How to close a PayPal account

This guide covers how to delete a PayPal account as well as things to consider before doing so. Also take a look at Wise as an alternative way to send and receive money internationally.

Let’s take a look at an example of sending MYR 10,000 from Malaysia to a friend with a GBP bank account in the United Kingdom¹:

Provider	Transfer fee	Exchange rate(1 MYR to GBP)	Recipient gets
PayPal	21.86 MYR	Exchange rate with markup (0.175247)	1,748.64 GBP
Wise	54.65 MYR	The real exchange rate (0.183387)	1,823.85 GBP

(April 20, 2020)

While it may look like PayPal has a cheaper transfer fee, your recipient actually ends up with close to 75 GBP more in hand with Wise, with the same total cost of 10,000MYR.

The big difference here is the fee included within the exchange rate of PayPal. PayPal sets its own exchange rate with as high as a 4% markup². Wise, on the other hand, always uses the mid-market exchange rate (the “real” rate that you find on Google) and charges a transparent low fee.

Things to consider before you close a PayPal account

The first thing to keep in mind is that once you close your account, any pending payments will be canceled. So ensure that all your payments are finalized and complete before you take steps to close the account.

Second, once you have withdrawn all your funds from your account, make sure to remove your card and bank account information. For a card, click on Wallet at the top of the screen and then click on the card you’d like to remove. Once it is selected, click on Remove Card. A quick note, you might not be able to remove your card if you hold a negative balance in PayPal.³

For your bank account, it will be a similar process. Click on Wallet at the top of the screen and then select the bank account you want to remove, and then click Remove Bank.⁴

How to delete a PayPal account [personal and business]

1. First, log into your account from the PayPal website, as closing an account is not possible from the app.
2. Withdraw all remaining funds from your PayPal wallet to your bank account. The next section will go over how to remove your card and bank account information from your profile.
3. Click the “Settings” button
4. Click on “Account options”
5. Click on “Close Your Account” and follow the instructions⁵

🚀A cheap and transparent alternative: Wise

If you’re looking for an alternative to PayPal, Wise can be your option. It is up to 4x cheaper to send money from Malaysia with Wise, instead of the banks. And you have access to 70+ countries, all at the real exchange rate.

Using smart technology, you can now receive money from the UK, US, Australia, New Zealand and the Eurozone with the Wise multi-currency account, just as if you had a local bank account in those countries. This flexible multi-currency account lets you hold over 50 currencies in one account. All with the same low fee and transparent exchange rate. No mark-ups or hidden fees here.

Join 10 million customers who use Wise for their money transfer around the world🌏

Sources

1. PayPal User Agreement | Fees and Fees Table “Additional Fees - Currency conversion fee”
2. Wise | Compare exchange rates by provider (Checked at 14:21(GMT+5:30) on April 20, 2020)
3. PayPal | How do I remove a debit or credit card from my PayPal account?
4. PayPal | How do I remove a bank account from my PayPal account?
5. PayPal | How do I close my PayPal account?
6. PayPal | How do I close my PayPal account?