Beem App Review; How does this bill splitting app work?

Beem app is a free person to person payment service which allows you to send and receive money, split bills, and request money.  You can also get cashback rewards. Here’s my full Beem App review..

Verdict: Beem App is FREE, it’s growing in number of users, and it’s a secure way of making instant transfers, but if none of your friends or family have the App, Beem may not be worth the hassle.

Introduction

Beem has been around since 2018. It’s a person to person payment system which allows you to split bills, send and receive money, transfer money between your own accounts, and receive cashback rewards when you shop. You can also use it when you are making BPAY payments.

The main advantage of Beem is that you don’t have to give others your bank details when you send or receive money.  It doesn’t take long to sign up for an account and it is easy to verify your identity. Beem uses encryption and real time fraud monitoring to make sure that payments are secure.

So what are the main features and is it really worth it? Let’s take a closer look..

CaptainFI is not a Financial Advisor and the information below is factual review information, not financial advice. This website is reader-supported, which means we may be paid by advertising on the site, or when you visit links to partner or featured sites. For more information please read my Privacy Policy, Terms of Use, and Financial Disclaimer.

What is the Beem App? 

Beem, the app formerly known as Beem It, is an Australian mobile payment app allowing person to person payments without having to exchange bank details. Find out more about person to person payments here.

At the time of writing, Beem has 1.7 million users.  Users can use Beem to split bills, send and receive money, and receive cashback rewards for shopping online or in stores. You can also transfer money between any bank accounts that you have registered with Beem.

Originally, it was started by the Commonwealth Bank, the National Australia Bank, and Westpac Bank in 2018. In 2020, it was acquired by Eftpos and the name was changed from Beem It to Beem in 2022. 

“Beem is a free to download mobile payment app that helps solve those awkward “hey-you-owe-me-this-much” moments for all of Australia. Beem allows you to pay and get paid by anyone effortlessly, securely and instantly — as long as you’re both registered Beem users.  Not only that, you can now store your loyalty cards, move money between your accounts and make purchases all with the one app. Beem is a venture that’s backed by Australia payment provider, eftpos and we work closely with Australian banks to bring you the app.”

beem.com.au

How does Beem work? 

Beem users can send and receive money without sharing their bank details. All you need to share is your Beem user name.  It only takes a few minutes to sign up for Beem. Of course, because it is a financial app, you will need to verify your identity. I used my driver’s licence and was happy that I only had to give my number instead of scanning the licence.

Once you’ve signed up for Beem, you can register your Visa or MasterCard debit card attached to an Australian bank account, and you are good to go.

Beem is a good way to pay shared bills and send and receive money. You can even use Beem to pay with BPAY, although you can’t use a credit card. Beem can only be used with debit cards. Once you’ve made your payment, you can then split the bill or request a share of the payment from other users.

How much does Beem cost? 

You can download and use Beem for free, but you may have to pay bank fees when you make a transfer using the app. Beem recommends that you contact your bank to find out whether there are any fees.

I have registered two cards with Beem and neither of those banks charge me any fees.  While it is free at the moment, it is not clear if it will remain free. Currently, they are making money from their rewards partners.

What else can you use Beem for? 

As well as splitting bills and sending instant payments to other users, Beem allows you to transfer money from one of your registered bank accounts to another. It could be useful if your bank doesn’t support Osko or PayID. I probably wouldn’t use Beem for this as I am not afraid to share my bank details with myself and my transfers go through really quickly anyway.

“Beem is just like paying someone in cash.  It’s instant, easy and goes straight into their bank account.”

beem.com.au/support

The other main feature of Beem is Beem Rewards, which is a cash-back feature. It is available with online shopping or in actual stores. I now live in a regional city, so there aren’t many places where I can go to get cash back rewards. Still, one of my favourite coffee shops offers 8% cash back, so that’s pretty good.

The money registers with the app as soon as I pay, but my BeemBucks don’t become available immediately. The terms and conditions point out that the Beembucks will not become available until the shop pays Beem. Sometimes it takes a while. You can’t redeem your Beembucks until you reach a minimum of $10. There are very few banks which offer cash back rewards on debit card transactions, so that is definitely one of the advantages of using Beem.

Can people see your details on Beem? 

People can’t see your bank details at all on Beem. What you can see is the user name, profile picture, and display name. It’s good to know that using Beem is not going to result in identity theft.

For more information about identity theft, read Identity Theft: What It Is, How to Prevent It, Warning Signs and Tips – NerdWallet. 

Does Beem remind people to pay? 

Once you have sent a request to someone, Beem will send them a reminder after a few days. It will continue to send reminders every two days. It stops after two weeks, and it is not clear what happens after that.

