Quick overview
Zoooom is a peer-to-peer marketplace. However the buyer pays, the seller receives their full asking price:
- Card or debit — on cars up to $15,000. The seller is paid out instantly to their debit card via Stripe Instant Payouts. The buyer adds Zoooom's flat $100 plus the card rate of 2.9% + 30¢ and the 1% instant-payout fee, passed through at cost.
- Bank wire — the cheapest way to pay (only the $100; Zoooom covers the bank fee) and the only way to pay above $15,000. Not instant: the buyer sends it from their bank, before the 2 PM Pacific cutoff to land the same day.
- Cash at handoff — on a 100% cash sale there is no Zoooom fee at all. A deal can also be split: part online, the rest in cash, with the $100 riding the online part.
- The $100 flat fee is Zoooom's only revenue on the transaction. Nothing is marked up.
The platform handles identity verification, ownership verification, in-app messaging, the structured deal flow, and dispute mediation. The seller hands over the vehicle, title, and keys when you meet.
What buyers pay
You pick the rail that suits the deal. Paying online means you never have to carry a large sum to a meetup — but cash is still available, and on a 100% cash sale Zoooom charges nothing at all.
Your total covers three things:
- The full vehicle price, which goes to the seller.
- Zoooom's $100 service fee — a flat fee per completed transaction that funds identity and ownership verification, payment infrastructure, instant payouts, dispute mediation, and platform operations. It does not change with the price of the car.
- The processing cost of the rail you choose — on a card, the published rate of 2.9% + 30¢ plus the 1% instant-payout fee, roughly 4% together, passed through at cost. Zoooom adds no margin, and the rounding is floored in your favor. On a bank wire, nothing: Zoooom covers the bank fee. On a 100% cash sale, nothing at all — the $100 is waived too.
Example: an $8,500 car
| Line item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Vehicle price (paid to the seller) | $8,500.00 |
| Zoooom service fee | $100.00 |
| Card processing + instant payout, at cost (2.9% + 30¢ + 1%) | shown at checkout |
| Same car by bank wire instead | $8,600.00 — no card fee at all |
Checkout prices each rail separately and shows the exact dollar total before you confirm, so you can compare them side by side. On a car this size a wire saves the buyer roughly 4% of the price. No fees are added after you click pay.
Card is capped at $15,000; bank wire has no ceiling
Zoooom caps card and debit at $15,000 per transaction, which keeps chargeback exposure bounded on the instant rails. Bank wire is exempt — it can cover any price, which is why it is the rail for more expensive cars. Wires must be started before 2:00 PM Pacific to settle the same day.
Zoooom does not offer financing or buy-now-pay-later. We originate no loans, run no credit checks and issue no pre-approvals. Klarna and Affirm are no longer offered. Financing is coming soon.
What sellers get
When the buyer completes checkout, you receive the full asking price — instantly, with nothing deducted for processing. The rail the buyer chooses makes no difference to your payout:
- Credit / debit card — you receive the full price, paid out instantly; the buyer covers processing at cost. Cars up to $15,000.
- Bank wire — you receive the full price. No ceiling, so this is the rail on more expensive cars. Not instant — the buyer sends it from their bank, and it lands same day only if started before 2 PM Pacific.
- Cash — handed to you at the meetup. On a 100% cash sale neither side pays Zoooom anything.
Using an $8,500 car:
| Portion | Deducted from you | You receive |
|---|---|---|
| Vehicle price, paid online by card | $0.00 | $8,500.00 — instant |
| Total to seller | $0.00 | $8,500.00 |
The $100 Zoooom service fee and any processing cost are paid by the buyer, on top of your price. Your number is the number you listed.
Setting up to receive payments (sellers)
Before you can accept a buyer's payment, you need to set up a Stripe Express account. This is a one-time setup that takes about 5 minutes. Zoooom guides you through this in-app when you first list a vehicle, or before you accept your first offer.
You'll be asked to provide:
- Your legal name and date of birth
- Your address
- The last 4 digits of your Social Security Number (for tax-reporting purposes and identity verification — this is required by federal law)
- A photo of your government-issued ID
- An eligible debit card to receive instant payouts — instant payouts pay to a debit card, not a bank account number, so the money lands in minutes rather than days
Stripe (our payment processor) handles this verification. Your information is encrypted in transit and at rest and is not visible to Zoooom staff or to the buyer.
Tax forms (1099-K)
Stripe will issue you a 1099-K form if your annual proceeds through Zoooom exceed the IRS reporting threshold ($5,000 for 2024 transactions, decreasing to $2,500 for 2025, and $600 thereafter under current law). A single private-party car sale is typically below this threshold, but if you sell multiple vehicles in one tax year, expect a form. Zoooom does not provide tax advice — talk to a CPA if you have questions about how a private vehicle sale affects your taxes.
The deal flow, step by step
- Buyer browses listings on zoooom.me or the marketplace at marketplace.zoooom.me and finds a vehicle they like.
- Buyer and seller chat in-app to ask questions, share additional photos, schedule a viewing, and agree on a price.
- Both parties complete identity verification if they haven't already — driver's license capture, selfie face-match. The seller also verifies vehicle ownership using the registration.
- The buyer schedules an in-person meeting at a safe location to inspect the vehicle and complete the deal. Many buyers also arrange a pre-purchase inspection at a Zoooom-vetted mechanic.
- At the meeting, both parties tap "Confirm deal in progress" in the Zoooom app. Geolocation is logged for dispute evidence.
