Search results for

All search results
Best daily deals

Affiliate links on Android Authority may earn us a commission. Learn more.

How to get started with Cash App

Here's how to send and receive money, buy Bitcoin, and invest in stocks with Cash App.
By

Published onJune 23, 2023

Need an easy way to send money to a friend or family member? Cash App is an Android and iOS app that lets users send or receive money from other users of the app. If you don’t know how to use Cash App, we have you covered. We’ll go over the entire process, including signing up, sending and receiving money, and investing in stocks and Bitcoin.

QUICK ANSWER

To sign up for Cash App, download the app and then enter your personal and banking details to create an account.

To add money to your account, tap the Bank icon > Tap Add Cash > Enter the amount of cash you wish to add to your Cash App account > Tap Add.

If you want to send or receive funds, tap the $ icon in Cash App > Enter the amount of cash you wish to send or receive. > Tap Request to receive funds or Pay to send funds > Enter a $Cashtag, phone number, or email address of someone you wish to send or receive money from > Tap Request or Pay, depending on whether you're receiving and sending funds.

To invest in stocks, tap the Bank icon > Tap Invest in stocks > Search for and select the stock you want to buy.

If you wish to buy Bitcoin, tap the Bank icon > Tap Buy Bitcoin.


JUMP TO KEY SECTIONS

How to sign up for Cash App

A stock photo of the Cash App logo shown on a smartphone sitting on the edge of white table.

Before you can do anything with Cash App, you must sign up for an account. Here’s what you need to do:

  1. Download Cash App for Android or iOS on your device.
  2. Tap on the Cash App icon to launch it.
  3. To begin creating an account, enter either your phone number or email address.
  4. You’ll receive a code using the method you used to create your account; enter that code when prompted.
  5. Optionally, you can choose to invite some friends to use Cash App as well.
  6. Enter your debit card information to link your bank account with Cash App. You can skip this step, but you won’t be able to do much with Cash App if you do until you add your banking information.
  7. Choose a unique $Cashtag that you’ll use to send and receive money.
  8. Enter your zip code.

How to use Cash App

Your Cash App account is most useful if you’ve got funds available, and you can transfer funds from other sources, such as PayPal, to your Cash App account. Here’s what else you can do with your account.

Add money

To add money to your Cash App account, do the following:

  1. Launch Cash App on your device.
  2. Tap the Bank icon in the lower left-hand corner.
  3. Tap the Add Cash button.
  4. Enter the amount of cash you wish to add to your Cash App account.
  5. Tap the Add button.
  6. Follow the on-screen instructions.

Note that you need a linked bank account with your Cash App to add funds.

Send or receive money

You can send money to other Cash App users by following these steps:

  1. Tap the $ icon in Cash App.
  2. Enter the amount of cash you wish to send or receive.
  3. Tap Request to receive funds or Pay to send funds, and then enter a $Cashtag, phone number, or email address of someone you wish to send or receive money from.
  4. Optionally, you can add a note explaining what the payment or request is for.
  5. Tap Request or Pay, depending on whether you want to receive or send funds, respectively.
  6. Follow the on-screen instructions.

Investing in stocks and crypto with Cash App

A stock photo of the Bitcoin logo on a dark smartphone screen that's lying on top of pile of $100 bills.

Beyond sending and receiving funds, you can also invest in stocks and cryptocurrency using Cash App.

Investing in stocks

Here’s how to buy stocks with Cash App:

  1. Open Cash App on your device.
  2. Tap the Bank icon in the bottom left-hand corner.
  3. Tap Invest in stocks.
  4. Search for a company you wish to buy stock in or tap Buy Stocks to see various categories of stocks.
  5. Tap on a company and then tap Buy.
  6. Choose the amount you wish to invest and tap Next.
  7. In Change Order Type, you can also choose Auto Invest or Custom Purchase Order.
  8. Tap Next.
  9. You’ll have to verify your identity, so hit Continue to begin this process.
  10. Follow the on-screen instructions to verify your identity and complete the purchase.

Buying Bitcoin

You can also buy Bitcoin through Cash App:

  1. Open Cash App on your device.
  2. Tap the Bank icon in the bottom left-hand corner.
  3. Tap Buy Bitcoin.
  4. Tap Buy.
  5. Choose an amount of Bitcoin you wish to buy. Under Change Order Type, you can also choose Auto Invest or Custom Purchase Order.
  6. Follow the on-screen instructions to verify your identity and complete the purchase.

FAQs

No. You can only use Cash App to send money other Cash App users, not Venmo or other mobile payment apps.

No, you can buy a partial stock in a company for $1 using Cash App.

You don’t have to connect your bank account to Cash App, but you won’t be able to do much unless you connect them. For example, you won’t be able to transfer funds to your bank account.

Cash app stock purchases are through Cash App Investing LLC, which is a registered broker-dealer and a member of FINRA and SIPC.

Bitcoin transactions on Cash App are done with Block, Inc.