Industry guru Dave Taylor answers free tech support questions about a wide variety of business and technical topics, including blogging, Google AdSense, MySpace, Sony PSP, Apple iPod, Mp3 players, management, Linux, SEO, Mac OS X, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Microsoft Windows.

Still befuddled? Get immediate live tech support with SupportSpace!

How do I close my Paypal account?

I hate Paypal and have too many friends who have had their money frozen or accounts frozen, never then able to get their balance out. I want to just close mine up completely, but, predictably, they make it hard to figure out how to do so. Dave, how the heck do you close your Paypal account?

Dave's Answer:

I'm surprised to read of your intense dislike for Paypal, actually. I have always found it a superior way to transact online business and have completed hundreds of transactions without a glitch. Heck, I remember visiting their predecessor X.com years and years ago, being amazed at how much they all worked, and the delighted when X.com and Paypal.com merged and then were bought by behemoth eBay (Nasdaq:EBAY). But that's another story...

I didn't find it difficult at all to figure out how to close a Paypal account. In fact, if you're logged into your account, click on "Help" and type in "close account" you'll find concise instructions on exactly how to proceed.

To close your account, start by clicking on the My Account tab, then the Profile subtab:

On the left side you'll see a list under the header "Account Information", the very last of which is Close Account. Click on that and it'll ask you to verify your account in some manner or other, probably by confirming the credit card number you used when you first signed up for the account.

Enter that correctly, confirm that's exactly what you want to do, and you've just canceled your account. The remaining balance will be mailed to you as a physical check to the address you have specified in the account.

Good luck to you!

Help others find this article at Del.icio.us, Digg, Netscape, Reddit, and Simpy.

Categorized: Auctions and Online Shopping (Article 7240)
Tagged: ebay, paypal
Previous: What's a MySpace proxy server and how does it work?
Next: How do I erase and reburn a CDRW on my Mac OS X system?

Subscribe!

Never miss another useful Q&A article again! Subscribe to AskDaveTaylor with Google Reader.

Comments

PayPal is great when it works. But when something happens out of the ordinary it turns into a huge nightmare. In reality they are a bunch of thugs. But just type PayPal sucks into Google and you will read about the thousands of people completely screwed by PayPal.

Basically PayPal has an attitude: Fx@# the customer. We are not regulated by any government, anywhere, so we can do what we want without repercussions. Remind me of doing business in Russia.

Posted by: Bob at March 9, 2007 5:06 PM

Paypal is a great service...I have been using it for years. Now could you be more specific on how PayPal can screw you up? (Not Vendor but PayPal, as you claim)

Posted by: Sam at March 12, 2007 8:24 AM

Sam, the issue that I'm aware of is if someone accuses you of having fraudulent transactions, the method of stating your case and trying to clear things up with Paypal is clumsy and since they often freeze accounts upon complaint, it's very much like "guilty until proven innocent" with a judge that's not paying attention. :-\

Posted by: Dave Taylor at March 12, 2007 12:37 PM

Couldnt close Paypal account, for updating country on address... I did it 5 times, still no use, It cycles, Close Account > Reason > Close Account :(

Posted by: shanX at July 7, 2007 12:56 AM

I had a fraudulent charge on my account and after searching all over for a phone # for them all I got was a recording that said leave a message we'll call you back..and they never did.when I tried to e-mail them they wanted me to give my credit card info,mothers maiden name and my ss number,just to dispute a charge?no way,after someone already hacked my account they want me to trust them with my ss number? I closed that account fast,thanks for your help

Posted by: kirby at November 25, 2007 5:47 PM

I hope nobody buys Dave a chai with a fraudulent PayPal account!

Just FIY.

Posted by: Looking Out at February 6, 2008 5:23 PM

Oooppps! I meant FYI. Oh well, I am sure these 2 comments will be well intentionally purged!

Posted by: Looking Out at February 6, 2008 6:20 PM

paypal have frozen my account because they have noticed some irregular activity.

So in light of this i feel the sensible thing to do is to remove all my bank details from paypal and close the account.

but because my account is frozen i cant close it, their phone service sucks and all my bank details are stuck on thei database waiting for ther next hacker to come along.

paypal sucks!

Posted by: dave at March 10, 2008 7:42 AM

I recently had a meeting at Paypal's offices in Richmond...I work for a multi job poster and had to visit gumtree.com - thought Id get my account unfrozen whilst there. (Both owned by ebay). I found them to be very friendly people and a few hours after speaking with them all was sorted.

I like payal. I hate google checkout ;D

Posted by: Darren at April 14, 2008 8:06 AM

I have a lot to say, but ...

I have a lot to say, and questions of my own for that matter, but most of all I'd like to say thank you for all your efforts on this Web site by buying you a chai!

I do have a comment, now that you mention it!