The event was established in 2013 and replaced No Way Out in the mid-June slot of WWE's pay-per-view calendar.

[1] The inaugural Payback event was held on June 16, 2013, at the Allstate Arena in the Chicago suburb of Rosemont, Illinois.

[9] The 2017 event was in turn held exclusively for wrestlers from the Raw brand, and was also moved up to late-April.

As a result, Payback was discontinued due to a reduction in the amount of yearly PPVs produced.

[12] WWE resumed live touring in July 2021, but Payback would take another three-year hiatus before it was reinstated in 2023 for Labor Day weekend on September 2 at the PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.