Topic: How to use Paypal or credit cards to buy Bitcoins (Read 1138 times)

btcquick.com will sell coins for credit card payments and I have had a number of good interactions with them, but the fee is going be higher than if you pay cash and use bitinstant

That's most unfortunate for those overseas like me. I have easy access to paypal which is linked to my bank account. Have not found a way to buy using paypal yet besides just people offering bitcoins for paypal. Then again most people dont even do that due to possible chargebacks.

 My apologies. It appears things may have changed. ( I have not done this in a while, since I have enough Bitcoins.) To clear things up, I sent an email to Bitinstant and asked if you can use online MoneyGram to send money to ZipZap.

Unfortunately, it looks like ZipZap, the billing company for BitInstant that shows up on your payment slip, only accepts payments at drop-off locations  and does not accept online payments.



If they did accept online bill payment, there would be another radial option for online payments there.

Are you doing something other than selecting the 'Pay Bills' option on their site?  The Moneygram Express seems to be the wrong option, since the forms are invalid (it looks like they are only for use with packets that are purchased in brick and mortar stores), and the other options are for sending money to be physically picked up in another location. 

I did successfully use btcquick.com this morning.  I had to register and upload a photo id, then wait for them to validate me..  but that wasn't too difficult.  They used Google Checkout and charged a credit card.  The fee was 7.5%, which is a little higher than the ZipZap to Bitcoin address' 3.99% fee.  However, ZipZap charges a $3.95 USD fee for processing the cash transaction, so depending on quantity this may be cheaper.   It was easier than digging my vehicle out of the snow. 

One thing I couldn't find on either BitInstant or btcquick is how the BTC price is determined.  I'm not sure if it's a weighted average, lowest ask, or highest bid based on values at purchase time on some specific exchange, or if they have some predefined value..  I should have kept an eye on that and checked around a bit once I received the btc so I could get an idea...  but the price seemed fair.  I'm going to look around both sites to see if I can find this information.

So the catch is that it adds a $5 fee on top of the $3.95 charged by ZipZap? I guess that's the price to pay if you don't want to use cash.

Edit: So here's a question: when you go to bill pay, ZipZap comes up as cash payment only. Do you not use the bill pay option like you would do with a cash deposit?

1. Go to https://www.bitinstant.com 
2. Fill out form. In "Pay From" drop down, under cash deposits, pick "other locations" or Walmart.  In "Pay To" drop down, pick bitcoin address.
3. After you get your payment statement, go to https://www.moneygram.com
4. Fill out online form and pay with Paypal or credit card. Bitcoins will enter your account in about an hour or so.
5.Done 
6. If any company stops accepting Paypal, buy a Visa/Mastercard gift card or re-loadable card. Use this to purchase moneygram to send to Bit Instant.
7. You must weigh the fees against the convenience.