How to move money from PayPal to GCash, what it costs and how long it takes.
Short answer Link your Fully Verified GCash to a verified Philippine PayPal account, then cash in from inside the GCash app. GCash charges 1% of the cash-in amount from March 7, 2026, and the minimum transfer is ₱500.00; PayPal says the GCash app shows any fee before you confirm. GCash calls the cash in real time but allows 24 to 48 hours, while PayPal allows 2 hours to 3 calendar days.
At a glance
- RequirementsA Fully Verified GCash account, a Philippines-based verified PayPal account, and one PayPal linked to one GCashGCash Help Center ↗ ·
- Minimum transfer₱500.00PayPal ↗ ·
- GCash fee1% of the cash-in amount, all amounts, since March 7, 2026GCash Help Center ↗ ·
- Currency conversion3.0% above the base exchange rate for the PhilippinesPayPal ↗ ·
- TimingGCash says real time, may take 24 to 48 hours; PayPal says 2 hours to 3 calendar days, depending on the transaction valueGCash Help Center ↗ · PayPal ↗ ·
- LimitsFully Verified: ₱1,000,000 in the wallet at any time and ₱1,000,000 incoming per monthGCash Help Center ↗ ·
Fees
GCash charges a cash-in fee on money arriving from PayPal. For the GCash withdrawal itself, PayPal says the app shows the pesos you will receive, the exchange rate, “any transaction fee” and an estimated processing time before you confirm (PayPal ↗). PayPal’s Philippine fee page does list a 2.0% plus US$1.50 charge for withdrawals to a third-party bank account or wallet, but the Philippines is absent from the list of markets that row covers (PayPal consumer fees ↗).
| Cash-in source | GCash fee |
|---|---|
| PayPal, since March 7, 2026 | 1% of the cash-in amount, all amounts |
| PayPal, before March 7, 2026 | 1% of the amount under ₱20,000; ₱200 at ₱20,000 and above |
| Payoneer | Free |
What changed
- Before1% of the amount under ₱20,000, and a flat ₱200 at ₱20,000 and above
- Now1% of the cash-in amount at all amounts
- EffectiveMarch 7, 2026
The GCash cash-in fee page still shows the old two-tier wording beside the new rule, so read the fee on your own confirmation screen.
Limits
Your GCash profile, not PayPal, sets the ceiling on what you can receive.
| Limit | Fully Verified |
|---|---|
| Wallet balance at any given time | ₱1,000,000 |
| Incoming per month | ₱1,000,000 |
| Outgoing per day | ₱500,000 |
| Outgoing per month | ₱1,000,000 |
GCash no longer lists a separate GCash Plus profile: a Fully Verified adult gets the limits above, and the higher 5M and 10M profiles are for eligible customers with active GSave, GFunds, GBonds, GStocks or GCrypto accounts, subject to approval (GCash Help Center ↗ · ). Monthly limits reset on the 1st day of the next month. Every profile is on GCash limit by profile.
Go over your daily or monthly GCash limit and, GCash says, the cash in may fail or be reversed; you can wait for your limits to refresh, try a smaller amount or upgrade your profile (GCash Help Center ↗).
Steps
GCash documents both procedures in its help centre, and PayPal describes the same link from its own side.
Linking PayPal to GCash
- On the GCash app, tap Cash In.
- Tap Global Banks and Partners, then PayPal. PayPal describes reaching the same service through Profile, My Linked Accounts, PayPal.
- Log in to PayPal, then tap Next.
- Tap Okay to confirm.
Linking grants GCash permission to link your wallet, view your PayPal balance and make withdrawals from your PayPal account, and new PayPal customers get an email asking them to confirm their email address (PayPal ↗). Name changes, verification and currency conversion happen on the PayPal website rather than in GCash, and on Android GCash asks you to install Google Chrome and set it as your default browser (GCash Help Center ↗).
Cashing in from PayPal
- Link PayPal to GCash, convert your PayPal balance to PHP, and check your GCash limits.
- On the GCash app, tap Cash In.
- Tap Global Banks and Partners, then PayPal.
- Type the amount, tap Next, then confirm.
Read the confirmation screen before you tap through, because it carries the amount in pesos, the exchange rate, any fee and the estimated processing time (PayPal ↗). GCash also notes that “Transfers to and from your GCash VISA Card and PayPal are not available”, and that the link is still the way to cash in (GCash Help Center ↗).
How long it takes
The two companies publish different windows, so plan around the longer one.
