Early career Paulinho began his playing career with
Pão de Açúcar, joining the youth squad in 2004. After failing to break through into the first team, Paulinho joined Lithuanian side
Vilnius in 2006. He played well for the club during his two seasons in Lithuania, scoring five goals from 38 domestic appearances, but at the end of the 2007
LFF Lyga campaign,
Vilnius were relegated to the second division and Paulinho left the club where he moved to Poland, signing for
Ekstraklasa side
ŁKS Łódź. Following one season in Poland where Paulinho made 17 league appearances, he returned to Brazil and his first club Pão de Açúcar in the summer of 2008. After a single successful season, Paulinho was on the move again, joining
Série B side
Bragantino in 2009.
Corinthians in 2012In 2009, playing for
Bragantino, he drew the attention of
São Paulo giants
Corinthians, and was signed by the club. His first league goal for the club came on 30 May 2010, coming off the bench to score Corinthians's fourth goal, sealing a 4–2 win over state rivals
Santos. He would eventually go on to win important competitions with the São Paulo side, such as the
2011 Brasileirão and the
2012 Copa Libertadores, cementing himself as a hero for his club. Along the way to the Copa Libertadores final, Paulinho netted the only goal of the two-legged quarter-final tie against fellow Brazilian side
Vasco da Gama, scoring in the 87th minute of the second leg on 23 May 2012 to send Corinthians into the semi-finals. On 10 November 2012, Paulinho struck twice as Corinthians cruised to a 5–1 victory over
Coritiba in the 35th round of league play. On 16 December, Paulinho and Corinthians won the
Club World Cup in
Yokohama as
Paolo Guerrero scored the winner in the 1–0 victory over
European champions Chelsea.
Tottenham Hotspur On 6 July 2013,
Premier League club
Tottenham Hotspur confirmed the signing of Paulinho after he successfully completed his medical for a fee reported to be just under £17 million. This was the club's record transfer fee at the time. However, in the same transfer window, this record was broken twice with the signings of striker
Roberto Soldado from
Valencia and winger
Erik Lamela from
Roma for a deal worth an initial £25.8 million, plus up to £4.2 million in bonus payments. He made his Premier League debut on 18 August 2013 against
Crystal Palace, eventually being named Man of the Match in which Tottenham won 1–0 away thanks to a Roberto Soldado penalty. On 22 August, he scored his first goal for the club in a
Europa League qualification match against
Dinamo Tbilisi, a 5–0 away victory in the first-leg. He scored his first goal for the club in the Premier League on 22 September 2013 against
Cardiff City, a 1–0 away victory, with a
backheel in the 92nd minute of the game.
Guangzhou Evergrande On 30 June 2015, Paulinho joined
Chinese Super League side
Guangzhou Evergrande for €14 million (£9.9 million), signing a four-year deal. He was signed by his former international manager,
Luiz Felipe Scolari. On 11 July 2015, he made his debut in a 2–0 away victory against
Changchun Yatai, coming on as a substitute for
Yu Hanchao in the 78th minute. On 25 August 2015, Paulinho scored his first goal for Guangzhou with a 35-yard free-kick in the first leg of a
2015 AFC Champions League knock-out stage match against Japanese side
Kashiwa Reysol. On 13 December 2015, Paulinho scored a header against
Club América in the third and final minute of the added-time in the quarter-final in the
2015 FIFA Club World Cup, making the game 2–1 and putting Evergrande into the semi-final. In January 2017, Paulinho extended his contract with Guangzhou until 31 December 2020.
Barcelona On 14 August 2017,
Barcelona announced a deal with Guangzhou Evergrande for the purchase of Paulinho for €40 million. According to Guangzhou Evergrande, Barcelona made several unsuccessful bids before activating his release clause. On 26 August 2017, he made his debut for Barcelona in a 2–0 win over
Alavés, coming on for
Andrés Iniesta in the 87th minute. On 16 September 2017, he scored his first goal for Barcelona in a 2–1 win over
Getafe, after coming on for
Ivan Rakitić in the 77th minute. On 28 October, Paulinho scored in a 2–0 win against
Athletic Bilbao with a 92nd-minute goal. His consistent performance earned him a place as a starter in the squad. Paulinho ended the year with a brace against
Deportivo de La Coruña. On 7 January, in Barcelona's first match of the year, Paulinho scored the third goal in a 3–0 win, scoring in injury time. On 15 January 2018, he scored the first goal in Barcelona's 4–2 win over
Real Sociedad at the
Anoeta Stadium that ended the club's 10-year long victory drought at the stadium. On 9 May, Paulinho scored the second goal in Barcelona's 5–1 win over
Villarreal. Paulinho received praise for his performances throughout the season; becoming one of Barcelona's key players as they won the
domestic double. He finished the season with 9 goals in 49 appearances.
Return to Guangzhou Evergrande On 8 July 2018, Guangzhou Evergrande re-signed Paulinho on a one-year loan deal. The club also agreed an option to purchase Paulinho after the loan expires. He made his return debut on 18 July, playing the whole match in a 4–0 home win over
Guizhou Hengfeng. On 29 July, he scored on his second league match in a 5–0 home win over
Chongqing Dangdai Lifan. On 4 January 2019, Guangzhou Evergrande exercised the purchase option and signed Paulinho for €42 million. On 21 June 2021, Paulinho and Guangzhou parted ways by mutual agreement due to the
COVID-19 pandemic.
Al-Ahli On 22 July 2021, Paulinho joined
Saudi Professional League side
Al-Ahli. On 18 September 2021, he terminated his contract with the club, citing "inability to provide the desired addition to the team" as the reason.
Return to Corinthians On 1 January 2022, Paulinho returned to
Série A club
Corinthians on a free transfer. His second spell at the club was hindered by injuries, with Paulinho undergoing two
ACL reconstruction surgeries in the span of a year. He made 51 appearances and scored six goals across all competitions and left the club on mutual agreement in May 2024.
Retirement On 8 September 2024, Paulinho announced his retirement from professional football. ==International career==