Online payments are bigger than ever before, with more and more people utilizing services such as PayPal, Venmo, or Google Wallet to transfer money; the convenience just can't be beat. You've been able to send payments through Gmail on the web for nearly four years, but now, Gmail is introducing the ability to send and request money through the Gmail app via Google Wallet.

Google is touting this as a useful method to pay for your share of a group activity, such as a dinner bill or a trip. Using the feature is pretty straightforward: simply tap the attachment paperclip icon in the Gmail app, and choose to either send or request money from there. No other app installations are needed, and it's free for both the sender and the recipient. Oh, and people with non-Gmail email addresses can engage in this as well.

Starting today, you can send and receive money, provided you're in the US and are doing so on the web or through Gmail's Android app. The feature isn't showing up on my phones just yet. Let us know if you see anything different.

Source: Google