How to use bank account instead of venmo balance

As per the current Venmo terms, you can use your Venmo balance only if you have completed identity verification on Venmo. So if you have not completed this process, Venmo will keep using money from a linked bank account or card, even if you have a balance in your Venmo account. Apart from this, it could be a case where there is an inadequate balance in Venmo to cover the transaction.

Let’s see in detail what could be the scenario in your particular case and the steps involved to make Venmo pay from balance instead of a linked card or bank account.

How to pay with Venmo Balance instead of Card or Bank Account

To make payment from your Venmo balance, instead of a card or bank account, you should have completed the steps

• Check if you have access to Venmo balance first
• Complete identity verification on Venmo (if you do not have access)
• Make sure the payment amount is covered by Venmo balance, before making a payment

Checking Access to Venmo balance

To confirm if you have access to Venmo balance, follow the steps below:

• Go to the “Me” tab by tapping your picture or initials 
• Next tap the Settings gear in the top right.
• Next select “Payment Methods.”
• If you see a “Venmo Balance” at the top of the screen, that means you have access to the feature.

If you don’t see this, you may have not completed identity verification on Venmo. So let’s see the steps to verify your identity on Venmo

Completing identity verification on Venmo

Venmo has now made it mandatory to complete identity verification to be able to use Venmo balance to make payments. Without identity verification, you don’t have the access to your Venmo balance i.e. even if you have money in your Venmo balance, you will not be able to use it.

In such cases, Venmo will use the money directly from a linked bank account or card to make the payment.

Note: For many of you, this may come across as a recent development as earlier Venmo did allow you to use your balance, even when you had not completed the identity verification.

How to Complete Identity Verification on Venmo

• Go to the “Me” tab by  tapping your picture or initials 
• Tap on the Settings (gear icon) in the top right
• Next tap “Identity Verification”
• Follow the on-screen prompts that would require you to enter your ID Details etc.

Now, the details you enter are automatically matched by Venmo from the database and if there is a match, the verification is completed automatically in a few minutes. But if there is any mismatch that

If you are confused as to why Venmo is asking you to share SSN and complete ID verification, it is a federal law requirement.

Now, if you have friends who are able to use Venmo balance without completing the identity verification, that is a rare case. It may be that they have applied for a Venmo debit card earlier, which also involves identity verification as a pre-requisite. If they don’t have a Venmo debit card also, then it may be a case where Venmo will apply the block in the future.

Make sure the payment amount is covered by your Venmo balance

Once you have completed the identity verification, you can go ahead and make payments using your Venmo balance. But make sure the transaction amount is entirely covered by your Venmo balance. You cannot use the Venmo balance partially for a transaction and the entire amount should be within your Venmo balance for the payment to go through.

Why isn’t Venmo using my Balance? Why cant I pay with Venmo balance

Venmo does not use your Venmo balance to make payments in two situations-

• Firstly, where you have not completed identity verification on Venmo
• Secondly, in cases where the balance in your Venmo account does not cover the entire transaction amount

If you have access to a Venmo balance and have enough balance to cover the entire cost of the payment, Venmo will use your balance to pay for your payment. Otherwise, Venmo will charge the entire cost of the payment to your preferred payment method.

Why isn’t Venmo using my balance first?

The way Venmo is configured is that it will charge the full payment amount from one payment method i.e. your Venmo balance if it is sufficient or directly from the linked bank account or cad. Venmo does not allow to use of partial amounts from two payment methods i.e. it will not make partial payment from the Venmo balance first and the additional amount from the linked payment method.

If the transaction exceeds your Venmo balance, it will make the complete payment using funds from your linked bank account or card. On the other hand, if the Venmo balance is sufficient to cover the transaction, it will by default, use the Venmo funds to make the payment (provided you have completed identity verification on Venmo).

E.g. if you have 10 dollars in your Venmo balance, and you attempt a transaction of 12 dollars, it will automatically use your linked bank account or card for the complete transaction. It does NOT support using the Venmo balance first for 10 dollars and using the linked account for only the excess amount.

Why can't I use my bank account to pay with Venmo?

Can you not use Venmo balance to pay?

Can I use bank account as Venmo pay method?