- You confirm in the GCash app — immediate — the screen shows the pesos, the rate, any fee and an estimated processing time (PayPal ↗)
- GCash’s window — real time, may take 24 to 48 hours — GCash: “Cash in is processed in real-time, but may take 24-48 hours.” (GCash Help Center ↗)
- PayPal’s window — 2 hours to 3 calendar days — PayPal ties the wait to the transaction value (PayPal ↗)
- Funds land in the wallet — within the windows above — a message arrives in your GCash App Inbox (GCash Help Center ↗)
- Nothing after 48 hours — 48 hours onward — open the GCash app, tap Help, then Chat with Gigi (GCash Help Center ↗)
Routes compared
If you also hold a Philippine bank account, PayPal’s withdrawal to that account is the other documented way out of your balance. The two fee structures do not line up at every amount, so read both rows for the amount you are moving.
Route: PayPal to GCash
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Fee | 1% of the cash-in amount, charged by GCash |
| Minimum | ₱500.00 or the equivalent |
| Timing | Real time, may take 24 to 48 hours (GCash); 2 hours to 3 calendar days by transaction value (PayPal) |
| Currency conversion | 3.0% above the base exchange rate when you convert a balance to pesos on PayPal first |
Route: PayPal to your bank
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Fee | No fee on a peso withdrawal greater than ₱7,000.00 when no currency conversion is involved; ₱50.00 when the peso amount is less than ₱7,000.00 |
| Timing | Typically 1 business day; may take 3 to 5 business days depending on your bank’s clearing process |
| Currency conversion | 3.0% above the base exchange rate; conversion fees are added when you withdraw in a currency other than the one your balance is held in |
Two other exits from a Philippine PayPal balance carry published figures: 3.00% to a US bank account, and 1% to a card with a minimum of ₱10.00 and a maximum of ₱500.00 (PayPal consumer fees ↗). Your receiving bank may charge to accept funds from PayPal, and once you request a withdrawal it cannot be cancelled (PayPal ↗).
Converting dollars to pesos
A payment that reaches you in dollars stays in dollars: PayPal accepts it in the currency received and opens a new currency balance in your account (PayPal ↗). GCash’s own instruction before a cash in is to “Convert your PayPal balance to PHP”, and to add PHP on PayPal if you do not see it (GCash Help Center ↗). Follow GCash there, since GCash is the receiving side. PayPal’s article is looser and names “USD or PHP” as examples of the supported wallet currency.
You convert inside PayPal from Wallet: select the More icon beside the currency, choose Convert currency, pick a currency and enter the amount, and the conversion rate appears on the page (PayPal ↗). That step is where the exchange cost sits. For the Philippines, PayPal charges 3.0% above the base exchange rate when converting a balance and on transfers and payments received, and 4.0% when sending payments or receiving a refund (PayPal consumer fees ↗). The base rate comes from wholesale currency markets on the conversion day or the prior business day, with PayPal’s spread applied over it (PayPal ↗).
Transferring without linking
There is no official route. PayPal and GCash both describe one method only, the linked withdrawal made from inside the GCash app, and the link is one PayPal account to one GCash account (PayPal ↗).
You can reach a GCash wallet in two documented steps instead of one, by withdrawing from PayPal to your own Philippine bank account and then cashing in from that bank. Treat it as two separate services with two sets of rules rather than a PayPal-to-GCash method. GCash says a bank cash in by InstaPay is usually instant but may take up to 2 hours during busy periods, and by PESONet usually within 1 banking day when sent before 3 PM (GCash Help Center ↗), and says handling fees may apply (GCash Help Center ↗).
Why a transfer fails
Requirements come first. An unverified GCash account cannot link to PayPal at all, the PayPal account must be Philippines-based and verified, and the name check is done on the PayPal website. GCash warns that it “may unlink your account if your information doesn’t match” (GCash Help Center ↗), and PayPal requires the name registered on your PayPal account to match the name on the bank account you withdraw to (PayPal ↗).
After that, the documented causes are a balance not held in pesos, an amount below the ₱500.00 minimum, and a GCash limit already used up, which fails the transfer and sends the money back to the source account. PayPal adds that “All transfers are subject to review and could be delayed or stopped” (PayPal ↗). On the bank route, wrong account details cost a ₱250.00 bank return fee, and a bank that has a problem with the request notifies PayPal within 1 week of when you asked for it (PayPal ↗).
Warning
- GCash states it plainly: “GCash will NEVER send you links via SMS/email or ask for your MPIN/OTP.” (GCash Help Center ↗)
- Social media pages posing as GCash support exist; report a problem only through Gigi or the GCash Help Center (GCash Help Center ↗)
- Anyone offering to rent or buy your GCash account is recruiting you into illegal activity under your name (GCash Help Center ↗)
- PayPal phishing mail imitates “You’ve received a payment.” Log in to PayPal and check that the payment is real before you ship anything, and forward suspicious mail to
phishing@paypal.com(PayPal ↗ · PayPal ↗)- Keep the name identical across the accounts you link; GCash may unlink accounts whose details differ (GCash Help Center ↗)
- Report a scam to the PNP or NBI. GCash says it will “no longer be able to return the funds to you” (GCash Help Center ↗)