PayPal Holdings employed approximately 23,800 people globally as of December 31, 2025, with 46% of staff in the Americas, 42% in Asia-Pacific, and 12% in Europe and the Middle East. The figure puts the company roughly 7,100 employees below its 2021 peak and reflects four consecutive years of headcount contraction at the payments leader.
That contraction sits inside a company whose financial output keeps growing. According to SEC filings, PayPal reported net revenues of $33,172 million and net income of $5,233 million for the year ended December 31, 2025, a 26% increase in net income compared to 2024. Fewer staff, more output is the headline emerging from PayPal.
Key Takeaways
- According to PayPal’s FY2025 Form 10-K filed with the SEC, the company employed approximately 23,800 people globally as of December 31, 2025, including approximately 9,600 in the U.S.
- Per the same 10-K, the workforce is spread across 142 nationalities and 28 countries, with global gender diversity at approximately 42%.
- According to Macrotrends, citing annual 10-K filings, PayPal’s headcount fell from 30,900 in 2021 to 23,800 in 2025, a multi-year contraction of roughly 23%.
- PayPal’s FY2025 income statement shows net revenues reached $33,172 million in 2025, up 4% from 2024, producing implied revenue per employee near $1.39 million.
- Per PayPal’s Q1 2026 earnings release, total payment volume hit $1.79 trillion in 2025, up 7% from 2024, across 439 million active accounts.
- According to the 10-K’s restructuring footnote, the “2Q 2025 Plan” booked $102 million in restructuring charges in 2025, including $96 million in employee severance and benefits costs.
- Per the company’s February 2026 Form 8-K, Enrique Lores became President and CEO effective March 1, 2026, succeeding Alex Chriss, who had served on the PayPal Board for nearly five years and as Board Chair since July 2024.
Editor’s Choice
- PayPal had approximately 23,800 employees globally as of December 31, 2025, per the company’s FY2025 Form 10-K filed with the SEC.
- The 2025 total represents a decline of 600 employees, or 2.46%, from the 24,400 reported at the end of 2024.
- Approximately 9,600 PayPal employees are located in the U.S., across 28 countries of operation.
- Gender mix at the global level reached approximately 42% gender diversity as of December 31, 2025.
- U.S. ethnic diversity stood at approximately 58% as of December 31, 2025, per PayPal’s Human Capital disclosure.
Recent Developments
- In February 2026, the PayPal Board appointed Enrique Lores as President and CEO, effective March 1, 2026, succeeding Alex Chriss, who resigned February 2, 2026.
- During the second quarter of 2025, management launched the “2Q 2025 Plan,” a multi-year program to reengineer technology infrastructure and optimize the workforce, with the workforce component expected to be substantially completed in 2027.
- The 2Q 2025 Plan booked $102 million in restructuring charges in 2025, including $96 million in employee severance and benefits costs.
- In the first quarter of 2025, PayPal initiated a separate workforce reduction tied to a new regulation in an international market, booking $36 million in restructuring charges.
- Q1 2026 results from PayPal show first-quarter revenue grew 7% at spot rates with transaction revenue of $7.5 billion and monthly active accounts up 1% to 225 million.
How Many People Work at PayPal Today?
PayPal’s Human Capital disclosure in the FY2025 Form 10-K confirms approximately 23,800 people employed globally as of December 31, 2025. The disclosure also documents 142 nationalities and 28 countries of operation across the workforce.
By the numbers: PayPal’s FY2025 Form 10-K reports approximately 23,800 employees globally as of December 31, 2025, including approximately 9,600 in the U.S., across 142 nationalities and 28 countries. The global gender mix reached approximately 42% and U.S. ethnic diversity reached approximately 58% by year-end.
PayPal Headcount Year by Year
- PayPal employed 27,000 people at the end of 2020, then expanded to 30,900 by the end of 2021, a 14.4% increase.
- Headcount fell to 29,900 at year-end 2022, then to 27,200 at year-end 2023, a 9.03% drop.
- The 2024 figure of 24,400 reflected a 10.29% decline from 2023, one of the largest single-year cuts in the company’s history.
- The 2025 total of 23,800 marked a 2.46% decline from 2024.
- The cumulative reduction from the 30,900 2021 peak to 23,800 in 2025 totals approximately 7,100 jobs over four calendar years.
Where PayPal Employees Are Located
- PayPal’s largest employee concentration sits in the Americas, accounting for 46% of the global workforce as of December 31, 2025.
- Asia-Pacific holds approximately 42% of PayPal’s headcount, a roughly even split with the Americas region.
- Europe and the Middle East account for 12% of global staff, the smallest of the three reporting regions.
- Roughly 9,600 of the 23,800 global employees sit in the U.S., a U.S. footprint of about two-fifths of the total workforce.
- Approximately 43% of PayPal’s 2025 net revenues came from customers domiciled outside the U.S., a higher share than the U.S. employee footprint would suggest.
PayPal Revenue and Net Income
- PayPal’s net revenues grew from $29,771 million in 2023 to $31,797 million in 2024 and $33,172 million in 2025, a two-year expansion of roughly 11%.
- Net income rose 26% in 2025 to $5,233 million, up from $4,147 million in 2024.
- Operating income reached $6,065 million in 2025, up 14% from $5,325 million in 2024.
