PayPal vs Bitcoin Comparison of online payment methods

[Proxiebuier]

paypal

• The defender, PayPal, an US-based company established in 1998 with billions in revenue.
• Security, For most people using PayPal is an acceptably secure way to pay online. Importantly the service shields your financial details from the seller and they offer both Security Keys and MTAN. However, PayPal is a common target of phishing emails which can be very sophisticated and easy to fall prey to. If your account is compromised, it will likely be sold on the black market to the highest bidder and worse could leak your bank account or credit card details.
• For Customers, PayPal has had years to refine its user interface and checkout procedure. Payments can be made instantly with any credit or debit card and requires no intermediary or exchanged. PayPal also has a chargeback policy, which favors Buyers over Sellers providing more protection for Users in event of problem with their purchase. PayPal has a large advantage here.
• For Merchants, PayPal provides a full range of Merchant API's and is supported by all major shopping cart software. However PayPal's chargeback policy can unfairly penalize merchants who sell digital goods or other virtual items. A plethora of horror stories are available from merchants who have had malicious chargebacks cripple their business or who have had their funds frozen by PayPal for no reason.
  Famously PayPal blocked donations to the whistleblowing site Wikileaks which made it difficult for them to fund their operations. Fortunately they were able to begin accepting bitcoin donations soon after.

• Anonymity, PayPal accounts are tied directly to your bank account or credit card and PayPal is a regulated financial institution in many countries. PayPal payments are not in any way anonymous and it is not recommended you make purchase using PayPal that you would not be comfortable with the authorities knowing about.

Bitcoin

• The challenger, Bitcoin, the world's first decentralized digital currency.
• Security At its core Bitcoin promises to be the most secure Payment method available, there is no database to leak or accounts to be hacked. However, Bitcoin transfers a lot of the responsibility for Security into the hands of the User which can be dangerous for those who don't know what they are doing. A Bitcoin wallet holds all the information needed to make transactions from a particular account and is now a target for thieves and viruses. However, with the advent of encrypted Wallets and a new breed of online-wallets such as My Wallet it is now much easier for the average user to keep their wallet safe and secure.
• For Customers, The usability of bitcoin is severely hampered by the need to exchange the User's domestic currency into Bitcoins before a purchase. As Bitcoins do not support chargebacks this typically makes it difficult for exchanges to accept deposits by instant payment methods such as credit card or PayPal. However Bitcoin has made improvements in other areas recently, the client is now much easier to use for the average user and with services like My Wallet you can manage your bitcoin's with an easy to use familiar interface.
• For Merchants, Services like bit-pay make accepting bitcoin's as easy for merchants as accepting PayPal, funds can be immediately exchange for domestic currency so exposure to exchange rate fluctuations is minimal. The advantage for merchants is that as bitcoin is digital cash it does not support chargebacks, funds cannot be frozen and payments cannot be blocked.Big win for Bitcoin.
• Anonymity, A history of every bitcoin transaction ever made is available right here on this site. However transactions do not need to be tied to a bank account or individual and they are essentially anonymous if some basic precautions are taken. My Wallet can hold up to 1000 unique bitcoin addresses and it is recommended you change addresses regularly to avoid leaving a trail.

https://blockchain.info/wallet/paypal-vs-bitcoin

[enthus]

PayPal security is not as good as you think...
In regard to funds it is hard for merchants to be safe with money due to ease of chargeback by the consumer, but yet, vice versa for BTC
It's hard to win

[saturn643]

I don't really think that these two can be compared, just like comparing Bitcoin and credit cards shouldn't really be done since they are two separate systems not for the same thing. Paypal and credit cards are payment processors. They simply move money around. Bitcoin on the other hand is a currency. It is supposed to function like digital cash, not as a way to process payments. That is for payment processors like Bitpay and Coinbase.

[SFR90]

I do not think paypal for merchants is safe, since so many hacked accounts and chargebacks.

[ivan19]

it's simple.

If you need money for the real world then paypal. If you aren't in the USA and want to make money then use BTC to avoid huge fees.

[angaper]

I have read out there that paypal is analyzing seriously to add bitcoin as an alternative currency among its increasing number of accepted ones. It would enhance the reliability of bitcoin among millions of paypal users and would increase greatly the number of businesses accepting bitcoin.

[ranochigo]

PayPal security is not as good as you think...
In regard to funds it is hard for merchants to be safe with money due to ease of chargeback by the consumer, but yet, vice versa for BTC
It's hard to win

Most PayPal hacks are from phishing and the hacked payments can fairly easily be reversed. With Bitcoin, this is impossible. However, PayPal being centralised expose them to more threats. Compared to Bitcoin which is irreversible, PayPal does provide a security for the customers if the account gets hacked.