What are the main features (advantages) of Beem? 

• You can register up to five different cards on the Beem app.  Registering is very easy. Although one of the cards will be nominated as your default card, there is no problem using any of your debit cards. 
• You can add your loyalty cards to Beem. Rather than keeping a bunch of cards in your wallet, you can easily keep a digital copy in your digital wallet pty ltd, with Beem.
• You can request or make payments without giving your bank details. Other Beem users can only see your display name, picture, and user name. 
• You can make a transfer with Beem and your bank will not know the purpose of your transfer. 
• Beem cash back rewards!

Are there any disadvantages to using Beem? 

• You can only make payments to someone who has the app. If you try to send money to someone who doesn’t have it, they will have to make an account to receive the payment. 
• You don’t have to be in Australia to use the Beem facility, but you can only transfer money to other Australians and all transactions will be in Australian dollars.
• You cannot make transfers with a credit card.
• If you want to use Beem for cash back rewards, you can’t use apps such as PayPal, Zip, or Afterpay. You need to use the debit card that you have registered with Beem. 
• When you are shopping online you need to open the website where you are making the payment through the Beem app. That means that you can’t use your computer as Beem doesn’t have a website.

Who are the market competitors for Beem and how does Beem compare? 

Beem’s main competitors for making payments are fast payment systems like Osko or PayID. These are great for sending money, but they lack the functionality of splitting bills or requesting payment. If you want to split bills or request payments, you could use apps like Splitwise are Settle Up. The free versions of these apps allow you only a very limited number of transactions per day. The KttiPay app allows you to preload the money into the app for group transactions. 

FAQs about Beem App: 

How long has Beem been around? 

Beem started in March 2018, and was created by Commonwealth Bank, the National Australia Bank, and Westpac Bank. 

Who owns Beem? 

Beem was sold to Eftpos Payments Australia in 2020 and the name was changed from Beem It to Beem.  

How are the Beem customer reviews? 

Beem has a lot of good customer reviews. It rates as 4.9 on the Apple App Store and 4.4 on the Google Play Store. Some users have reported problems transferring money while others have had problems setting up their accounts. I have found that cash back rewards do not always register, but customer service is good about fixing it up. I would give it 5 stars.

Is it safe to use Beem? 

Beem is safe to use as all user details are encrypted and they have real time fraud monitoring. In addition to this, other users do not have access to your bank details or even your full name to limit the chance of identity theft.

Verdict: Beem App is FREE, it’s growing in number of users, and it’s a secure way of making instant transfers, but if none of your friends or family have the App, Beem may not be worth the hassle.

Conclusion

Beem TM App is a good way to send and receive money if you don’t want to give your bank details. It also allows you to split bills and reminds the members of the group to pay their share if they forget.

Money transfers are also very fast with Beem.  You can also use it to make payments with BPAY. You don’t have to worry about security because Beem uses encryption and real time fraud monitoring to ensure the safety of your transactions.

Not only that, you can get cashback rewards if you make online transactions through the app. The app is very easy to use and once you download it, it doesn’t take long to register. If you have shared bills to pay, Beem is definitely worth trying.

Financial Disclaimer

Financial Disclaimer: CaptainFI is NOT a financial advisor and does not hold an AFSL. This is not financial Advice!

I am not a financial adviser and I do not hold an Australian Financial Services Licence (AFSL). In this article, I am giving you factual, balanced information without judgment or bias, to the best of my ability. I am not giving you any general or personal financial advice about what you should do with your investments. Just because I do something with my money (or use a particular service or platform) doesn’t mean it is automatically appropriate for your personal circumstances. I do not recommend nor endorse any financial or investment product, and my usage or opinion of any product should not be interpreted as an endorsement, advertisement, or intent to influence.

I can only provide factual information based on my journey to Financial Independence, and that is provided for general informational and entertainment purposes only. I make no guarantee about the performance of any product, and although I strive to keep the information accurate and updated as it changes, I make no guarantee about the correctness of reviews or information posted.

Remember – you always need to do your own independent research and due diligence before making any transaction. This includes reading and analysing Product Disclosure Statements, Terms and Conditions, Service Arrangement and Fee Structures. It is always smart to compare products and discuss them, but ultimately you need to take responsibility for your use of any particular product and make sure it suits your personal circumstances. If you need help and would like to obtain personal financial advice about which investment options or platforms may be right for you, please talk to a licensed financial adviser or AFSL holder – you can take the first steps to find a financial advisor by reading this interview, or by visiting the ASIC financial adviser register and searching in your area.

For more information please read my Privacy Policy, Terms of Use, and Financial Disclaimer.