PayPal vs Amex
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
PayPal
Manage your finances with a secure app for online and in-store shopping, sending money globally, and earning cash back. It also offers savings accounts, cryptocurrency trading, and package tracking.
- Send and receive money globally
- Earn cash back offers
- Request a debit card
- Buy, sell, and hold cryptocurrency
- High-yield savings accounts
- Track packages
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PayPal is a smart way to securely shop in-store and online, earn rewards points on brands you love, send money and much more. SHOP WITH PURCHASE PROTECTION Get built-in protection before and after you buy, with support when something doesn't go as planned. *PayPal Purchase Protection is available on eligible transactions. See terms and limitations: https://www.paypal.com/us/legalhub/paypal/buyer-protection EARN POINTS ON EVERYDAY PURCHASES WITH THE PAYPAL DEBIT CARD Choose a monthly category and earn 5% back in rewards points on up to $1000 spend/month. Terms apply: http://paypal.com/rewardspal No monthly fees. The PayPal Debit Mastercard® is issued by The Bancorp Bank N.A. ("The Bancorp"), pursuant to a license by Mastercard International Incorporated and may be used everywhere Mastercard is accepted. Mastercard and the circles design are registered trademarks of Mastercard International Incorporated. The Bancorp is issuer of the Card only and not responsible for the associated accounts or other products, services, or offers from PayPal. PayPal is a financial technology company, not a bank. The Card is linked to your PayPal Balance account. See PayPal Balance Terms and Conditions: https://www.paypal.com/us/legalhub/pp-balance-tnc#holding SEND AND REQUEST MONEY, SECURELY & IN SECONDS Send money fast within the US and internationally to 110+ countries. Encrypted payments help keep financial details private and secure. BUY NOW PAY LATER In store single-use card is valid for one purchase and must be used within 24 hours of loan approval. *Pay in 4 is available upon approval for purchases of $10 - $2000 and is currently not available to residents of MO. 18 years old or older to apply. The lender for Pay in 4 is PayPal, Inc. (NMLS #910457). Loans to CA residents are made or arranged pursuant to a CA Financing Law License. RI Small Loan Lender Licensee. NM residents: Go to paypal.com/us/webapps/mpp/campaigns/newmexicodisclosure. Learn more at paypal.com/payin4. TRACK YOUR PACKAGES View orders and delivery status until they arrive safely at your door. Not all sellers are participants. MANAGE YOUR SUBSCRIPTION ALL IN ONE APP The easy way to link and track all your subscriptions. ALL YOUR MONEY AND TRANSACTIONS IN ONE PLACE The new Me Tab lets you navigate your money, accounts, and settings right where you’d expect them. PayPal 2211 N 1st St San Jose, CA 95131
Amex
Manage your American Express account securely from anywhere. Track spending, view rewards, pay your bill, and discover personalized offers. Enjoy quick, safe access with biometric login and instant alerts for added peace of mind.
- Secure account management
- Track spending and rewards
- Pay bills and manage balance
- Card activation and Apple Pay setup
- Freeze/unfreeze credit card
- Real-time alerts and notifications
- Discover personalized offers
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The official American Express App for iPhone allows you to access your Account from anywhere. Track spending & rewards, find offers, review your balance, pay your bill and enjoy features only available in the Amex App. Touch ID and Face ID login (on supported devices), gives you quick, safe and secure access. Make the most of your Membership with the speed, security and convenience of the mobile Amex® App. SECURE ACCOUNT MANAGEMENT • Enhanced activation experience for you to confirm new Cards and setup your Account. • Activate your Credit Card for Apple Pay in the Amex App, then simply unlock, tap and pay. • Freeze and unfreeze your Credit Card instantly at any time. STAY ON TOP OF YOUR SPENDING • Check your American Express Account balance, pending transactions and sort charges by amount and date. • Go paperless with access to past PDF statements. • Turn on AutoPay to pay your Amex bill automatically from your bank account each month. • Check your spending power. Enter an amount for an expected purchase and you’ll see if it’ll be approved. Approval based on account status at the time of request • Filter transactions to see spending and subtotals for each card on your account. For Basic Card Members Only. PROTECTION WITH REAL-TIME ALERTS • Turn on purchase alerts to be notified when your Credit Card is charged. • Receive instant fraud alerts if suspicious activity is detected. • Never miss a payment with payment due reminders. • Manage all your notifications in the Amex Account tab. EXPLORE REWARDS AND BENEFITS • View your Rewards balance and find ways to use Membership Rewards® points* - from gift cards to credits on your statement. • Use points to cover your eligible charges via a credit on your Account. * • See personalized recommendations for other ways to use points. • Refer a friend and earn rewards when friends and family get an American Express Card through your referral. For eligible Card Members only. AMEX OFFERS * • Discover offers from places you shop, dine, travel and more. • Explore a map of nearby offers. • Get Amex Offers notifications direct to your device. MEMBERSHIP SCREEN* •Benefits apply only to applicable products. AWARD-WINNING SERVICE • We’re here to chat 24/7. Start a chat with us in seconds and revisit conversations any time in the app. We’d love to hear from you! Stay in touch with us using our social media pages: Twitter: @AmericanExpress Facebook: facebook.com/AmericanExpressUS/ Instagram: @americanexpress Send & Split® enhances the way you send money and split purchases with other Venmo and PayPal users, all in the American Express app.