How Do I Change My PayPal Account Type from Business to Personal?

PayPal provides individuals and businesses with a secure method of transferring funds for services or goods. If you are a business owner, you may be considering switching your PayPal account from a business account to a personal one. How do you change your PayPal account type from business to a personal account? You can find out about the various PayPal accounts by calling user support here, and you can read on to find out how to convert your business account to a personal account.

Changing Your PayPal Business Account to a Personal Account

Why Make the Change

There are many reasons you may be considering changing your PayPal account from a business account to a personal one. Some cons of a PayPal business account or reasons to switch it to a personal account include:

1. Transaction fees can add up quickly, especially on small transactions.
2. Money transfers from PayPal to your bank can take up to 72 hours which can greatly impact your business' cash flow.
3. Chargeback fees when a customer complaint goes against you can be very costly.
4. Your account can be suspended at any time by PayPal which freezes any assets you have in the account.
5. Not all customers like using PayPal to pay for purchases.
6. Digital items are not covered under PayPal's business account policy.
7. You are closing or downsizing your business and will not have the volume of transactions necessary to justify keeping a business account.
8. You have found another method of doing business transactions, but want to keep PayPal as a personal account as a back-up.

Making the Change

Online

When you are ready to make the change from a business account to a personal one, follow these steps:

1. Open PayPal in your computer browser.
2. Log into your account.
3. On the profile page, click on "My Account."
4. Find "Account Type" on the account settings page.
5. Click "Change" next to "Account Type" and select "Personal" from the drop-down menu.
6. Select "Continue."
7. Follow the prompts to confirm you do with to make the change from business to personal.

Over the Phone

You can also request your account be changed from a business account to a personal account by calling PayPal customer support here. The representative will be able to walk you through the process of switching your account type.

Note, you will not have to pay a penalty for switching your account from business to personal, but you will be financial responsible for any pending transactions on the business account at the time of the switch.

Whatever reason you have for making the switch from a PayPal business account to a personal one, you can make the switch online or by calling customer service here and requesting an account downgrade.