Paying for items

When you're ready to pay, simply go to checkout. You'll be able to select your payment method and review your order details, including your delivery address, before you pay.

Ways to pay

In most categories, credit cards, debit cards, Apple Pay, Google Pay, and PayPal are accepted. You'll find the payment methods your seller accepts by going to the Postage and Payments section of the listing.

Cheques, money orders, and bank wire transfers aren't allowed for most eBay purchases. However, you can use these payment methods to buy vehicles, capital and business equipment, real estate, and items you pick up in person. See our Payment methods policy for more details.

You may see a choice of payment currency options at checkout. For example, if you live in the UK, and want to pay for an item located in the US, you may see the option to pay in either GBP or USD.

If you choose to pay in your local currency and it's different from the currency the item is listed in, you’ll see the exchange rate along with the order total in your local currency at checkout. You’ll also see the currency you used in the order details in your winning bid confirmation email.

Paying with American Express Credit Cards

Starting August 17th, you will not be able to use American Express on eBay. However, we do offer a wide variety of alternate payment methods such as credit and debit cards, PayPal, Apple Pay and Google Pay.

American Express FAQs

Troubleshooting payment errors

If you have problems paying for your items or if you receive an error message at checkout, try the following troubleshooting tips to resolve the issue:

• Check you've entered your payment details correctly
• Make sure your billing address matches the address on your payment method
• Try checking out on another device. If you're using the eBay desktop site, try checking out on the mobile site or app, or vice versa
• Try checking out on another browser. You can also try signing out, clearing your cache and cookies, and signing in again before trying to check out again
• Make sure your payment method hasn't expired. For example, if you're paying with a credit or debit card, check the expiry date on the card
• If you're using a new credit or debit card, you may need to activate the card before you can use it. We recommend contacting your bank or card issuer for instructions
• When you place an order for items from different sellers on eBay, you may see duplicate pending charges appear in your credit card or bank account. Don’t worry, this doesn’t mean you’ll be overcharged. These payment authorisations are not charges, and will typically be removed from your account within a week. In some cases, your bank may take up to 30 days to remove these authorisations

Timelines for paying

When you buy an item on eBay, whether you won an auction or used Buy It Now, you'll need to pay the seller within 4 days. The sooner the seller receives your payment, the sooner they'll send your item. When making a bid or a Best Offer, we may ask you to provide your payment method and shipping address in advance. If you win the auction, or the seller accepts your Best Offer, payment will be taken immediately to ensure a smooth transaction.

If your Best Offer is accepted or you win an auction, the payment method you added when making the bid or Best Offer will be charged, even if you removed that payment method before accepting the offer or winning an auction.

You'll find everything you've bought recently – including items you still need to pay for – in your Purchase History - opens in new window or tab.

When you buy an item, it's important to pay as quickly as possible. If you haven't paid within 4 calendar days, a seller can cancel your order. If this happens, you won't receive your item and the unpaid item will be recorded on your account. Buyers who have excessive unpaid items or canceled orders may have limits imposed or lose their buying privileges.