Pros and cons of PayNearMe casinos
Pro and Con
- Easy and intuitive
- Pay in cash
- Instant processing speeds
- Not always convenient
- Can’t do withdrawals
Making a payment with PayNearMe – you’ll need time to prepare
If you plan on making payments to PayNearMe online casinos then we have to give you a word of advice – don’t leave it until the last minute! That’s because you’re going to have to do a little leg work before you’re ready to start your casino playing session. We’ve explained everything below in simple steps for you:
- Log in to your online casino as usual
- Go to your PayNearMe online casinos ‘Cashier’ or ‘Payment’ area
- Click on the ‘PayNearMe’ option
- Enter the amount you want to deposit, check and then click ‘Confirm’
- A barcode will appear on-screen which you can print, or send to your smartphone
When you’ve made your choice, an empty box will appear on your screen with space for a nine-digit code, so next we’ll walk you through how to make your payment and where to get that code.
This part is where the leg work comes in. You’ll need to go to your local 7-Eleven, Family Dollar or CVS Pharmacy convenience store. If you don’t know where to find one, there’s an interactive map on the PayNearMe website to help you find the most convenient one.
At the store, you’ll need to collect a blank PayNearMe card and present it to the cashier with your printed barcode, or the version on your phone for scanning. Once you hand over the cash to cover the deposit you selected and get your receipt, you can head home again.
The last thing you’ll need to do before you can start playing at your PayNearMe casino is to enter the nine-digit code, which you’ll find on the reverse side of your PayNearMe card. Payments are usually instant, but can take up to 15 minutes to process on the odd occasion.
Withdrawal and deposits with PayNearMe: average time scales – withdrawals are not always an option at PayNearMe online casinos
Making deposits at PayNearMe casinos
As you’ll have seen from the previous section, making deposits at PayNearMe casinos is not quite so quick or simple as it might be with some other payment methods. However, if you need a safe payment option that is not reliant on you having a bank account, then it might be right up your street.
Once the physical side of the payment has been completed, then the deposit will appear in your PayNearMe online casino account within minutes. Most online casinos request a minimum deposit amount of just $10, but it’s also worth knowing that the maximum PayNearMe deposit you can make is $500 in a 24-hour period. Not ideal for high rollers perhaps, but more than adequate for the average online casino player.
Withdrawals from PayNearMe casinos
At this point in time, most PayNearMe online casinos do not offer a PayNearMe withdrawal option. However, you might well find that things will change over the next few months, and right at the end of 2021, PayNearMe announced the launch of its brand-new ‘MoneyLine’ service.
By implementing MoneyLine, PayNearMe casinos have the ability to process withdrawals for customers via the PayNearMe system. At the time of writing, very few appear to have started using it, so we can’t give you details as yet. But be sure to keep checking back regularly at TheGruelingTruth.com and we’ll keep you updated.
PayNearMe verification requirements – no verification needed to use PayNearMe
When you use PayNearMe, all you are actually doing is handing over cash in exchange for a digital currency, so there are no applications or verification processes required before you can use it.
What it will not do is exempt you from the need to complete a verification process at PayNearMe online casinos. US gambling laws are very explicit and every customer who signs up with a licensed online casino or betting site must provide documentary evidence of their ID and proof of address.
These regulations are in place to prevent underage gambling, money laundering and any other unsavory practices. For the purposes of protecting its license, as well as protecting you, PayNearMe online casinos are obliged to verify your status using your Social Security Number at least two of the following documents:
- State ID card
- Military ID card
- US passport
- Current driver’s license for your state of residence
You may also be required to upload a recent utility bill (issued within the last 2-3 months) in addition to those. Even if you get an option to upload your verification documents later, our advice is always to do it as soon as possible. That way you will not experience issues or delays further down the line.
The best online casinos supporting PayNearMe
The history of PayNearMe – where PayNearMe casinos started out
Developed by a forward-thinking guy called Danny Shader, PayNearMe got off to a rather shaky start branded as ‘Kwedit’. Everyone loved the concept of Kwedit – it gave them the chance to purchase goods or services online ‘on a promise’ and pay for them later.
