What is this charge on my credit card?

Charges by company

What each company says its charges look like, from its own help pages:

• AMZN Mktp US charge: what Amazon charges look like
• apple.com/bill charge: what it is and how to find it
• Google charge on your bank statement: what GOOGLE * means
• Xsolla charge on your card: what it is and how to check it

How to work out a charge you don't recognize

The name isn't the brand

A statement shows the name the company bills under, which is often shortened or about the service, not the product. Google, for example, lists YouTube Premium as GOOGLE *GOOGLE and Google One as GOOGLE *Google Storage, and says some names may appear shortened. Apple bills apps, subscriptions, music and movies as apple.com/bill.

A payment company in the middle

Some names belong to the company that took the payment for someone else. Google says an app from the Play Store shows as GOOGLE * and the developer's name. Amazon lists AMZ*(Company Name) for things bought on other sites with Amazon Pay. Xsolla takes payments for games, and its names include Xsolla_Roblox. When you pay a store through Google Pay, Google says the charge carries the store's name, not Google's.

A city, phone number or web address in the line

What comes after the name is part of the label, not proof of where you were. Amazon lists Amazon.com*PMT SVC 866-749-7545 for Amazon Pay, and Google lists GOOGLE STORE with a store location. Look up the date and amount rather than the place.

Pending or posted

A pending line is a hold, not yet a charge. Georgia's consumer protection office says a bank places a hold to assure the merchant gets paid, that a merchant's hold generally lasts no more than a day, and that some card companies allow up to three days to clear. Visa and Mastercard let gas stations hold up to $175 at the pump, which drops to what you pumped. Small checks of a card work the same way: Google, Amazon and Xsolla each describe one that goes away.

A free trial that turned into a charge

A charge a month or a year after you tried something is often the trial ending. Capital One lists “You signed up for a free trial and didn't know you would be charged for a subscription” among the debit charges it will look into. Cancel it so it doesn't come back: the cancel guides have the steps for each company.

Someone else on your card

Apple, Amazon and Xsolla all list a family member as a common answer. Apple's Family Sharing lets the organizer see every member's purchases, and Amazon adds coworkers and other cards on the same account.

What to do next

1. Ask the company. If you can trace the charge to a company and it's wrong, ask it to fix it. Capital One says that is usually the fastest way.
2. Then your bank or card company. If the company won't fix it, or the charge isn't yours at all, contact whoever issued the card. The CFPB says to call right away and, for a credit card, to send a written notice within 60 days after the charge appeared on your statement. For a debit card, report a lost card within two business days and an unauthorized charge within 60 days of the statement.

Debit and credit cards come with different rights. Can you dispute a charge on a debit card? has both side by side, and the charged twice guide covers a double charge.