How to Get Money Back on Venmo

Venmo is a great platform for sending and receiving money, ranking close to PayPal in popularity. Whether you need to send money to a friend or pay for services directly on a website, you can do so using Venmo. However, accidents may happen, and you may accidentally send a payment to the wrong person, get scammed, or simply need a refund.

Although it might seem complicated at first – especially for first-time Venmo users – the money return process is not rocket science. This article will share all there is to know about getting money back to your Venmo account. We’ll also share common pitfalls you may encounter in the process, so you’ll know what to expect.

How to Get a Refund in Venmo When You Paid the Wrong Person

Paying the wrong person is among the most common mistakes made on money transfer platforms such as Venmo. Tons of people have similar usernames, and things can get even more confusing when people don’t change the default Venmo username from the initial account setup.

As you already know, the money you send gets added to a user’s account automatically, and they will be able to transfer those funds to their bank account. This means that, prior to contacting Venmo support, you should first request the funds back from the person you mistakenly paid them to.

Follow the steps below to request money back on your Venmo account:

1. Launch the Venmo app.
2. Navigate to the home screen and tap on the blue Pay or Request button at the bottom of the screen.
   
3. Enter the username of the person you want to request money back from.
   
4. Enter the exact money amount you sent.
   
5. Leave a note explaining the situation and ask them to pay back the money they received by mistake.
   
6. Tap on Request.
   
7. You’ll see a green message asking you to confirm the action. Tap on it to confirm.

The recipient may not see your message right away, so you can always send them a reminder. Here’s how to do so:

1. Tap on the three bars in the upper-right hand of the screen.
   
2. Select Incomplete.
3. Navigate to the Requests section to find a list of your unfulfilled requests.
4. Tap on the Remind button underneath the request in question.

The blue “Remind” button will change to a grey message saying “Reminded.”

Once the person accepts your request, the money will be sent back to your account. However, if you never receive your money back, you can turn to Venmo for support. Just be aware that the company doesn’t guarantee they can get your money back. But they will provide you with the best available options.

Here’s how to contact Venmo support:

• Using a web browser, fill out the contact form.
  
• Use the mobile app to chat with a representative.
  Note: Venmo’s chat representatives are available Mon-Fri 6am-11:59pm CST and Sat-Sun 8am-10pm CST.
  
• Call Venmo support at (855) 812-4430.
  Note: Venmo phone hours are Mon-Sun 8am-8pm CST.

You can also find the support options in the app by following these steps:

1. Tap on Settings in the upper-right hand of the screen.
2. Choose Get Help from the options menu. It’s the last choice on the list, just next to the question mark.
3. Select Contact Us, then Email Us, or Chat with Us, depending on your preferred choice of communication. If you prefer making a phone call, tap on the Check Our Hours section to get a number you can call.

It’s best to have your payment info on hand to expedite the process. Make sure you have the payment amount and date, as well as the recipient’s username, at hand. It can also be helpful to include the username, phone number, and email address of the person you meant to pay in the first place.

How to Get a Refund in Venmo if You Paid an Account That Doesn’t Exist

Maybe you accidentally mistyped a username, and your transaction ended up at an inexistent account. If the email or phone number you paid to isn’t active on Venmo, you can cancel the payment and receive your money back.

The payment should appear in the Incomplete section under Pending. This either means you paid an account that’s not linked to Venmo, or the recipient still hasn’t verified their profile (the money will only show in the recipient’s balance if they verify their account in the interim). If that’s not the case, you can take the money back without having to contact Venmo.

Just follow the steps below:

1. Log into the Venmo app.
2. Tap the Me icon in the lower right corner.
   
3. Tap Transactions.
   
4. If you have money in pending status, you will see an option to take it back. Tap Take Back.

The funds will now be reversed to your original funding source. If you used your credit or bank card for the payment, you’ll receive the money there. And if you sent the funds using your Venmo balance, you should see the refund there.

