How to Pay Your Bills Online From the Safety of Home

Most Americans use online accounts to pay credit card, utility and other regular bills, but for many older bill payers, licking a stamp and mailing a monthly check or money order remains the norm. A 2019 study by financial-tech firm Fiserv found that nearly a third of people age 65 and older did not use online or mobile payments.

But the older adults who still prefer paying with paper are also among those potentially most vulnerable to severe cases of COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus. With federal and state officials urging at-risk people in particular to stay at home, now might be the time to avoid trips to the post office and the bank, and switch to online banking.

Financial institutions and companies that bill for services like water, power, insurance and internet access have made online payment simple and secure, and it's easy to get started.

There are two common ways to pay bills online: Pay companies individually via their websites or mobile apps, or authorize your bank or credit union to pay the bills from your account. There's no need to do one or the other exclusively; use either method, or both, in whatever combination best suits your financial needs.

Paying companies individually

To set up individual payments, create an account at the company's site or app. You'll need to:

• Create a username and password to log in to the account.
• Give an email address and phone number so the company can contact you, for example, to confirm your identity when you log in (a process called “two-factor authentication").
• Link the account to a payment method (or methods), such as a bank account or a credit card. You'll need to provide the account number and, if using a bank, the routing number. (The number is printed on your paper checks, along with the account number.)

To make a payment, log in to the account and look for a “pay” or “payments” link. You'll be prompted to enter the amount, select the payment date and method and confirm the transaction. You'll typically get an automated email from the company affirming that you made or scheduled a payment.

Paying online through your bank

Going through your bank can make online bill paying more like a one-stop shop. To get started:

• Create an online account on your bank's website or app, if you don't already have one.
• Once you've logged in, look for a “bill pay” link and create profiles for each of the companies (known as “payees") you want to pay. You'll need to enter information like the company's name and your account number with it.
• Enter how much you want to pay the company and on what date. Keep in mind that it may take a few days for bank payments to process, so schedule them to go out before the bill's due date.

You'll generally have to own a checking account with a bank to use its bill pay service. Most banks, especially larger ones, offer basic bill paying for free, but there may be a fee if you exceed a set number of payments per month, or for special features like accessing transactions from financial software. Read the terms and conditions carefully.

Having your bank pay your bills has the benefit of convenience; you don't have to juggle multiple payees and payee websites. But make sure you have enough in your account to cover those bills each month, especially if you set up recurring payments.

Automate your payments

One advantage of paying bills online is that you can set up automated payments that go out on the same date each month. This option, typically available from both banks and individual payees, can save time and alleviate worries about forgetting a bill and incurring late fees or finance charges.

Automated payments are best suited to bills that are same amount each month, such as the mortgage, insurance premiums or streaming entertainment services. For bills that vary, such as credit cards and utilities, use recurring payments only if you know the account has enough in it cover an unusually large bill.