Use Payouts to Venmo

You can use a mobile number to send payments to a Venmo recipient. If they don't have a Venmo account, it's easy to open one. Payouts to Venmo is available in the US only.

Payouts to Venmo features

• Access Venmo's active network of over 40 million users
• Customize brand messages in recipients' feeds
• Leverage the same payouts integration as PayPal
• Send to any US mobile number

Recipient experience

When you send the payout, the recipient's phone notifies them that the payment is in their Venmo account. If recipients don't have Venmo, they receive a text message to create an account and claim their payout. The notification includes the note you sent.

When the recipient selects the notification, their Venmo profile opens.

Your message shows up in the recipient's Venmo feed. The message inherits the recipient's privacy settings.

Enable payouts to Venmo

You can use the Payouts API or Payouts Web to send payments to Venmo recipients.

Payouts API

Here's how to send payouts to Venmo recipients through the Payouts API:

1. Complete the prerequisites to send payouts.
2. Make sure you've integrated the Payouts API.
3. Set recipient_wallet to Venmo.
4. Add the recipient's US phone number in receiver.
5. Add a note to the recipient in note.

{
  "sender_batch_header": {
    "sender_batch_id": "123B"
  },
  "items": [{
    "recipient_type": "PHONE",
    "amount": {
      "value": "10.50",
      "currency": "USD"
    },
    "note": "Thanks for your patronage!",
    "receiver": "999-999-9999",
    "sender_item_id": "1001",
    "recipient_wallet": "Venmo"
  }]
}

Payouts Web

Here's how to send payouts to Venmo recipients through Payouts Web:

1. Complete the prerequisites to send payouts.
2. Make sure you've enabled Payouts Web.
3. Add a Recipient Wallet column with Venmo to your payment file. Include a Message to recipient for Venmo recipients. If you leave a cell blank, Recipient Wallet defaults to PayPal.

See send payouts from Payouts Web for more on how to create and upload the payment file.

Large Batch Payouts

Here's how to send payouts to Venmo recipients through PayPal's DropZone secure FTP server:

1. Complete the prerequisites to send payouts.
2. Set up a DropZone account.
3. Create a .csv input file with PAYOUT_VENMO items. The following sample sends a payout to three PayPal recipients and two Venmo recipients:

PAYOUT_SUMMARY,17.9,USD,5,"You got paid",Payout for
PAYOUT,test-1@paypal.com,4.82,USD,REF_ID_1,NOTE_1
PAYOUT_VENMO,5551232368,4.93,USD,REF_ID_2,NOTE_2
PAYOUT_VENMO,5551232369,2.77,USD,REF_ID_3,NOTE_3
PAYOUT,test-4@paypal.com,3.51,USD,REF_ID_4,NOTE_4
PAYOUT,test-5paypal.com,1.87,USD,REF_ID_5,NOTE_5