If, however, the person you intended to send money to in the first place wants to accept it, they should sign up or add another valid email address to their Venmo account.

Avoid Getting Scammed

With a platform as popular as Venmo, it’s almost inevitable you’ll encounter scams. There are dozens of scamming methods in circulation, and imposters always seem to find a way to steal other people’s valuable information and money. That’s why you need to be extra careful with each transaction you perform or receive.

Note: If you’ve been a victim of a scam, contact Venmo support for help.

However, you may get scammed and wish to get your money back. Unfortunately, if you paid money to an existing Venmo account (scam or not), it’s impossible to simply cancel your payment. The standard procedure is to send a return request to the account to which you sent the funds and wait for them to send the money back.

With scams, however, it’s highly unlikely this scenario will work. Since Venmo doesn’t typically intervene in disputes involving scams, you’ll have to take some precautionary steps on your own, including:

• Performing regular bank or credit card checks
• Having the bank cancel any compromised cards or issue a new number
• Setting up multi-factor authentication on Venmo
• Reporting any suspicious activity to Venmo so that they can issue a warning to other customers

Here’s more practical information on how to avoid scams on Venmo. For full details, make sure to check Vemo’s Common Scams page.

• Be mindful of your actions. Never join pyramids, cash wheels, money circles, or other scams with your Venmo account.
• Don’t sell to strangers unless authorized by the software.
• Don’t purchase anything from strangers unless authorized by the software.

Some common scams include messages from a person asking you to send them a small amount of money, and they’ll send you a larger amount in return. These scammers collect users’ money but never pay them back. Beware that this offer can appear to come from someone you know as well. Any offer that seems too good to be true probably is.

Many users have also reported phishing scams over SMS. They receive a notice saying their account is about to be charged, and they need to log in quickly to prevent the action. By logging in, scam victims reveal their usernames and passwords to scammers, who then have complete control of their Venmo accounts. Never click on the links in an SMS if it comes from a suspicious domain, are shortened, have any typos, or you received it as a random text.

Other scam signs include:

• The buyer asking you for the item without sending you money.
• The buyer sending email screenshots that suggest they sent payment to you on Venmo, but the shots appear to be doctored.
• The buyer claims they already sent the funds and that the money will reach your Venmo account once you ship the items. Venmo doesn’t offer this feature at all.

Additionally, there are scams where imposters may impersonate a friend to request money. They may change their username and profile picture and use the public feed info to contact people who connected with your friend, including you.

Whenever you receive requests of this kind, double-check with that friend to make sure they actually made the request. Reach out to that friend outside of the Venmo app to be sure.

Remember: Only make payments to authorized accounts on Venmo, and don’t accept offers that seem too good to be true.

Frequently Asked Questions

Venmo is an excellent app for sending and receiving money. But, there’s always something new to learn. If you have questions, keep reading.

How long does it take to get a refund?

The time a refund is issued depends on the business or person you sent the payment to. Once the payment is refunded on the recipient’s end, it takes 1-5 business days for Venmo to send the payment back to you.

Can I cancel a payment on Venmo?

Unfortunately, no. When you send funds on Venmo, it automatically becomes available to the other person. Therefore, you can’t cancel a payment.

What do I do if I got scammed and sent money with Venmo?

If you were the victim of a scam contact, Venmo’s support team using the instructions above.

Double-Check Your Venmo Payments

If you accidentally paid the wrong person or sent money to a nonexistent Venmo account, you can always ask for a return or get your money back via the app. If things get complicated, Venmo’s support is there to help. However, the platform doesn’t deal with scams, which means you need to be extra careful when sending money or giving out sensitive information.

Either way, you should always double-check the payment information before each fund transfer to avoid any unpleasant surprises. Most importantly, stay informed about ongoing scam campaigns so that you can recognize one immediately if it comes your way.

Hopefully, this article answered all your questions regarding getting money back from Venmo. If there’s anything else you’d like to ask, feel free to share your questions or thoughts in the comments section below.