You perhaps won’t be surprised to find out that only one-third of Kwedit’s huge consumer database actually kept to the agreement and paid the amounts they had agreed to. We’ll say no more about that, but in 2010, Kwedit was rebranded as PayNearMe, complete with a modified business model.
We think it’s rather unflattering, but the official terminology for US citizens who do not have a bank account or credit card is “unbanked”. PayNearMe (and it’s unfortunate predecessor) were developed to give anyone in that situation a viable alternative way to pay their bills and to enable them to make payments online.
PayNearMe has over 50 million users and those numbers are growing at a rate of 30% per month. It is also doing its best to improve the functionality of this payment method. One recent improvement is to include the option to send payment requests from PayNearMe online casinos directly to your phone via SMS. But the really big one was the introduction of the ‘MoneyLine’ service at the end of 2021.
MoneyLine enables PayNearMe casinos and betting sites to process withdrawals via PayNearMe. In fairness, few PayNearMe online casinos have started using it so far, but we’re sure that will change over the coming months.
PayNearMe compared to other providers – a quick look at the alternatives to PayNearMe
It doesn’t really matter whether it’s a betting site, an online casino, or a specific payment method, it will always pay you in the long run to make comparisons and to establish which is the best one for you. Luckily for you, here at TheGruelingTruth.com, we have an entire team of experts who spend their time doing exactly that.
This time around, they’ve looked at how payments work at PayNearMe casinos and compared their findings to some other popular online casino payment methods.
PayNearMe casinos vs prepaid Visa and MasterCard casinos
As you’ll be aware Visa and Mastercard are the two most prevalent card brands in the US and almost all licensed US casinos accept them. Both brands offer three different versions: credit cards, debit cards and prepaid cards. To have one of the first two types in your wallet, you’ll also need to have a US bank account, but for prepaid cards, it is not necessary.
All MasterCard casinos and Visa online casinos accept prepaid cards just as readily as they do credit or debit cards, so you’d have no problems in that respect. However, you will have to purchase a prepaid card, which will incur a small cost over and above the value the card is loaded with and you will need to keep track of your spending. Once the card is empty, further transactions will be automatically declined and you will need to reload the card before you can use it again.
The slight downside, is that it is not usually possible to have withdrawals made to this type of card, so as with using PayNearMe online casinos, you might need to have an alternative payment method available to facilitate them.
PayNearMe online casinos vs paysafecard casinos
The only other payment method that does not require a bank account and that you’ll find relatively easily at online casinos is paysafecard. It works in a similar way to PayNearMe, but only requires a single visit to your online casino to make the transaction. You will still need to go to a convenience store to purchase a paysafecard, but rather than paying for a single transaction, you get to decide how much paysafecard credit you buy.
You can complete multiple transactions from a single card. For example, you could purchase a $100 paysafecard and use it to make five separate $20 deposits. A $100 card would cost $103.49 in total. The process for depositing at your online casino is completed by entering the 16-digit card PIN, in the same way as using a credit or debit card. At present, you can’t withdraw to paysafecard, unless you elect to upgrade to a ‘mypaysafecard’ account, which requires an associated bank account to fund it.
The verdict
It is certainly a tricky and more involved process using payment methods that are not reliant on having a bank account or credit card, but at least you do get a few more choices these days.
We know that some of you simply prefer not to add your bank details at gambling sites, or may have a US bank account that will block transactions with them. If that sounds familiar, then using Play+ casino sites, or enrolling for the Global Payments system and using a VIP Preferred casino might be a better alternative than using PayNearMe casinos? You’ll find our guides to both of those helpful in making a choice.
Fund your casino account with alternative options
1.
Get $5 extra in FREE play
Players from Virginia accepted
2.
7,000 Gold Coins + 10 Sweeps Coins
Players from Virginia accepted
3.
Daily Virtual Credits up to 20$
Players from Virginia accepted
4.
