Is Mint or PayPal better?

Neither clearly leads. Mint starts at Free and PayPal at $29/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.

Which is cheaper, Mint or PayPal?

Mint has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Mint and $29/month for PayPal.

Does Mint or PayPal run on more platforms?

Mint runs on Web, iOS, Android. PayPal runs on Web, Ios, Android, Api.

Can I use Mint for free?

Yes. Mint has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. PayPal starts at $29/month.

What is Mint best used for?

Mint is most often used for legacy free budget tracking for users with supported bank connections, users transitioning to credit karma for continued money management features. Of those, legacy free budget tracking for users with supported bank connections and users transitioning to credit karma for continued money management features are not what PayPal is typically brought in for.

What can Mint do that PayPal cannot?

Mint covers Expense tracking, Budgets, Bill tracking, Credit score monitoring. PayPal covers Payment processing, PayPal Checkout, Invoicing, Business debit card. Both handle Web support, Ios support, Android support.

Personal Finance · head to head

Mint vs PayPal

Mint

Personal Finance

All your money in one app

From: Free
Rated: -

Full review Website

PayPal

Personal Finance

The simpler, safer way to pay and get paid

From: $29/month
Rated: -

Full review Website

The short version

Only Mint has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
Each has a real cost: Mint service transitioned to Credit Karma platform; standalone Mint features migrated elsewhere; PayPal currency conversion on international purchases and sends carries a 4.00 percent fee, and 3.00 percent in other conversion scenarios
They diverge on capability: Mint covers Expense tracking, PayPal covers Payment processing.
Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Mint and PayPal actually diverge.

Attributes where Mint and PayPal differ
Attribute	Mint	PayPal
Starting price	Free	$29/month
Pricing model	free	usage-based
Free tier	Yes	No
Platforms	Web, iOS, Android	Web, Ios, Android, Api
Founded	2006	1998

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Personal Finance).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Mint

Expense tracking
Budgets
Bill tracking
Credit score monitoring
Financial insights
Bank connections
Bank-level encryption
Verisign secured

Only in PayPal

Payment processing
PayPal Checkout
Invoicing
Business debit card
Working capital loans
Shopify
WooCommerce
BigCommerce

Both cover

Web support
Ios support
Android support

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Mint

Legacy free budget tracking for users with supported bank connectionsnot PayPal
Users transitioning to Credit Karma for continued money management featuresnot PayPal

PayPal

Paying online merchants without sharing card detailsnot Mint
Sending money to friends and family domestically and internationallynot Mint
Holding balances in multiple currencies for cross border purchasesnot Mint

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Mint

Service transitioned to Credit Karma platform; standalone Mint features migrated elsewhere
Bank connections supported for only 17,000 financial institutions; many regional or international banks not supported

PayPal

Currency conversion on international purchases and sends carries a 4.00 percent fee, and 3.00 percent in other conversion scenarios
Instant transfer to a bank or debit card costs 1.75 percent of the amount, with a minimum of 0.25 USD and a maximum of 25.00 USD
International personal transactions carry a 5.00 percent fee regardless of payment method, with a minimum of 0.99 USD and a maximum of 4.99 USD
Sending domestic personal payments funded by a credit card costs 2.90 percent plus a fixed fee of 0.49 USD
Instant transfers are capped at 25,000.00 USD per transaction

Pricing, plan by plan

Mint

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the Mint review.

PayPal

$29/month

Standard$2.99/transaction
- Card payments
- PayPal checkout
- Invoice payments

Which should you pick?

Choose Mint if

You need expense tracking.
You want to start without paying.
You work on Web, iOS, Android.
You also want budgets.

Mint review

Choose PayPal if

You need payment processing.
You work on Web, Ios, Android, Api.
You also want paypal checkout.

PayPal review

Questions people ask

Is Mint or PayPal better?: Neither clearly leads. Mint starts at Free and PayPal at $29/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Mint or PayPal?: Mint has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Mint and $29/month for PayPal.
Does Mint or PayPal run on more platforms?: Mint runs on Web, iOS, Android. PayPal runs on Web, Ios, Android, Api.
Can I use Mint for free?: Yes. Mint has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. PayPal starts at $29/month.
What is Mint best used for?: Mint is most often used for legacy free budget tracking for users with supported bank connections, users transitioning to credit karma for continued money management features. Of those, legacy free budget tracking for users with supported bank connections and users transitioning to credit karma for continued money management features are not what PayPal is typically brought in for.
What can Mint do that PayPal cannot?: Mint covers Expense tracking, Budgets, Bill tracking, Credit score monitoring. PayPal covers Payment processing, PayPal Checkout, Invoicing, Business debit card. Both handle Web support, Ios support, Android support.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Mint: Is Mint still actively sold?

Mint has been reimagined on Credit Karma. The Mint website now directs users to check out the new platform on Credit Karma's net worth signup page rather than maintaining a standalone product.

Source

PayPal: Does PayPal charge fees and when do they apply?

PayPal states that fees apply when converting currency and sending money to accounts in another country. Specific fee amounts are not disclosed on the homepage but are referenced in their published fee schedule.

Source

Mint: What pricing information is available on the Mint homepage?

The Mint page does not disclose pricing details. For current pricing information, users should visit Credit Karma's website or contact support directly.

Source

PayPal: Is there a subscription cost to use PayPal's basic services?

No subscription fees are mentioned on the homepage. PayPal operates on a transaction-based fee structure for money transfers and payments rather than recurring charges.

Source

PayPal: Are there restrictions on when I can use buyer protection?

PayPal offers buyer protection for eligible purchases, but coverage limitations exist. A user agreement sets the specific conditions for protection eligibility.

Source

PayPal: What payment methods can I link to PayPal?

PayPal's digital wallet allows storage of multiple payment methods and can be used for secure money transfers, payment requests, and checkout at major retailers.

Source

Mint vs PayPal

Mint

PayPal

The short version

Where they differ

What each one covers

Only in Mint

Only in PayPal

Both cover

What people use each for

Mint

PayPal

Where each one falls short

Mint

PayPal

Pricing, plan by plan

Mint

PayPal

Which should you pick?

Choose Mint if

Choose PayPal if

Questions people ask

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Related pages

More on Mint

More on PayPal

Keep looking

Other head to heads