- Operating margin expanded to 18% in 2025 from 17% in 2024, the highest annual reading in the three-year window.
- Diluted EPS climbed to $5.41 in 2025, up 35% from $3.99 in 2024.
Revenue and Profit Per PayPal Employee
| Metric | 2025 Value | Calculation |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue per employee | $1.39 million | $33.17 billion / 23,800 |
| Net income per employee | $220,000 | $5.23 billion / 23,800 |
| Operating income per employee | $255,000 | $6.07 billion / 23,800 |
| Active accounts per employee | 18,445 | 439 million / 23,800 |
| Transactions per employee | 1.07 million | 25.4 billion / 23,800 |
Source: Derived from PayPal Holdings FY2025 Form 10-K, calculations by CoinLaw
- Revenue per employee lands near $1.39 million.
- Net income per employee lands near $220,000.
- Operating income per employee lands near $255,000.
- Each employee on average serves 18,445 active accounts.
- Each employee on average underpins 1.07 million annual transactions.
PayPal’s Restructuring Plan
| Component | Amount or Timing |
|---|---|
| 2025 total restructuring charges (2Q 2025 Plan) | $102 million |
| Employee severance and benefits costs (in 2025) | $96 million |
| Other restructuring costs (in 2025) | $6 million |
| Expected severance over plan term | $90-100 million |
| Expected asset impairment and accelerated depreciation | $40-60 million |
| Expected other restructuring costs over plan term | $110-140 million |
| Projected annualized cost savings | $280 million |
| Workforce component substantial completion | 2027 |
| Technology infrastructure component completion | 2028 |
Source: PayPal Holdings FY2025 Form 10-K, February 2026
- The 2Q 2025 Plan is a transformative unified program designed to streamline operations and includes exiting certain data centers to migrate to more efficient cloud-based solutions.
Key finding: PayPal’s FY2025 Form 10-K discloses $102 million in 2Q 2025 Plan restructuring charges booked during 2025, including $96 million in employee severance and benefits costs and $6 million in other restructuring costs. The company expects annualized cost savings of approximately $280 million once the workforce component completes in 2027 and the technology infrastructure component completes in 2028.
- PayPal expects to incur employee severance and benefits costs of approximately $90 million to $100 million over the term of the 2Q 2025 Plan.
- The company expects annualized cost savings of approximately $280 million associated with the impacted workforce and operational costs for technology infrastructure.
- The 2Q 2025 Plan is expected to be executed over a period of 18 to 42 months, with the workforce component substantially completed in 2027 and the technology infrastructure component substantially completed in 2028.
- A separate first-quarter 2025 workforce reduction to comply with a new regulation in an international market booked $36 million in restructuring charges, completed in the third quarter of 2025.
How PayPal’s Headcount Compares to Its 439 Million Active Accounts
- PayPal supported 439 million active accounts as of December 31, 2025, an increase of 1% compared to 2024.
- The company processed 25.4 billion payment transactions in 2025, a 4% decrease from 26.3 billion in 2024.
- Total payment volume of $1.79 trillion in 2025 grew 7% from $1.68 trillion in 2024.
- Cross-border TPV held at 12% of total payment volume in 2025, unchanged from 2024 and 2023.
- PayPal generated 37% of total payment volume outside the U.S. in 2025, matching the 2024 share.
- The 1-employee-to-18,400-active-account ratio is the kind of structural efficiency that supports continued investment in AI and ML initiatives across the broader fintech stack.
- The same efficiency lens explains continued product expansion into buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) while staff numbers continue to fall.
- Sustained merchant adoption is the offset that keeps headcount-light scaling intact.
Is PayPal Growing or Declining?
PayPal is growing financially while contracting on headcount. Net revenues rose 4% to $33,172 million and net income jumped 26% to $5,233 million in 2025, even as the employee base shrank by 600. First quarter revenue grew 7% at spot rates, with transaction revenue at $7.5 billion and total payment volume over $460 billion. The pattern is profitable growth with a leaner workforce, not absolute decline.
Who Is PayPal’s CEO?
Enrique Lores is President and CEO of PayPal Holdings, effective March 1, 2026, succeeding Alex Chriss, who served on the PayPal Board for nearly five years and as Board Chair since July 2024. Chriss ceased to serve as President and Chief Executive Officer and resigned as a member of the Board, effective February 2, 2026. The CEO transition arrived alongside the 2Q 2025 Plan and a continued focus on diversity and operational efficiency.
How Does PayPal Compare to Apple Pay and Its Rivals?
PayPal reported 439 million active accounts as of December 31, 2025, across approximately 200 markets. PayPal’s biggest direct rivals are Apple Pay and Google Pay on the consumer side, Stripe and Block on the small-business side, and Adyen and Wise on the cross-border side.
Conclusion
PayPal employs approximately 23,800 people across 28 countries as of December 31, 2025, while delivering net income of $5,233 million and net revenues of $33,172 million in 2025. The Americas-APAC-EMEA split and the 2Q 2025 Plan savings point to a company designing for output per employee.
Under new CEO Enrique Lores, the watchpoints are execution of the 2Q 2025 Plan’s workforce component through 2027 and whether revenue per employee can push past the current $1.39 million figure.
