Why is my PayPal payment pending or on hold?
The PayPal help pages give 5 common reasons. The first to rule out: A new account can see payments held while PayPal gets to know your selling.
Is it broken, or just quiet?
A number can fall because fewer people came, or because something stopped counting them. Below are the causes the PayPal help pages give, and how to check each one yourself.
What causes it?
A new account can see payments held while PayPal gets to know your selling.
In the PayPal help:
If you have a new PayPal account, it can take time to build up a positive reputation as a seller.
Why is my payment on hold or unavailable?, read 2026-11-12.If you have not sold for a long time, PayPal may hold payments again until your selling looks steady.
In the PayPal help:
When your selling activity has been dormant for a long time, it'll take time to rebuild a positive reputation as a seller.
Why is my payment on hold or unavailable?, read 2026-11-12.Several customers reporting problems or asking for refunds can cause PayPal to hold payments.
In the PayPal help:
Multiple customers reported problems or requested refunds.
Why is my payment on hold or unavailable?, read 2026-11-12.A sudden change in how much or what you sell can make PayPal hold payments.
In the PayPal help:
Your selling pattern appears to have changed or seems unusual.
Why is my payment on hold or unavailable?, read 2026-11-12.Some kinds of items carry more risk for PayPal, and payments for them may be held.
In the PayPal help:
You’re selling higher-risk items.
Why is my payment on hold or unavailable?, read 2026-11-12.
How do I check it myself?
Read PayPal's email and the alert on your account to see why a payment is held.
In the PayPal help:
Review the email we send and the alert in your account overview.
Why is Your PayPal Payment on Hold: A Guide for Merchants, read 2026-11-12.Check each payment's status. Pending means PayPal is still reviewing it, which is different from a payment that failed.
In the PayPal help:
We’re reviewing the transaction.
PayPal Payment and Money Request Status Guide, read 2026-11-12.If you ship goods, add tracking from a supported carrier so PayPal can see the order is on its way.
In the PayPal help:
Uploading tracking information of our supported carriers or printing a USPS/UPS shipping label through PayPal.
Why is Your PayPal Payment on Hold: A Guide for Merchants, read 2026-11-12.
How would I know the day it starts?
- Feder reads your PayPal checkout payments each day and compares each day with your own history.
- It does not see why a single payment is on hold. It tells you when payments go quiet or move outside their usual range.
Some numbers are too quiet to judge daily, such as a form filled in a few times a week. Until there is enough of your own history to judge a change, Feder says it is still learning and scores nothing, rather than guessing.
See what Feder reads from PayPal, which feeds Wins. Feder only reads. It never changes anything in PayPal.
What else goes wrong with these numbers?
- Why doesn't my PayPal balance match my sales?PayPal
- Why is a recent PayPal payment missing from my sales?PayPal
- Why did Google Analytics stop collecting data?Google Analytics
- Why aren't my key events showing in Google Analytics?Google Analytics
- Why does Google Analytics show (not set)?Google Analytics
See every question.
Where do these answers come from?
Every cause and check on this page comes from the PayPal help pages, quoted above with the date we read them. Last reviewed 2026-11-12. We read them again by 2027-11-12. If one changes, this page changes or comes down.