I have read out there that paypal is analyzing seriously to add bitcoin as an alternative currency among its increasing number of accepted ones. It would enhance the reliability of bitcoin among millions of paypal users and would increase greatly the number of businesses accepting bitcoin.

If PayPal were to ever integrate Bitcoin payments, the fee would be very high and would possibly present no significant benefits for merchants other than its acceptance rates.

[chennan]

it's simple.

If you need money for the real world then paypal. If you aren't in the USA and want to make money then use BTC to avoid huge fees.

That's the big idea with Bitcoin vs. PayPal transactions is the fees that PayPal collects. If I was the head guy in charge of what PayPal is doing, I would immediately start drastically cutting down the fees, because there are other alternatives now that people can start avoiding these fees.

[tom555]

one more thing that bitcoin better than paypal for online payment methods,its small fee
bitcoin have a small fee if used at online transaction,but paypal is depending of amount transacted.

[Wei H]

PayPal security is not as good as you think...
In regard to funds it is hard for merchants to be safe with money due to ease of chargeback by the consumer, but yet, vice versa for BTC
It's hard to win

But Bitcoin security is the worst, You shouldn't use Bitcoin to transfer big money if If you are not good at computer technologies, hacker is everywhere in Bitcoin community, even the programer and coder could be hacked.

Besides, the Bitcoin transaction is irrevocable.

[n2004al]

I think that in this thread and on its aim is forgotten something very important. To tell that this comparison help to understand the main characteristics of both subjects but that this comparison made here (as it is) cannot give an clear and full idea about the utility of everyone of those. Needed other data to see who is the best in the times we live.

First have no meaning to be compared a currency with a service. Bitcoin is a currency and Pa Pal is one service. Cannot be compared an apple with a banana. Anyhow, this maybe can be made to tell that this service can be substituted because is outdated and it is not necessary to be used (if so). So can be used directly the currency and not the service invented to use it (offering something that is needed from the users of it).

But the important things is to know what can be realized using both the subjects (even being different from each other). Because one of those must be much more effective and convenient to be used compared to the other but if have no spread serve practically for nothing. Cannot be bought with him if it is not accepted or known by the merchants. So, even being a fan of bitcoin, I think that bitcoin is yet years away to compete with PayPal (if is the winner from the "match" "played" at the main post).

[Amph]

they say that paypal is for the buyers and bitcoin for the seller, so you choose based on what you have to do, buying or selling

Someone try to compare currency with payment service, just like someone who compared bitcoin with western union

well bitcoin is not only a currency, it's only a payment system, but i can agree that it need to be compared more to visa and other big circuits

[Kprawn]

The fact that Bitcoin has very little customer / consumer protection when they do not work through legitimate payment processors, will put the risk squarely on top of the clients

shoulders. I usually do not like to work through 3rd parties, but when it's a bigger purchase and a lot of money is involved... I would seek out the payment processors with customer

protection. The small fee's being paid for peace of mind, is more than worth it. That said... legit operations can also be fooled, with fake verification and falsified documents.   

[balanced190]

BTC is accepted in all countries not paypal but Paypal is accepted everywhere.

[Blue_Tiger73]

Wow. That's really nice that you went to all the effort of making this whole list. I agree with everything you said. Great work.

[Blue_Tiger73]

I don't really think that these two can be compared, just like comparing Bitcoin and credit cards shouldn't really be done since they are two separate systems not for the same thing. Paypal and credit cards are payment processors. They simply move money around. Bitcoin on the other hand is a currency. It is supposed to function like digital cash, not as a way to process payments. That is for payment processors like Bitpay and Coinbase.

I disagree with this. I definitely think that the 2 can be compared. They are both used for online transactions but Paypal is definitely more widespread compared to Bitcoin. But the 2 are definitely in the same league.

[batesresearch]

BTC is accepted in all countries not paypal but Paypal is accepted everywhere.

That's a good point and I like the link (https://blockchain.info/wallet/paypal-vs-bitcoin) I wasn't aware of this comparison its a good one.

[Patatas]

Definitely choosing Bitcoin over Paypal anyday! There are quite a number of reasons for this :
1.Transaction fees : Being from a native country where dollars is not the mode of currency, paypal rips the hell out of my money in transaction fees if I have to in cash my money to bank transfers.

2. Verification : Like I have to submit too many details fro my country including PAN(Permanent Account Number).

3.Time : Takes forever to have the cash transferred to my actual bank account .Maybe just a couple of hours but still bitcoin exchanges do it in seconds.
 Considering this,its obvious why to choose bitcoin.

[caliboy37]

Don't forget that any transaction with BTC there is no refund so scammer will profit it.

[vodaljepa]

Don't forget that any transaction with BTC there is no refund so scammer will profit it.

One thing I hate about bitcoin