* Now you can pay friends with more flexibility and without the standard Venmo or PayPal credit card fee§. You can also seamlessly split your Amex purchases with others and get paid back directly to your Card as a statement credit. Best Part? You’ll be the one to earn the rewards for the purchase you split. Enrollment Requirement. Terms Apply. § PayPal may charge a fee when sending to non-US recipients. The American Express® App and app features are available only for eligible Card accounts in the United States. American Express® prepaid Cards and Cards issued by non-America Express issuers are not eligible. To log in, Card Members must have an American Express user ID and password or create one in the app. Apple, the Apple logo, iPad, and iPhone are trademarks of Apple Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries. iOS is a trademark or registered trademark of Cisco in the U.S. and other countries and is used under license. App Store is a service mark of Apple Inc. *To see the full Terms and Conditions, copy and paste the following link into your browser and scroll to the bottom of the page: https://amex.co/AmexApp-Terms For J.D. Power 2024 & 2025 award information, visit jdpower.com/awards.
Screenshots
Verdict
PayPal and Amex both sit at 4.8 stars, but that hides the real split: 63% of Amex's written reviews are positive against 21% of PayPal's. Amex also leads on monetization model (free vs free with in-app purchases). PayPal's advantage is update cadence (weekly vs every 2 weeks) and chart position (#6 vs #27). On price, rating, ratings volume and ads there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.8 for PayPal against 4.9 for Amex. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 6.3M and 4.4M respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 21% of PayPal's written reviews are positive against 63% of Amex's.
PayPal ships an update weekly, Amex every 2 weeks. Both last shipped on September 25, 2026.
| Parameter | PayPal | Amex |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.8 (6.3M ratings) | 4.9 (4.4M ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 21.4% of reviews | 62.9% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 6.3M — better | 4.4M |
| Update frequency | Weekly — better | Every 2 weeks |
| Ads | Yes | Yes |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free — better |
| Best chart rank | #6 — better | #27 |
| Devices | iPhone | iPhone, iPad — better |
| Requires iOS | 17.4 — better | 18.2 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 767 MB | 512 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | PayPal, Inc. | American Express |
Customer experience
PayPal
Amex
User reviews
PayPal
From 6.3M App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Extremely effective and reliable crypto recovery service
- 🔒 Secure payment processing
- 💰 Convenient way to send and receive money
- 👍 Easy to use app with simple interface
Room to improve
- 🐛 Inconsistent customer support responses
- 🕰️ Slow money transfer times
- 💳 Holds on funds for new accounts
- 🤖 Overly automated with lack of human interaction
Amex
From 4.4M App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 💳 Reliable credit card with good benefits
- 🤝 Excellent customer service and support
- 🚀 Seamless app experience
- 📱 Convenient mobile app features
- 💳 Prestigious card status and recognition
Room to improve
- 🤖 Inconsistent or unhelpful customer service
- 💳 Unexpected account changes or credit limit reductions
- 🤔 Confusing or misleading policies/offers
- 🕰️ Slow or delayed payment processing
- 🔒 Security issues with closed accounts
Bugs and requests
PayPal
Reported bugs
3 issues- Account limitations and freezes with unclear reasons
- Issues linking bank accounts and cards
- Problems with refunds and chargebacks
Requested features
4 requests- Faster money transfers
- More transparent policies and fees
- Improved dispute resolution process
- Better customer service accessibility
Amex
Reported bugs
3 issues- Scrolling glitches in the mobile app
- Inconsistent display of account balances
- Inability to view high-yield savings accounts
Requested features
5 requests- Improved rewards tracking and redemption
- Integrated dispute submission and status tracking
- Automatic offer activation based on transactions
- Better account balance and payment information
- Seamless integration between mobile app and website
In-app purchases
PayPal
No in-app purchases
Amex
No in-app purchases








