the voucher — but that’s definitely NOT true.
I’ve heard of 3 stores that will accept: Buy.com, Footlocker.com and TheShoeMart.com (but I can’t swear to that).
August 26th, 2010 at 9:15 am
Agree with Sarah. No way to redeem the reward, and it will soon expire. I spent around an hour on the phone with customer service people until I gave up waiting to be connected to another department. The only reason I was using this card was to accumulate reward points, now they will expire unless I use it on the eBay to buy something that I do not need.
August 28th, 2010 at 11:37 am
The PayPal Mastercard Plus is, hands down, the WORST credit card I’ve ever had, and I have canceled it as of today.
If you use American Express and need to question a charge or cancel a recurring charge, AMEX immediately puts the charges on hold, contacts the merchant for you, and takes care of the whole thing.
I spent almost an hour on the phone with Paypal MC attempting to get an answer about some charges that looked wrong – eventually the “customer service” person just gave me the phone numbers of the merchants and told me I’d have to work it out with them.
This on top of the sorry rewards system and the outrageously high interest rate (about 25% when last I looked) sent me over the edge and I canceled the card.
Totally not worth having.
September 7th, 2010 at 4:12 pm
I can’t even redeem my points for a voucher. I’ve emailed, called, been transferred many, many times. I am convinced that Paypal goes out of their way to NOT let people use their reward points.
September 9th, 2010 at 4:08 am
You can redeem your points for a voucher while logging into the pay pal website. Its easy.
October 2nd, 2010 at 2:49 am
TERRIBLE card. I cancelled it about a year and a half ago due to the high APR. When I first got the card a few years ago, online payments were through Paypal. Then GE money took over administration of the PP Plus card and at the time I cancelled, online payments were through the gemoney website.
But gemoney quit handling Paypal Plus card several months ago and now online payments are once again through Paypal which would be fine EXCEPT that they’ve told me since I cancelled my card that I no longer can pay online at ALL and must either mail payment or pay $10 to pay by phone. I am confidant that this is simply another way for Paypal to get more money. Either by getting the phone payment fee or hoping that mailed payments will be late, enabling Paypal to charge a late fee and jack up the APR.
Paypal must be the largest, most widely used method of making online payments for thousands of internet companies but Paypal CAN’T find a way for me to make my Paypal Plus credit card account payments online just because my account is closed? To paraphrase Shakespeare, “Something is rotten in the state of Paypal”!
And in order to find out for certain that I could not pay online ANYWHERE, I had to call Paypal, GE money and Paypal again. Took me several calls, several reps giving me conflicting info, much frustration and much time. HORRIBLE!