PayPal is accepted as a payment method by a large number of online bookmakers. Established in 1998, PayPal’s online payments system is popular worldwide. The company operates as a payment processor for online vendors, auction sites such as eBay, and over the past few years has become massively popular with betting sites and punters alike.

A number of UK betting sites accept PayPal for deposits and withdrawals, as do some betting sites in other countries. It is secure, quick for deposits, and depending on the bookmaker you’re betting with, can also be extremely quick for withdrawals as well –  we’ve seen a few of the best betting sites process PayPal withdrawals in under an hour!

A good online bookmaker should offer you a range of payment methods, and as e-wallets are increasingly popular these days, it comes as no surprise to see PayPal available at some of the best betting sites in the United Kingdom, throughout Europe, and elsewhere.

If you’re already familiar with PayPal for making online payments, you likely already know how quick and easy it is to use, so it will be no great shock to learn that a number of online bookmakers not only accept PayPal, but also process withdrawal requests in a matter of minutes, which is what we always want to see from betting sites when putting together our bookmaker reviews.

PayPal is widely accepted as a payment option and offers 25 currencies at time of writing.

Countries where PayPal is not accepted include: Belarus, DR Congo, Iran, Iraq, Ivory Coast, Myanmar, North Korea, Sierra Leone, Sudan, Syria, and Zimbabwe. If PayPal is not an option in your country, then don’t worry as we’ve got guides to all the payment methods available at online betting sites in your jurisdiction – providing online betting is legal in your country – including additional e-wallets such as Neteller, which is also popular with punters.

It’s not just the established, well-known bookmakers accepting PayPal. A number of up and coming bookies that have recently opened for business accept e-wallets, so it’s always worth checking our reviews of new betting sites to see which new bookies use PayPal.

Some betting sites either require a promotion code when you join them, or give you the option of entering a promo code as part of the sign up process. This code can also be referred to as a bonus code, referral code, voucher code or coupon code, and is usually used in connection with a free bet offer of some sorts.

As a rule, there is no requirement to enter a promo code, but if you fail to do so, you may miss out on free bets when joining as a new customer. The same applies if you’re looking to take advantage of any special offers such as enhanced odds on a sporting event – if you fail to use the required promo code, you will still be able to bet but risk missing out on the actual enhancement.

Some betting promotion codes only work with particular deposit methods, so if you’re looking for a free bet or offer linked to depositing with PayPal, our comparison tables can help you find online bookmakers in your country which accept this (and other) payment methods.

There are several variations when it comes to free bet offers linked to PayPal promo code. If you’ve not yet done so, our guide to the different bonus types will provide you with all the information you need on each!

PayPal is quick and easy to use as a payment method at online bookmakers. You can use the online payment service for deposits and withdrawals to and from your betting accounts, plus you can also use PayPal to quickly transfer money to other PayPal account holders as well, should you need to do so.

Using PayPal with an online bookmaker is very straightforward. Firstly, if you don’t already have a PayPal account, you need to do that via the PayPal website. This is free to do and takes just a couple of minutes. Once you’ve created your account and provided PayPal with a few personal details to verify who you are (such as your name, address etc.), you then have to link it to a payment method.

You can link your PayPal account to one or more methods of payment, such as a debit or credit card (major cards such as MasterCard and Visa are easily linked to your PayPal account), while you can quickly link your bank account to PayPal for quick transfers.

As noted further up the page, PayPal is currently available in 25 different currencies.

Once you’ve linked a payment method to your new PayPal account, you can then use it with your betting account in the same way as you would use a debit or credit card, both for depositing and for withdrawals.

Although PayPal is available in the majority of countries, there are some restrictions. If the service is unavailable in your country, you’ll be made aware of this when attempting to open an account.

Once you’ve created your account and linked it to a payment method, using PayPal at a betting site is a very simple process.

Making a deposit with PayPal at an online bookmaker is quick and easy. Just follow these steps:

You’re done!

The money you transferred should now be available in your betting account.

The withdrawal process is very similar if you're looking to return any winnings. Providing you have logged in to your bookmaker account, it is just a case of selecting PayPal as your preferred payment option for withdrawals. Once you have done that, enter the amount you would like to withdraw and click to confirm.

PayPal also offers an optional 'One Touch' feature which enables you to stay logged into your account, making it easier and faster to make subsequent deposits.

PayPal offers punters both convenience and security when it comes to online betting, and given its popularity, it is no surprise to see the most of the best betting sites now offering PayPal as a payment method.

With quick transfers and low fees (we’ve been unable to even find a single bookmaker charging for deposits via PayPal, although policies can change at any time, and PayPal fees can depend on the payment option you link to your account, as well as the type of transaction, so be sure to read the terms and conditions), it is the preferred payment option for thousands and thousands of gamblers.

If you live in the United Kingdom or in one of a number of European countries, chances are you’ll find multiple bookmakers accepting PayPal.

In fact, punters in the UK are spoilt for choice when it comes to UK betting sites offering PayPal. Betfair were the first betting site offering PayPal and when it became clear that the e-wallet was a popular payment method, other online bookies soon followed.

Our comparison tables provide you with an easy guide to looking up the online bookies accepting PayPal in your country. If no betting sites in your country accept PayPal, then our guides will help you to see the payment methods that are available at betting sites where you live.

The majority of online bookmakers currently have some form of free bets available – especially if you’re looking to join as a new customer. Betting sites usually have some terms and conditions linked to their bonus offers, and one of these may be the payment method you select when joining them.

You may find that some online bookmakers may not allow you to claim a free bet if you are making your first deposit using a particular payment method, although this applies to Neteller more than it does PayPal.

Lots of betting sites have free bets for punters wanting to use PayPal. As part of the registration process when signing up with a bookie, you may find that you need to enter a special promo in order to claim your free bet.

We’ll tell you if you do need to use a promotion code to claim any free bets using PayPal or any other payment method, and our comparison tables are easy to use and highlight the online bookmakers offering free bets in your country when you deposit using PayPal.

Of course, in addition to welcome offers, the best betting sites often bring out special offers for new and existing customers in the form of money back specials, enhanced odds, and of course free bets. Some of these special offers, which are often only available for a short period of time, may require you to use a specific payment method, which may include PayPal.

Our bookie specials page is updated daily and has all the information on the latest special betting offers from the best online betting sites!

PayPal is available in over 200 countries worldwide and global bookmakers accept the payment method as a form of depositing. A run down of some of the countries you can expect to find PayPal as an option when betting online is listed below:

PayPal was established in 1998 in America as Confinity. The online payments system is available in over 200 countries around the world, offering online money transfers and providing users with an electronic alternative to traditional paper methods of payment such as cheques and money orders.

The company operates as a payment processor for online vendors, auction sites such as eBay (at one point it was a wholly owned subsidiary of eBay) and has many commercial users.

In recent years, PayPal has become increasingly popular with customers of online bookmakers. Betfair was the first betting site in Europe to use PayPal, and its popularity led to other UK betting sites starting to offer the online payment system for deposits and withdrawals.

Now, PayPal is widely used by betting sites across Europe.