How can I buy Telegram Stars without a card?

What are Telegram’s own routes?

Section 2 of Telegram’s Stars terms names two routes: in-app purchase on iOS and Android, and @PremiumBot on direct Android, Web and Desktop. Telegram does not process these payments itself. Apple or Google bill store purchases, so which payment methods work in a store is their decision, not Telegram’s. For card purchases outside the stores, the seller of record can be an authorized reseller acting in its own name.

Fragment is not named in that section. Telegram’s API documentation does name it, as a payment flow for Stars and as the way to make larger purchases.

Can I buy Telegram Stars without Apple Pay?

Yes: only the App Store route bills through Apple. On Android, in-app purchases go through Google. Telegram’s Premium FAQ says @PremiumBot works only in the direct Android, Desktop and macOS apps. Its accepted payment methods are not on a public page. Fragment and crypto sellers use no Apple service at all.

Can I pay with crypto instead of a card?

Yes, on Fragment and at crypto sellers. On 4 November 2026 Fragment’s buy pages listed GRAM on TON, USDT on Ethereum, TON, Polygon and Tron, and USDC on Ethereum, Base and Polygon. A buyer who holds USDT can use Fragment directly at its list price, plus the network fee, by connecting a TON wallet. Fragment’s page showed a network fee hint of $2.79 for USDT on Tron. Pages that say Fragment takes TON only are out of date.

Aurelstar takes BTC, USDT, USDC, ETH, SOL, LTC: USDT on TRC-20 or ERC-20, and USDC on ERC-20. GRAM (Toncoin), Monero, Lightning, cards and PayPal are not accepted. Send the exact amount shown to the address on the payment page, then click “I’ve sent the payment”. It is matched by its exact amount and credited once it is confirmed on the blockchain. The steps are in How do I buy Telegram Stars with crypto?, and the USDT networks in Can I buy Telegram Stars with USDT?

Most crypto sellers stop at crypto. Of the 18 crypto sellers Aurelstar read on 4 November 2026, 4 also named cards or fiat: split.tg, SMMACC, TGBlue and SplitStars.

Can I buy Telegram Stars with PayPal or a gift card?

Not at Aurelstar, and three crypto gift-card shops checked on 4 November 2026 did not list Stars either. GRAM (Toncoin), Monero, Lightning, cards and PayPal are not accepted. Bitrefill’s US catalogue showed no Stars or Premium. CoinGate and Cryptorefills showed none on the pages read. Coinsbee could not be confirmed either way.

TOPUPlive, a seller that takes no crypto, lists cards, PayPal and local methods in its payment FAQ, and showed 100 Stars at €1.56. Aurelstar read that page and did not test it. Local methods that appear in searches, such as GCash, UPI and Pix, are not accepted at Aurelstar, which takes crypto only.

How do I pay for Telegram Premium without a credit card?

The same two no-card routes exist for Premium: Fragment and crypto sellers. Fragment’s gift page sold 3, 6 and 12 months at $11.99, $15.99 and $28.99 on 4 November 2026. Aurelstar charges $12.59, $16.79 and $30.44. A Premium gift is a non-recurring subscription: it does not renew when its term ends.

Aurelstar is not an authorized Telegram reseller and is not affiliated with Telegram. Telegram’s Premium terms have no clause on resale, and Fragment’s terms let a buyer give a subscription away; a ban on the account can still remove Premium with no compensation.

In the app, Premium comes through the App Store, Google Play or @PremiumBot. Telegram’s FAQ says @PremiumBot takes the currency and price of the first payment from the phone number’s country code, then from the country of the payment method.

What does paying without a card cost?

The route sets the price more than the coin does. On 4 November 2026, 1,000 Stars cost $15.00 on Fragment before its network fee, $15.75 at Aurelstar and $19.99 in the US App Store. Aurelstar’s rule is Fragment’s price plus 5%, read on 4 November 2026. We do not claim to be the cheapest: some crypto sellers charged less on 4 November 2026. For 1,000 Stars, where our price is $15.75, split.tg showed $15.30, Gramix from $15.30 and GMPAPA $15.45. The full comparison is in Is Fragment cheaper than buying Telegram Stars in the app?

A crypto payment also has no Apple or Google refund path, so the refund rules differ from a store purchase. At Aurelstar, you top up from $25 and buy from the balance, and the order goes to the @username you enter. How does buying Telegram Stars with crypto work at Aurelstar? gives each step.