You can block a PayPal contact in three places: your blocked list, during a transaction dispute, or by reporting them

PayPal's block feature prevents someone from sending you money requests, seeing your profile, or contacting you through the platform. The block is one-way — the person you block can still see their own transaction history with you, but they cannot initiate new contact or send you payment requests. Blocking is different from reporting: blocking stops their access to you, while reporting alerts PayPal to suspicious or abusive behavior.

You can block someone from your account settings at any time, or block them directly from a message or transaction if one is already in progress. The process takes less than a minute and does not require PayPal support.

Key Takeaways

  • Blocking someone on PayPal prevents them from sending you money requests or contacting you, but they can still see past transactions with you.
  • You can block a contact from your Resolution Center if you are in a dispute with them, or from your blocked list in account settings.
  • Blocking is not the same as reporting — report someone to PayPal if you believe they are committing fraud or harassment, not just if you want them to stop contacting you.
  • If someone is harassing you or threatening you, report the behavior to PayPal and consider reporting to law enforcement if threats involve violence or extortion.

How to block someone from your PayPal settings

Open PayPal on your phone or computer and sign in. Go to Settings (the gear icon on mobile, or the menu on desktop), then select Privacy or Blocking and Reporting depending on your device. You will see a section called Blocked Contacts.

Click or tap Add to Blocked List and enter the person's email address or phone number. PayPal will confirm the block immediately. The person will not receive a notification that you blocked them, but if they try to send you a money request, they will see an error message saying the request could not be sent.

To unblock someone later, return to the same screen, find their name in your blocked list, and select Unblock.

How to block someone during a payment dispute

If you are in the middle of a dispute with someone — for example, you are disputing a payment or a money request — you can block them from your Resolution Center. Open PayPal, go to Resolution Center (usually under Account or Help), and find the transaction in question.

Select the transaction and look for an option to Block This User or Report This Transaction. Blocking from the Resolution Center adds them to your blocked list and keeps the dispute open so PayPal can investigate if needed. This is useful if someone is harassing you about a disputed payment.

When to report someone instead of just blocking

Blocking stops someone from contacting you, but it does not alert PayPal to wrongdoing. If the person is engaging in fraud, sending unsolicited requests repeatedly, or threatening you, report them instead of or in addition to blocking.

To report someone, go to the transaction or message, select Report, and choose the reason: fraud, unauthorized transaction, harassment, or another category. PayPal will investigate reports of fraud or abuse. Reports are confidential — the person you report will not know it came from you.

If someone is threatening violence, extortion, or making threats related to money, also report the behavior to your local police or the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) at ic3.gov. PayPal's report goes to PayPal; law enforcement reports go to authorities who can take legal action.

What happens after you block someone

Once blocked, the person cannot send you money requests, see your profile, or message you through PayPal. If they try to send you a payment request, they will see a message saying it could not be delivered. They can still see their own transaction history — they can look back at payments they sent you or received from you — but they cannot initiate new contact.

If the person has your phone number or email outside of PayPal, they can still contact you through those channels. Blocking on PayPal does not block their ability to text, email, or call you directly. If harassment continues outside PayPal, block them on your phone or email provider as well.

Blocking does not remove past transactions

Blocking someone does not erase or hide past payments between you. Both of you can still see the transaction history in your account. If you want to dispute a past payment, you can do that separately through the Resolution Center — blocking and disputing are two different actions.

If you blocked someone by mistake, you can unblock them from the same settings screen. Unblocking restores their ability to send you requests and contact you, but it does not change any past transaction records.

Frequently Asked Questions

Will the person know I blocked them?

No. PayPal does not send a notification when you block someone. They will only realize it if they try to send you a money request and see an error message. Even then, the message does not say "you are blocked" — it says the request could not be sent.

Can I block someone if I do not know their email or phone number?

Not directly from the blocked list. If you are in a dispute with them or viewing a transaction, you can block them from that screen. If you only know their name, search for the transaction they were involved in and block from there.

What if someone keeps creating new accounts to contact me after I block them?

Report each new account to PayPal as harassment or fraud. Document the pattern — take screenshots of the requests or messages — and include that in your report. PayPal can investigate repeated contact from different accounts and may suspend the person's accounts.

Does blocking on PayPal block them on Venmo or other apps?

No. PayPal, Venmo, and other payment apps are separate platforms. You must block someone on each app individually. Blocking on PayPal does not affect their access to Venmo or other services.

Can I block someone without them seeing our past transactions?

No. Blocking does not hide past transactions from either of you. If you want to remove a transaction record, you would need to contact PayPal support, but blocking alone does not do this.