How to setup Google Pay to safely send or receive money over UPI

Google Pay (formerly Goole Tez) is a go-to app for many users who wish to transact over UPI or Unified Payments Interface. Ever since the introduction of UPI, we have a lot of apps available in the market that supports this relatively new concept to empower the cashless economy.

Google, being one of the early adopters, has an edge over its competitors. Right now, there are many apps to support UPI such as the government’s own BHIM app. To name a few, there are apps like PhonePe, Paytm and WhatsApp with a massive user base to support UPI.

Google Pay has been around for quite some time now. Originally introduced as Google Tez, it crossed 100 million installs as of April 2018. At the time of writing this, Google Pay happens to be the second most popular app on Google Play Store. And given that Google is promoting it heavily, it has garnered an insane amount of attention from people all across the country.

We explain how to get started with Google Pay and safely transact over UPI. But before that, let’s quickly understand what UPI means and how it differs from more traditional methods of online banking.

What is UPI?

Short for Unified Payments Interface, UPI is a real-time payment system created by National Payments Corporation of India (NCPI) to let users make the bank-to-bank payment transfer without much hassle. To put it simply, unlike NEFT or RTGS payment methods, UPI does not require one to input details like bank account number and IFSC code to transfer money from one account to the other.

All users need to know is a mobile number or UPI address associated with a specific bank account for real-time transactions. The main highlight, payments can be sent or received within a matter of seconds, much like a text message.

How to setup Google Pay

Step 1: Download the latest version of Google Pay app. You can check by going to your respective app stores (Google Play Store for Android and Apple App Store for iOS).

Step 2: Follow the on-screen instructions to get started with Google Pay. Enter the mobile number that is linked to your bank account. Select your Google account and hit “Continue.”

Step 3: Google Pay will verify your number using OTP. You need to safeguard your Google Pay account using either screen lock or a 4-digit Google PIN.

Note: If you choose a Google PIN, you will need to be connected to the internet for verification of your PIN each time you want to run Google Pay.

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How to add a bank account

Step 1: Tap on your profile picture at the top left corner of your screen. Under Account, you will find a message saying that no bank account is added to your Google Pay.

Step 2: Tap on the option Bank Account > Add Bank Account on the next screen. It will show you the list of banks to choose from. Select your bank. It will then try to locate a bank account linked to your mobile number.

Step 3: In case you have multiple bank accounts linked with the same mobile number, choose the bank account that you would like to use with Google Pay.

Step 4: Create or enter your 4-digit UPI PIN and complete the procedure.

How to send or receive money using Google Pay

Step 1: Tap the option “New” to make a payment transfer or request for one. Choose the person you want to transact with. Make sure he or she is added to your contacts.

Step 2: Open the chat-like window. Either select Pay or Request depending on what you want to do. If you select Pay, enter the amount and confirm your transfer by verifying your UPI PIN.