–
Players from Virginia accepted
Three essential facts about using PayNearMe casinos – the good bits and the not quite-so-good parts
The (moderately) bad news about using PayNearMe online casinos
We thought it was best to get the not-quite-so-good things about using PayNearMe casinos out in the open right away. There’s nothing bad, just three minor inconveniences really. First, there are very few PayNearMe online casinos that are willing to process withdrawals, despite the availability of a system for them to do so.
Second, you’ll have to leave your home and go to a store to convert cash to a form of digital currency that is recognized by PayNearMe casinos. Third and last, two separate visits and logins have to be made to your online casino account to complete a single deposit to PayNearMe online casinos. Now that’s out the way, let’s move on to better things…
There is no payment method verification needed to use PayNearMe
We need to make it clear at the outset that we are talking about the PayNearMe payment method here, not the specifics of signing up with an online gambling site, we’ll come back to that subject in a moment. When you make use of PayNearMe, you are simply exchanging your cash for digital currency to use for online purposes, so there’s no need for further action.
However, the policies and procedures (which are a legal requirement for every licensed US gambling site) necessitate you to provide documentary evidence of your identity and permanent US residential address, irrespective of the payment method you are using.
No fees or commission charged to pay when using PayNearMe
One of the biggest benefits of using the best online casinos with PayNearMe is that it won’t cost you anything over and above the deposits you make. PayNearMe does not charge fees or commission when you ‘buy’ its digital currency vouchers, unlike some other payment options, and you shouldn’t pay fees for using it to deposit at online casinos.
At the time of writing, with so few PayNearMe casinos using MoneyLine to process withdrawals, we can’t be sure how that side of things will pan out. But rest assured that TheGruelingTruth.com keeps in touch with any changes and if we find any new information, then you’ll find it posted on our site.
Conclusion – what do our experts think of PayNearMe casinos?
As a payment method for anyone who does not use a bank account, PayNearMe presents them with a viable, safe, reliable alternative. It would also be true to say that PayNearMe online casinos have their downsides. The main one being that there are currently few opportunities to use PayNearMe to process withdrawals. Another slightly negative aspect is that you have to physically go out and purchase your PayNearMe casinos funding.
However, we have nothing whatsoever to malign using online casinos that accept PayNearMe and in fairness, the alternatives also have their downsides. On the basis of their PayNearMe casinos investigations, our experts have found this payment option to be a really useful alternative for funding online gambling sites.
The best online casino bonuses currently available
1.
5% Rakeback
Players from Virginia accepted
2.
30 SCs on 1st Purchase + 4.5 SCs FREE + 30 Sweepstake Coins
Players from Virginia accepted
Min. Deposit: 9.99
3.
Get $5 extra in FREE play
Players from Virginia accepted
4.
7,000 Gold Coins + 10 Sweeps Coins
Players from Virginia accepted
5.
5,000 Gold Coins + 2.3 Sweepstakes Coins
Players from Virginia accepted
PayNearMe online casinos FAQ
🔒 Are PayNearMe casinos safe to use?
Here at TheGruelingTruth.com we spend a lot of time reviewing online gambling sites, which you can access free of charge on our site. We always give an honest opinion of the operators behind every site we look at and checking out the security measures they have in place is a top priority for us. Basically, a site is only as safe as the operator cares to make it, the payment methods on offer are not relevant to that factor.
💰 Is it easy to make a deposit at PayNearMe online casinos?
It’s in the interest of all online gambling sites to facilitate making deposits to their sites. They do this by offering as many different types of payment methods as possible and making the online payment process as simple as it can be. The exact details of making a deposit at online casinos that accept PayNearMe can be found by reading our guide, here at TheGruelingTruth.com.
👎 My online casino refuses withdrawals with PayNearMe, what can I do?
There can be several reasons why an online casino might refuse a withdrawal request. The reason you are being denied a withdrawal may not necessarily be related to the payment method itself. There are several things you can do, but start by reading our guide to PayNearMe here at TheGruelingTruth.com, where you are most likely to find an answer to your problem.
