How to Send Money With Amazon

By Brad Chacos

Skip the dangers of sending money via mail -- use Amazon Payments instead.
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Amazon is typically associated with receiving items rather than sending them; the company rose to prominence by establishing itself as a leader in the online marketplace, offering books, music and a myriad of other products. You pay for your goods and receive them in the mail shortly thereafter. Amazon's "Amazon Payments" service continues the tradition of sending money, but it leaves out the need to purchase items. More of a middleman and money-transfer service than anything else, you can send money with Amazon Payments to anybody with an email address, cell phone number or Amazon account.

Open a Web browser and navigate to the Amazon Payments website at payments.amazon.com.

Sign in to your Amazon account. Create a new one if you don't have one already.

Click the "Send Money" tab at the top of the page.

Type the recipient's email address, Amazon alias or cell phone number into the "Recipient:" field.

Type the amount of money you'd like to transfer, in U.S. dollars, in the "Amount:" field. The transfer needs to be at least $1.

Click the radio button next to either "Goods/Services" or "Cash Advance" to state which type of payment you're making. Goods and services typically incur no extra bank fees, but Amazon warns that banks sometimes charge extra for cash advances.

Add a note in the "Optional Note" field if desired, then click "Continue." You'll be taken to a payment option page.

Click on the radio button next to the payment option you'd like to use; you can fund the transfer with your Amazon account balance or authorize Amazon to withdraw the funds from a bank account or credit card that you've previously verified with the company. If you have several cards or accounts verified, choose which one you'd like to use via a drop-down menu.

Click "Continue."

Review the transaction details and click "Send" to finish sending the money with Amazon.

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