Experiencing

PayPal

outages? You’re not alone.

To confirm PayPal’s current status:

1. Check PayPal’s Status Dashboard
   Visit paypal-status.com. If all services show "Operational," no official outage is reported.
   
   
2. Look for Twitter Updates
   Follow @PayPal and @AskPayPal. These accounts often post about widespread issues or maintenance notices.
   
   
3. Use Downdetector
   Visit Downdetector – PayPal to see if others are reporting login or payment problems.
   
   
4. Test Key Services
   Try logging in or making a small $1 payment. If everything works, PayPal’s services are likely running normally.
   
   
5. Search Forums or News
   Look for breaking news or Reddit threads (e.g., r/Paypal) discussing possible issues. If there’s a real problem, someone’s likely already flagged it.
   

Here’s how to report a problem if you suspect an outage:

• Call Customer Support
  Phone PayPal Australia on 1800 054 378 or 02 8223 9500. Available during business hours.
  
  
• Message Center (Online)
  If you’re logged in, go to Help > Contact Us > Message Center to send a secure message.
  
  
• Twitter Support
  Tweet or DM @AskPayPal with your issue (without sharing sensitive info). They usually reply quickly.
  
  
• Resolution Centre
  For payment-specific issues (e.g., stuck transactions), log in at paypal.com/disputes to open a case.
  
  
• Email (for formal complaints)
  Email paypalau@paypal.com if you’ve had an outage-related loss or want a paper trail.
  
  

Always be clear: include the time, error codes, and any troubleshooting you’ve tried. This speeds up support and helps PayPal investigate more effectively.

Key incidents in the last year include:

• Nov 21, 2024 – Global Black Friday Outage:
  A critical outage during peak shopping hours. Login, checkout, and even crypto features were disrupted for about two hours globally. Caused by an internal “system issue” due to high traffic load.
  
  
• June 2, 2025 – Login & Payments Issue:
  Users couldn’t log in or send payments for ~51 minutes. Likely caused by a software update glitch.
  
  
• April 8, 2025 – Evening Intermittent Outage:
  Payments failed for 1.5–2 hours. Possibly due to infrastructure or network routing faults.
  
  
• Dec 24, 2024 – Short Holiday Disruption:
  A minor 33-minute issue on Christmas Eve morning. Possibly holiday traffic-related.
  
  

Common Causes Include:

• Internal software/database faults
  
  
• Unexpected spikes in traffic
  
  
• Third-party infrastructure hiccups
  
  
• Maintenance updates with unexpected side effects
  

Most PayPal outages are resolved fast:

• Minor Disruptions:
  Login or checkout issues often clear within 30 to 60 minutes. E.g., the June 2 issue was fixed in 51 minutes.
  
  
• Major Global Incidents:
  Even during Black Friday 2024, services were restored within 2 hours. This is considered rapid given the scale.
  
  
• Planned Maintenance:
  Usually completed as scheduled. If anything runs long, PayPal updates the status page accordingly.
  
  

What to Expect:
If PayPal’s down, it’s usually back up before you know it. Watch Twitter/X and the status page for confirmation of restoration.

• PayPal System Status
  Real-time system health checks and incident reports.
  
  
• Help Center
  Search issues, access the Message Center, and troubleshoot.
  
  
• Support Phone Numbers:
  
  
  • 1800 054 378 (AU)
    
    
  • 02 8223 9500 (alternate)
    
    
  • +61 2 8223 9500 (from overseas)
    
    
• Message Center
  Send secure messages when logged in.
  
  
• Resolution Centre
  Handle specific transaction problems or report issues.
  
  
• Downdetector – PayPal
  See if others are experiencing problems.
  
  
• Social Media:
  
  
  • @PayPal on Twitter
    
    
  • @AskPayPal for support
    
    
  • PayPal Australia on Facebook
    
    
• Status History
  View past incidents and maintenance events.