Thursday, August 27, 2026
Tech Beat
Aug 10, 2026, 12:00 PMApps and Payments

Google Play Adds Venmo Payments for Apps, Games and Subscriptions

Google Play adds Venmo for apps, games, subscriptions and creator tips as iOS and Play Store spending hit $167 billion worldwide during 2025, up 10.6%.

A blue wallet shaped like a key unlocks a colorful vault of apps, games, subscriptions and creator tips.
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Summary

On August 10, 2026, Google added Venmo as a Google Play payment option for games, apps, add-ons and other digital content. Customers can fund purchases through a Venmo wallet or linked bank account or card, including subscriptions and creator tips in content apps. Users link Venmo through payment methods in their Google Play account settings.

In the United States, Google Play also accepts PayPal, Cash App and cards from American Express, Visa, Mastercard, Discover and JCB. Google has experimented with letting customers outside the United States pay cash for digital purchases at nearby stores. Sensor Tower reported that worldwide in-app spending across iOS and the Play Store exceeded $167 billion in 2025, rising 10.6% year over year.

Positives

  • Venmo now supports Google Play purchases of games, apps, add-ons and other digital content.
  • Venmo wallets, linked bank accounts and linked cards can fund purchases, subscriptions and creator tips.
  • PayPal, Cash App, American Express, Visa, Mastercard, Discover and JCB remain available through Google Play in the United States.
  • Worldwide iOS and Play Store in-app spending exceeded $167 billion in 2025, according to Sensor Tower.
  • In-app spending grew 10.6% year over year in 2025, indicating expanding demand for digital purchases.

Risks & concerns

  • Users must manually link a Venmo account through Google Play account settings before paying.
  • Google did not specify whether Venmo availability extends beyond the United States.
  • Cash payment for digital purchases outside the United States remains an experiment rather than a broadly confirmed option.
Primary sourceTechCrunchhttps://techcrunch.com/2026/08/10/google-play-adds-venmo-as-a-payment-option/
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Editorial note: Tech Beat summarizes and analyzes third-party reporting. The source link is the authoritative article. This page does not reproduce the full source text.

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