As in many other countries, bills for mobile phone, Internet, electricity and other utilities in Mexico can be paid in different ways:
- in cash at branches of service providers, in stores such as OXXO or at the checkout counters of most supermarkets,
- by credit card online on the website of each service provider,
- by credit card through the Mercado Pago application.
Today we will talk about the last payment method. Its basic advantages:
- all suppliers and all services are collected in one place,
- it is allowed to pay with cards from foreign banks, while many mobile operators and especially utility service providers do not accept payments with such cards on their websites,
- payment from a mobile phone without leaving home and without any commissions, unlike paying in cash,
- payment with several movements, in particular, scanning the bill with a mobile phone camera,
- instant payment, which, however, is typical of all electronic payments.
By and large, in Mexico there are currently no alternatives to Mercado Pago for ease of payment.
So, you need to download the applicationMercado Pagoand install on your mobile phone. You can download it from Google Play or AppStore. Then you need to create an account by entering your name, email address, Mexican mobile phone number (this is required) and answering a few more questions.
Then you need to add your bank card information to your account. Any card from any bank in Ukraine, Russia, etc. will do, as well as virtual accounts of some payment systems. After pre-authorization and possibly entering the password received from your bank, you are able to make payments. You can link several different cards. If you are a fan of cash payments, you can top up your balance on Mercado Pago through OXXO stores or at supermarket checkouts, and then pay from it.
Do you have an account with Mercado Libro e-commerce system? Use it — this is the same account.
Paying for the service is very simple. To top up your mobile phone balance, enter its number and make the required confirmations.
To pay your utility bill (water, electricity, phone/internet), you need to have it on paper. Sometimes bills don't arrive by mail, then we go to the service provider's website, register and open an account on the computer screen. All that needs to be done next — select this service provider from the list (Mercado Pago will generate it based on your location), scan the barcode (two-dimensional or three-dimensional) on the invoice on paper or on the computer screen, enter the amount, make the necessary confirmations — That's it, the bill is paid.
Let us add that it is also possible to pay bills issued by a variety of companies and stores, pay for goods and services at physical retail outlets (say, at McDonald's), and transfer money from a card to accounts in Mexican banks or to cards of Mexican banks. True, the latter did not seem entirely appropriate to us due to the commission.