- The buyer pays through Zoooom checkout — the full asking price by card (cars up to $15,000) or bank wire (any price), plus the $100 service fee. A buyer who prefers to can pay part online and hand the rest over in cash at the meetup.
- The seller is paid instantly. The online amount is pushed to the seller's debit card within minutes, in full, and both sides see confirmation in-app.
- The buyer pays the remaining balance in person (cash or agreed method), and the seller signs over the title and hands over the keys.
- Both parties tap "Confirm completion" in the Zoooom app, closing the deal and transferring the vehicle record to the buyer's garage.
- Title transfer with the state DMV is handled by the buyer and seller per state-specific procedures.
Read the full guides for buying a used car on Zoooom and selling your car on Zoooom.
Payout timing
- Instant payout to your debit card: Within minutes of the buyer completing the online payment, via Stripe Instant Payouts — any day of the week, including weekends and holidays. On a card the 1% instant-payout fee is part of the cost passed through to the buyer, never deducted from you.
- The in-person balance: Exchanged directly between buyer and seller at the handoff, so there's no processor timing at all.
- First-time setup: The very first payout may take a little longer while Stripe finishes verifying your new Express account; every payout after that is instant.
- Disputed transactions: If the online charge is disputed (chargeback), those funds may be reversed pending Stripe's investigation. Card and debit are capped at $15,000 per transaction, which bounds that exposure; bank wires are not reversible in the same way. See Refunds and disputes below.
Refunds and disputes
Vehicle sales on Zoooom are final once both parties confirm the handoff. Refunds may be issued in limited circumstances, including:
- Seller fraud or material misrepresentation of the vehicle.
- Failure to deliver after payment.
- Title fraud or undisclosed lien preventing the buyer from registering the vehicle.
- Unauthorized use of the buyer's payment method.
Read the full Refund & Dispute Policy for details on what's eligible, how to file a dispute, and the investigation timeline.
If a buyer disputes a charge directly with their card issuer (a "chargeback"), Stripe will notify both Zoooom and the seller. We submit evidence on the seller's behalf, including the verification records, in-app message history, and geolocation logs from the handoff — but the card issuer makes the final decision. Because the seller is the merchant of record, a successful chargeback may be debited from the seller; Zoooom reviews every chargeback case by case and reimburses the seller where warranted, though in some cases the seller may bear the risk.
Payment methods
Checkout prices each rail for you before you commit. On every rail the seller receives their full asking price; what the buyer adds on top differs — card adds $100 + 2.9% + 30¢ + the 1% instant-payout fee (about 4% of the price), wire adds only the $100, and a 100% cash sale adds nothing at all.
Credit & debit card
Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Discover. Includes Apple Pay and Google Pay as accelerated checkout options. Instant authorization and full card-network buyer protections. Available on cars up to $15,000; your own bank's limit may be lower.
Financing
Zoooom does not offer financing or buy-now-pay-later today. Klarna and Affirm have been removed. Financing is coming soon; until it ships, arrange a loan with your own bank or credit union.
Bank wire
A bank-to-bank transfer with no price ceiling — the rail for cars above $15,000, and the cheapest option on any car (Zoooom covers the bank fee, so the buyer adds only the $100). Not instant: the buyer sends it from their bank, and it must be started before 2 PM Pacific to land the same day.
Instant bank payments (RTP / FedNow)
The Federal Reserve's FedNow and The Clearing House's RTP network enable instant bank-to-bank payments. As coverage broadens, Zoooom will add them as another way to fund the online payment.
Common questions
Can I still pay in cash?
Yes. Cash is a supported rail, and on a 100% cash sale Zoooom charges nothing at all — not even the $100. You can also split a deal: pay part online and hand over the rest in cash, in which case the $100 rides the online portion. Paying online has real advantages (nobody carries a large sum, the seller is paid instantly on card, and there is a verifiable record tied to the VIN), but the choice is yours.
Who pays the payment processing fees?
The buyer does — at cost. The network and instant-settlement cost of the rail the buyer chooses is added to the buyer's total and passed straight through, with no margin added by Zoooom; the rounding is even floored so Zoooom absorbs stray cents. The seller's payout is never reduced — as a seller you receive the full asking price, so there is no haircut to price around. Zoooom's flat $100 service fee is its only revenue on the sale.
I'm a seller — how fast do I get paid, and to where?
Instantly, to your debit card. As soon as the buyer completes the online payment, Stripe Instant Payouts pushes the amount to your linked debit card — typically within minutes, any day of the week. You'll link that debit card once, when you set up your Stripe Express account. The remaining balance you collect in person at the handoff.
Why is bank wire unavailable in the afternoon?
Wires must be started before 2 PM Pacific so they can settle the same day, which is what keeps the seller's payout instant. After the cutoff, the wire option is hidden and you'll use a card or debit card instead, or wait for the next business day.
My card was declined — what do I do?
Call the number on the back of your card and let your bank know you're authorizing a vehicle purchase through Zoooom, then retry. If it still declines, try a different card or contact support. (Because the online amount is a bounded deposit, most fraud-filter declines that used to hit whole-car charges no longer apply.)
What if I'm a seller and I get a chargeback on the online payment?
Notify support@zoooom.app immediately. We'll submit our verification records and in-app evidence to Stripe to contest it on your behalf. Because the online amount is a small deposit rather than the whole price, exposure is limited. We also recommend filing a police report if you suspect fraud.
Can I sell to a buyer in a different state?
Yes, though state-specific title transfer and registration rules vary. Both parties are responsible for understanding their state's requirements. Long-distance handoffs add some complexity — consider meeting at the midpoint.