If you’re having problems paying for Google products or you’re seeing one of these messages, you might need to fix a problem with your payments profile.
Find the issue you’re experiencing below.
"Your transaction cannot be completed"
If you’re asked to provide additional information after seeing this message, follow the instructions. If not, try the following.
- Check whether the billing address for your payment method (such as a credit card) matches the address recorded in your Google Pay settings. If they don't match, update your address on pay.google.com, and try the transaction again.
- If you’re on an app, try to pay on the product’s website instead. If you’re on the website, try the app.
- If you’re buying on Google Play: Go here for suggestions.
- If you’re using guest checkout on Google Store: Sign in to your Google Account. If you don’t have one, create one first.
"Unable to complete transaction: expired card"
Check to see if your payment method is up to date. If it isn’t, update it in Google Pay.
"Unable to complete transaction. Please use another form of payment."
Note: These steps also apply if you’re seeing the error message "Your payment didn't go through. Please try a different payment method or try again later."
Try the following.
- Check to see if your payment method is up to date. If it isn’t, update it in Google Pay. Then try your purchase again.
- Make sure you have enough money in your account for the purchase.
- If you’re still having issues, contact your bank to see if there’s a problem with your account.
- Try making the purchase again with a different payment method.
"Your payment was declined due to an issue with your account"
If you see this message, it might be because:
- We saw a suspicious transaction on your payments profile.
- We need a little more information to protect your account against fraud.
- We need a little more information to comply with EU law (European customers only).
To fix the issue, try the following.
- Go to pay.google.com.
- Take action on any alerts or requests.
- You might need to verify your identity before you can buy anything through your Google Account.
- Make sure your name, address, and payment information are up to date.
"Unable to process payment: low card balance"
You might not have enough funds in your account to make the payment. Check your account balance or contact your bank.
Extra security checks from your bank
From September 14th 2019, merchants and card issuers will need to comply with the new security requirements imposed on banks and payment processors by the Payment Services Directive 2 (PSD2), taking effect in the European Economic Area. Your bank may now require strong customer authentication (SCA) (e.g. pass code via SMS or email, a security question or redirection to your bank's website to verify your identity) when using a credit or debit card online.
PSD2 has been introduced to provide better protection for your online payments. Any SCA is controlled by your card-issuing bank and not Google. For any issues with the process you should contact your card-issuing bank (their phone number should be on the back of your card). If you are having difficulties making purchases using Google Pay, you can also try an alternative payment method.
Ineligible or grayed out card
If your card is grayed out or you see a message that your card is ineligible, you won’t be able to use it for this type of purchase. Try making the purchase again with a different payment method.
If you don’t see the payment method you want to use, follow the instructions on the screen to add a new one.
Closed Google payments profile
Learn more about what to do if you permanently closed your payments profile.
Still need help? Contact us
If you’re still having trouble, contact support for your Google product.
