When to use it
Market stalls, buskers, tip jars, charity collection tins, club subs, a bake sale, a freelancer’s invoice footer, splitting a bill at a group dinner. A PayPal code lets someone pay without you reading out a username or them typing it wrongly.
The example code on this page points at getqrstudio.app, because we do not encode third party accounts here, and because a payment code on a website is a magnet for mistakes. Yours will follow the pattern above.
How it behaves on phones
iPhone: the Camera app shows a banner naming paypal.me. Tapping it opens the PayPal app on the payment screen if installed, with your name and the amount filled in. Otherwise Safari opens the PayPal website and the person logs in.
Android: most Android scanners open the link and Android routes it to the PayPal app. Without the app, Chrome shows the PayPal website.
In both cases the payer sees your name, the amount, and a confirm button. Nothing is charged until they tap it.
Common mistake
Printing https://paypal.me/username/25 on a sign for an item that costs 25 in your currency and having a tourist pay 25 in theirs. Without a currency code PayPal uses the payer’s default. Add it: /25GBP, /25EUR, /25USD.
Gotchas
QR Studio does not process payments. The app and this site make codes. The code holds a link. PayPal does everything after the scan. If a payment goes wrong, PayPal’s support is the place to go; we cannot see the transaction.
Amount and currency. The amount is optional. A fixed amount suits a fixed price; leaving it off suits tips and donations. Always add the currency code when the amount is fixed.
Fees and account type. PayPal.Me payments between friends may be free; payments for goods carry a fee and buyer protection. Which applies depends on how the payer sends it and on your account type. Read PayPal’s current terms rather than assuming.
Availability. PayPal.Me is not offered in every country, and a business account may need it switched on. Check your own link works in a browser before you print.
Sticker fraud. A payment code in a public place is the most attractive target for a fake sticker. Print the code as part of the sign, not as a separate label, use a colour and logo that are hard to copy at a glance, and look at it when you open up.
Size. https://paypal.me/username/25GBP is 33 characters and fits version 3 at level Q, 29 modules wide.
Try it in QR Studio
QR Studio has a PayPal type that takes your PayPal.Me name, an optional amount and a currency, and builds the link. It makes the code only; the payment stays between you and PayPal.
Print advice
Level Q. Payment codes live on stalls, counters and tins that get handled and rained on, and a failed scan is a lost sale. 4 cm on a counter card, 8 cm or more on a stall sign read from a step back. Print your PayPal.Me name in text beside the code so people can check they are paying the right person, and so someone can type it if the code is damaged.
Try it yourself
Enter the distance from a customer to your stall sign and get the minimum print size at level Q.