Feature Updates 02/10/2026

PayPal & Venmo Giving Is Here

More Ways for Donors to Give — Seamlessly Integrated

Introduction

PayPal and Venmo are now available as giving options in OnlineGiving.org.

This feature brings two of the most widely recognized and trusted payment platforms directly into your existing giving experience. For donors who already use PayPal or Venmo in everyday life, this adds a familiar, fast way to give — while keeping all of your current payment methods exactly as they are.

PayPal and Venmo appear alongside cards, ACH, Google Pay, and Apple Pay, giving donors more choice without adding complexity for your church.

Just like all other OnlineGiving.org payment methods, PayPal & Venmo donations:

Capture complete donation details (donor, fund, amount, date, status)
Appear in OnlineGiving.org reporting
Sync to your Church Management System (ChMS) or CRM when connected

Donors can give using PayPal & Venmo from:

Your OnlineGiving.org giving website
Custom giving pages and forms
Guest giving flows
Any device (desktop, tablet, or mobile)

Note: PayPal provides PayPal & Venmo. Your processing agreement for these transactions is with PayPal.

Watch It in Action

See exactly what donors experience when giving with PayPal or Venmo.

PayPal Donation Demo
https://vimeo.com/1159300105/06a4751c93?share=copy&fl=sv&fe=ci
Venmo Donation Demo
https://vimeo.com/1159300133/9f99ed5724?share=copy&fl=sv&fe=ci

Enabled When You Choose

PayPal and Venmo are available but must be enabled by a church administrator.

They will not appear on your giving pages or Church Store until your church approves and completes the PayPal / Venmo onboarding in the control panel.

This ensures:

You explicitly approve the PayPal connection
The correct PayPal Business account is connected and verified
New payment methods appear only when you’re ready

Once onboarding is complete, PayPal and Venmo go live automatically. It's a simple 5 min or less process.

Fees

PayPal & Venmo donations are processed at:

2.99% + $0.49 per donation

No volume tiers. No contracts. No monthly fees.

Getting Started

Most churches complete setup in about 5 minutes.

What You’ll Need

A PayPal Business Account (you can create one during onboarding)
Your organization’s business information (EIN, address, etc.)
Admin access to your OnlineGiving.org control panel (Donor Admin)

Step 1: Open PayPal / Venmo Settings

Or go directly to:
yourdomain.onlinegiving.org/admin/paypal/onboard

Step 2: Connect Your PayPal Business Account

Click Connect PayPal Account to begin onboarding.

You’ll be redirected to PayPal to:

Log in to your PayPal Business account (or create one)
Review and approve the permissions requested
Complete any verification steps PayPal requires

PayPal may request:

Organization legal name and contact information
Bank account details for transfers
Authorized representative identity details

Step 3: Return and Go Live

After onboarding, PayPal redirects you back to OnlineGiving.org. When your status shows Connected, PayPal and Venmo are enabled automatically.

The buttons will immediately appear on your giving pages and Church Store.

Managing PayPal & Venmo

From the PayPal dashboard (/admin/paypal/onboard), you can:

View your connected PayPal account ID, email, and status
See your PayPal/Venmo fee rate and connection date
Refresh your connection status at any time
Jump directly to PayPal & Venmo transactions in reports
Open your PayPal account using the dashboard link

Transactions in the Control Panel

Viewing PayPal & Venmo Transactions

PayPal and Venmo transactions appear in your standard transaction list alongside all other payment types.

To view only PayPal/Venmo transactions:

Open the Filters dropdown on the Transactions page
Select PayPal / Venmo Transactions

You can also jump directly from the PayPal dashboard by clicking View PayPal Transactions.

Transaction Details

Opening a PayPal or Venmo transaction shows a PayPal-branded detail card with:

Order ID — PayPal order reference
Capture ID — PayPal payment capture reference
PayPal Account — Donor’s PayPal email
Payer Name — Name on the donor’s PayPal account

All standard transaction details (amount, fund, date, donor info, status) are also shown, just like any other transaction.

Financial Batches

PayPal and Venmo transactions are automatically grouped into their own batch type: PayPal / Venmo.

Batches are created by date
Each day’s PayPal/Venmo transactions are grouped together
PayPal/Venmo batches are separate from card and ACH batches

This makes reconciliation with PayPal deposits simple and predictable.

Deposits & Accounting

Net Deposits

PayPal deducts processing fees before funds are added to your PayPal balance. Transfers to your bank are initiated directly from PayPal.

Gross Donation Records

OnlineGiving.org and your ChMS record PayPal & Venmo donations at the full (gross) amount.

Accounting Reminder

Because deposits are net but records are gross, processing fees should be recorded during reconciliation (for example, as a fee expense) so PayPal balances, transfers, and donation records align.

Refunds

Refunding a PayPal or Venmo donation works the same way as refunding a card transaction:

Open the transaction in your control panel
Click Refund
The refund is processed directly through PayPal and returned to the donor

Refunds appear with a Refunded status and are grouped into refund batches.

Note: Refunds require available funding in your PayPal account or a linked funding source, based on PayPal’s requirements.

Optional Add-On: Express Wallet Buttons for Guest Giving

For churches that want to reduce friction even further, an optional setting places Google Pay, Apple Pay, PayPal, and Venmo buttons directly on the first step of the guest donation flow.

How It Works

Normally, first-time donors enter an email address or phone number to identify themselves if they are not automatically reconized with biometrics or single sign-on. With Express Wallet Buttons enabled, donors see an “or” divider followed by wallet buttons for Google Pay, Apple Pay, PayPal, and Venmo.

When a donor selects a wallet:

Name, email, phone number, and address are pulled automatically from the wallet
No manual data entry is required
The donation can be completed in a single step

Who It’s For

This option is ideal for:

Event giving
Campaign and outreach pages
Guest-heavy giving environments
Churches focused on reducing steps for first-time donors

How to Enable

Express Wallet Buttons are enabled by OnlineGiving.org Support.

Contact support@onlinegiving.org and request Express Wallet Buttons.

Good to Know

Currently PayPal and Venmo are for one-time (non-recurring) transactions
Works for both Giving and Church Store
Refunds are processed directly through PayPal
Funds deposit directly to your connected PayPal account
PayPal/Venmo transactions have their own batch type
All existing payment methods remain fully available and unchanged