On October 16, 2025, PayPal and its subsidiary Venmo experienced a significant global outage that disrupted services for millions of users. The incident began around 11:00 AM Eastern Time and persisted for several hours, affecting users across the United States, United Kingdom, Spain, Germany, and other regions. Reports of issues surged on DownDetector, with nearly 10,000 complaints within the first half-hour of the outage The Scottish Sun.
Impact on Users
During the outage, users reported being unable to log in to their accounts, send or receive payments, or access transaction histories. Many were logged out of their accounts and encountered error messages when attempting to log back in. Business owners faced additional challenges, such as being unable to print shipping labels or view essential financial information The Scottish Sun.
Company Response
Both PayPal and Venmo acknowledged the issue on social media platforms, assuring customers that they were working to resolve the problem. PayPal's spokesperson described the outage as a "brief service disruption that has since been resolved" Fox Business. However, the company did not provide specific details regarding the cause of the disruption.
Previous Incidents
This outage is not the first of its kind. A similar global outage occurred in August 2025, leaving users concerned over missing payments and lack of communication from the company. At that time, thousands of people reported experiencing technical difficulties, and some feared their accounts had been hacked The Scottish Sun.
Conclusion
The October 2025 PayPal and Venmo outage serves as a reminder of the reliance on digital payment platforms in daily transactions. While the services have since been restored, the incident highlights the importance of transparency and communication from service providers during technical disruptions.
References:
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The Scottish Sun. (2025, October 16). PayPal and Venmo 'down in global outage' as thousands report trouble with logins & money sharing. Retrieved from https://www.thescottishsun.co.uk/news/scottish-news/15459247/paypal-app-down-venmo-not-working-login/
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Fox Business. (2025, October 16). Major mobile payment services, video platform experience widespread outages within 24 hours. Retrieved from https://www.foxbusiness.com/technology/major-mobile-payment-services-video-platform-experience-widespread-outages-within-24-hours
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TechRadar. (2025, October 16). PayPal and Venmo were down – here's what we know about the payment platforms' outage. Retrieved from https://www.techradar.com/news/live/paypal-venmo-outage-october-2025
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The Sun. (2025, October 16). PayPal and Venmo 'down in global outage' as thousands report trouble with logins & money sharing. Retrieved from https://www.the-sun.com/tech/15357080/paypal-app-down-venmo-not-working-login/
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HowToiSolve. (2025, October 16). PayPal and Venmo Outage Explained: What Users Need to Know. Retrieved from https://www.howtoisolve.com/paypal-venmo-outage-explained-what-users-need-to-know/