Facebook and PayPal have teamed up to bring you a new app called Send Money. Send Money lets you, well, send money to anyone on your Facebook list. To do so, all you have to do is log into your PayPal account (after logging into the app), choose a recipient, and send away. Sound convenient? Well, it is, but there are also some obvious drawbacks to this app. But, before I get into those downfalls, let’s talk about PayPal and Facebook – a lovely relationship.

PayPal and Facebook have been working together for some time now. Even though nothing much has bloomed from the relationship, it’s interesting to see these two companies working together. For those who do not have a PayPal account, or aren’t used to using PayPal, sending money through Facebook may seem like a godsend. As mention though, there are some reasons why you may want to think twice before sending money in this manner.

Facebook Security

Facebook is notorious for having weak security links. Not only is it easy to hack a Facebook profile, but Facebook has been accused of selling personal info to other companies before, and setting up Facebook privacy customization options can be tricky. If you are to send money using the Send Money app, make sure that all of your privacy settings are in check, and use a secure PayPal password.

There’s also a matter of PayPal fees. If you aren’t used to using PayPal, you may not know that this company loves to charge a number of fees to clients. In fact, it’s how PayPal makes money. So, let’s compare the cost of sending money to someone in the mail with sending money through the Send Money app.

The Cost of Send Money

PayPal claims that you can send money to any Facebook user for free if you already have money in your PayPal account. Most people don’t keep money in a PayPal account, since PayPal has been called out for locking people out of an account before for random reasons. These problems aside, if you do keep money in a PayPal account, make sure that amount is minimal to reduce risk. It is also possible to use the Send Money app for free if you withdraw money directly from your bank account (this will take a few days though).

The other possibility is to use a credit card to send money to a Facebook friend. Of course, using a credit card means that you will have to pay some kind of fee – this is simply standard business. PayPal charges 2.9% of the transfer amount when you use a credit card to send funds. This is slightly more expensive than sending money through the mail, but it’s not enough of an expense to worry too much about.

Send Money Cards

Most of the time, if you’re sending money to someone it’s because of an event or occasion. The Send Money app allows you to select a card for free that you will send to someone virtually. So, if you don’t want to buy an actual card and send it snail mail, you can simply choose a free card - a nice perk. There’s just one question that I can’t figure out an answer to: why send money using Send Money when you can just send money to someone directly through Facebook?