Can You Pay for Money Orders With Credit Cards?

Money orders are as good as cash.

When you buy a money order you will only be able to pay for it with a debit card, traveler's check or good old-fashioned cash. That is why a money order is a secured method of payment and the next best thing to cash.

Function

Money orders provide a safer payment alternative to checks for both purchaser and recipient. They are valid for an unlimited time period, they cannot "bounce" like a check and they can be replaced if lost, damaged or stolen. They function just like cash.

Benefits

Money orders offer a secure way to send money through the mail. Money orders can be deposited or cashed at most financial institutions, and you can cash a postal money order at any post office.

Features

Postal money orders, like U.S. currency, have security features to help distinguish them from counterfeit notes. They are designed with watermarks, different-colored threads and other security threads in the paper.

Purchasing

Money orders can be purchased at any U.S. post office or from any rural-route mail carrier. You can also purchase money orders at many grocery and convenience stores.

Considerations

You cannot pay for money orders with credit cards since the whole idea behind a money order is that it offers guaranteed payment. There is no guarantee that you will pay the credit card bill when you receive it.

References

• USPS: Domestic Money Orders
• USPS: Money Order Security Features

Resources

• USPS: Damaged, Lost or Stolen Money Orders